May 7-10, 2022 Current Cut, Meeks Patch and Spanish Wells, Eleuthera

5-7 Saturday We decided to move to Spanish Wells today.  We thought we’d see if we could get on a cancellation list to have our bottom painted at R&B boatyard.  Also for protection from west winds.  We had to put away the hookah system after everything dried overnight.  And we had to load the Portland Pudgy dinghy back onto the deck.  We left by 10:00.  We had some rough seas and I actually was sick for the first time in years.  
We were at Current Cut by 2:30.  Seas had calmed and I was feeling better.  High tide in Nassau was at 1:16.  Ideal time to enter the cut would be in another hour, but we had the current with us and decided to go through.  It was a smooth transit around 6.7kn.  We anchored on the east side of Meeks Patch by 4:00.  There were about 25 boats there, most we’ve ever seen at this anchorage.  We also saw the sailboat Bliss that we met at Alabaster Bay.

chart showing us anchored on the north east side of Meeks Patch

When we went below, we discovered we had water in the bilge!!  The floor was wet at the bottom of the stairs of the companionway.  Water had come up over the floor boards in the salon and galley area while the boat heeled, but returned through the floor boards to the bilge.  
It was no longer coming in.  That meant there wasn’t a hole above the waterline.  So we weren’t in any danger of sinking.  We’ll have to do some searching and trouble shooting to find where it came in.  

debris on the floor on the starboard side below our galley oven that would have come from the bilge

wet rugs on the port side

5-8 Mother’s Day  I made a German dinner for my special day. 

red cabbage and a mix of spaetzle and sausage

5-9 Monday was “town day”. We moved the boat closer to Spanish Wells.  There wasn’t any new water in the bilge, so the leak is probably not engine related.  Whew!  
We went to Pinder’s dock to get fuel and groceries.  We walked to 3 places along the harbor looking for more Starbrite oxalic acid rust remover.  We found a cheaper version made by Awesome, a brand I have seen in Dollar Stores.  We decided to give it a try.  
We talked to Robert at R&B boatyard about checking with us if he had a cancellation for painting our hull.  We discussed possibly buying the paint from him and doing it ourself.
We decided to go to Buddha’s for lunch and had awesome hamburgers.  He now has his own beer on tap, Buddha’s Ale, that was really good. 

5-10 Tuesday. Dave started looking for signs of a leak today.  You have to pretty much tear apart the boat to get to the inside wall of the hull.  He did find streaks on the wall of the hull behind the oven in the galley on the starboard side and on the port wall in the aft cabin.  Talking to Harry on Bliss, he said it’s common to have leaks along the toe rail or the bedding of stantions or the rub rail.
So, as long as we stay out of rough seas, we’ll probably finish trouble shooting and repair the leak once we’re back at the marina in Brunswick, GA or in a boat yard.