What do we do during a blow?

We are hunkered down at the north end of Alabaster Bay for what everyone is calling the "last front of winter!" The forecast called for 2-3 days of 20-30 knots winds...sometimes 25 knots sustained with gusts to 30 knots, sometimes 20 knots sustained with gusts to 25, and sometimes light then gusting to the 20's. And it's cool...in the low 70's! So what do we do when the weather is like this?

First is to figure out our plan for where to be. In this case we chose the north end of Alabaster Bay as there is not much here so we figured not many boats would be here (and therefore less neighbors to worry about bumping). This spot is also right next to the airport so some folks may not love that, but it makes me feel like I'm back on an aircraft carrier! With no protection from the west here, ahead of the front we had to endure a sloppy evening as the winds clocked from southerly through westerly before settling in to the strong north easterlies. We knew to expect it so it was fine. We rigged our snubbers all the way to midship so there was more "stretch" room for gusts and let out 5:1 scope of chain. Once the wind clocked, we backed down on the anchor again to ensure it was set/re-set since we had swung 180 degrees from where we first set it--we were solid! 

Ok, so what do we do so that we don't go crazy cooped up together for days on end? This front presented us with a great distraction...RAIN! I went crazy scrubbing the salt off the hull and giving the deck another quick scrub, but we also set up our new rain collecting system for the first time. We collected at least a few gallons of water and adjusted our setup. It's a nice little supplement to our watermaking--we topped off a tank and filled a bucket to wash some towels.

RAIN! Time to scrub and collect water!

I also clean and cook! I've wiped down the bilges, consolidated stores, wiped down wood, and just generally cleaned a little deeper than usual. The galley has been busy with baking bread and crumbles; cooking up favorites like jollof rice, refried beans, lentil sloppy joe's, and potato salad in the pressure cooker; and crafting beautiful salads with our fresh veggies from the Eleuthera Island Farm. 

Crummy weather makes for a busy, messy galley!

We also knocked out school, stayed caught up on grading, and played games, which included family lessons on how to play poker! So poker, Skip Bo, Farkel, and Uno have been seeing some action the past few days, along with some movies, painting, and even a little spa time hosted by Katreina. 

Game time! Deuces are wild!

With winds staying below 20 knots today we may venture ashore for a nice, long walk. It's a blow, but it doesn't blow!