As the crow flies our next destination on the north shore of Providenciales was only some four miles away; however to get there you have to travel in a westward direction to outside the western barrier reef, then in a northeast direction around the northwest cape of the island, then back in a southeast direction to re-enter the reef near our intended anchorage, a total distance of some 30 nautical miles.

On Friday, January 15 we departed at 0800 in east winds, making for a pleasant run out the Sandbore Channel . Our inclination had been to delay another day because of the concern we had for whether the Cut we needed to take to enter through the northern barrier reef would be navigable. After listening to the weather forecast we radioed a north shore marina that morning for some local feedback and their response was that the Cut was navigable. Hearing that, and having some relatively moderate morning winds, Our White Magic was eager to make the trip to arrive somewhere where they could purchase groceries (not available on the southern side of the island).

Unfortunately, winds picked up soon in excess of forecast. Traveling the western and northern shores was unexpectedly rough due to north swells coming at us and 20+ knot easterly winds. Some reminiscence of the challenging portions of our initial ocean crossing!  Despite the pounding we arrived safely, having added some engine power to our sails to shorten the amount of time we were exposed, with the benefit of a favorable 2-knot current . The preferred Sellars Cut entry through the reefs (it was closest to our target anchorage) could have been challenging in certain conditions; however we knew that the nearby alternate and wider Stubbs Cut could also be used to gain entry through the barrier reef across this north shore if Sellars Cut was not be navigable due to breaking waves. When we were about 20 minutes out from the Cut, Donna radioed an "all vessels" call for a comeback from any vessel with knowledge of the existing conditions at Sellars Cut. A local fisherman responded who was actually anchored right near the cut and informed us basically that the cut was navigable. We were happy to hear that and proceeded in that direction. After the boisterous passage, the entry through the Cut (which had initially been our concern all along) became a “non-event” and was quite lovely.

We were relieved, after picking through the various coral heads you have to watch for when navigating the inner waters of the north coast, to sink our anchor into a sandy bottom off a lovely beach dotted with resorts . This first anchorage was selected largely because, along with its lovely beach, it was within walking distance of the large local grocery store, which was particularly of interest to the crew of Our White Magic since they have more mouths to feed and were low on supplies.

We spent five nights at this location, giving us the opportunity to snorkel several reefs, grocery shop, and visit the local Visitors Center of the Department of Environment & Coastal Resources (DECR) of the TCI. The reefs are of varying interest with the most exciting having lovely and varied coral, a wide variety of fish, and giving us the opportunity to see gorgeous Spotted Eagle Rays, Hawksbill Turtles, and sharks.

During our last day at this anchorage, a group of four Hobie Wave guys set a race course just off the beach and our anchored position was right in the middle of the course. Dave (an ex-Hobie Cat racer himself) thought that was pretty cool and spent the time on deck watching them . They used some existing small boat landing channel marks for the start line, which wasn't very square. The wind was blowing 15-20 with gusts to 25, so they had their hands full. Their starting sequence consisted of one guy yelling a 3-second countdown to start a 2-minute sequence on their watches.

Dave watched them race several races.   Between starts the guys came by and chatted a bit.  Before one of the last starts Dave went into the salon to get some lunch. Suddenly, Donna yelled that one of the boats was going to hit us! Dave looked out the window in time to see it coming perpendicular to our starboard hull. The skipper was looking behind his boat, NOT where he was going, apparently waiting to start his stopwatch for the start of the next race. BAM - he T-boned us. Dave jumped in the dinghy to get a look at the side of Pas de Deux, and saw no damage. It seems these Waves are made of softer material than fiberglass; otherwise Dave was sure the impact would have caused some dings . Regardless, the skipper was very apologetic. He retired from the races soon after, either due to embarrassment or whiplash. To show his good humor, Dave put out a fender in the spot he hit. 

The other three guys kept racing and eventually had to quit and pick up their marks. By now the wind was consistent 20-25 knots. Only one guy was still out getting the last mark - about 1/4 mile offshore - with the others already on the beach with their sails down. Dave was on deck watching the last guy when he saw his Hobie Cat capsize, throwing the guy into the water and continuing to blow away from him downwind. He was several hundred yards from us. These boats have a float on top of the mast which prevents them from turtle-ing, but also means that they "sail" quite fast when capsized. Dave jumped in the dinghy to go rescue him because there was no way he was going to swim fast enough to catch the boat and (besides!) he was yelling for help. We don't know if any of the other guys on the beach saw him . Dave picked him up in the dinghy and took him to his boat, which he righted and continued on to retrieve the last mark. He was very thankful, coming by our boat on his way back in to thank Dave again.

After five days, we grew tired of the same location and moved eastward to anchor in the “famous” Grace Bay with its array of luxurious resorts. We visited shore to see the shops and restaurants clustered in this area and took the opportunity to pick up a few grocery items. Our White Magic remained in place as they had plans to enter a nearby marina the following day to take on water and handle some other tasks.

The following day we moved eastward again to an anchorage off a lovely beach whose claim to fame was its use as a backdrop for a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition. We took a lovely stroll to include an adjacent island, home to native iguanas. We had a chance to see the type of home they build in the sand . On the way back to our dinghy along the beach we observed a very active pelican diving repetitively into the water for fish—no doubt with good success. It finally settled in a position atop a rock outcropping, which we were able to climb to approach and take pictures while it rested and preened itself.

Earlier in the day, we had been approached by a Wharram-designed catamaran which Dave would describe as beautiful and quite unique with its Polynesian flair. Sailing closely by gave Dave an opportunity to say hello, having a short conversation complementing each other’s boat. The skipper asked if we were going to still be there the following morning, which we confirmed—implying that he might like to stop back to see us again.

The next morning around 11AM we left to snorkel a nearby reef. By mid-afternoon we had returned and the Wharram catamaran returned, shouting an invitation to have a glass of wine together, and anchoring nearby. We took the dinghy over for a visit. The owner, Tim, had built the vessel Beluga himself and was currently conducting a charter for two private guests who had left quickly for a short swim to the beach. While they were away we chatted about all sorts of things boat related while Tim prepared a buffet luncheon for his charter guests and asked that we stay to enjoy it as well. We learned that the charter couple would be retiring shortly and were interested in purchasing a catamaran to sail as a fulfillment of their personal “dream” . Tim told us they would enjoy hearing our thoughts on that topic and when they returned from their swim we were happy to meet them and invited them aboard Pas de Deux after lunch for a tour and afternoon cocktail.

The following day, Saturday January 23, we moved to an anchorage at Pelican Bight where we could dinghy to more nearby reef areas for snorkeling. Our White Magic rejoined us at this anchorage for the first day and found time for swimming and snorkeling as well. It was a perfect day for snorkeling with extremely light wind and excellent water clarity. Dave took advantage of the light winds as well to climb the mast and take some photographs. The winds kicked up overnight, however, and made for some “roll-y” sleeping.

Over the past few days we had been listening to local weather forecasts for a window of opportunity to move back around to the south coast which is the staging area for travel further southward across the Caicos Banks . Our aim was to visit the South Caicos/Long Cay area and cross the Columbus Passage at a convenient time to Big Sand Cay or Salt Cay which offers a great opportunity to catch a glimpse of the humpback whales as this is the season for their migration. We did not see a weather window for beginning this journey any earlier than Wednesday. Our White Magic decided to leave Sunday for the passage to the south side and would rest there to determine whether they wanted to continue to wait for a weather window to head south (unlikely) or would instead take the favorable winds in a northerly direction back up toward the Exumas Chain and eventually on a course to their destination Miami, from which they would later depart for travels to Mexico and Belize.

We said our “good-byes” to Our White Magic, although it is quite possible we may yet see them along our route. We will stay in touch with them by radio. Our intention is to take Pas de Deux across the Caicos Banks, then across the Columbus Passage to what is effectively the southernmost point in the Turks & Caicos Islands, after which point we would turn around for our final passage-making northbound, ending back at Norfolk VA at the beginning of May. Our turn northward would basically mark the midpoint of our journeys—after three months of our overall six-month passage.