This was the maiden voyage of Laughing Moon. She was purchased as "MacKenzie" out of the charter fleet of Catamaran Company in Tortola, BVI, and was now bound for Florida. My insurance company insisted on a hired skipper, so John Perkins joined us. Doug and Deb Garcia met us at Crown Bay Marina in St. Thomas where we provisioned and headed out. We budgeted two weeks for the trip, which began by trying to outrun then hide from Hurricane Alex. After a long overnight sail, we tucked into the mangroves of Salinas, Puerto Rico. The storm diminished and passed well north, so we untangled ourselves and continued on to Boqueron to stage ourselves for the voyage north.

The weather looked good, so we took a double overnight passage to Provo, Turks & Caicos. The weather was lovely but things were beginning to break. The autopilot went but we found a suitable motor in Puerto Rico, installed it en route and all was fine. The refrigeration was the real problem. The crew became surly with warm sodas and beer. Cold drinks at Turtle Cove in Provo improved dispositions nicely.

Another overnight passage to Mayaguana, Bahamas, and morale was weak again. Not much there, but we had a nice dinner ashore, scrounged a tiny bit of ice from generous locals and pushed on to Rum Cay. What a surprise Sumner Point Marina turned out to be. Gourmet dinner and a new baby for Doug & Deb; a weeks-old Bahamian potcake, given the name Marina.

Next stop, George Town, Great Exuma. Some shoreside time, dining and drinking. A few repair parts, then off up the Exumas. An overnight at Staniel Cay, another nice dinner ashore. A quick snorkel into Thunderball Cave. Then up to Allens/Leaf Cays to visit the famous black iguanas.

A long sail up to Nassau, docking at the Yacht Harbour. Did a couple of days of shoreside time and then Doug, Deb and Katreena flew back to Florida. John, Marina and I sailed to an anchorage in the Bank. After a night's sleep we continued on to Gun Cay. The next morning the forecast looked good so we cruised across the Stream to Ft. Lauderdale. LM ended her voyage in a safe slip at Las Olas Marina.

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The crew of Laughing Moon made their very first voyage to Bimini, Bahamas. Not considered a great sailing destination it is, however, the closest port to Ft. Lauderdale. Laughing Moon was leaving Harbor Islands Marina in Hollywood due to disagreements over what consistitutes fair dockage; they had LM so boxed in against the seawall with overlength boats that it took two cans of Crisco and great care to exit without swapping gelcoat.

The weather was beautiful, the seas a bit bumpy and the voyage completed easily in daylight. Though it looked tricky, the entrance into Bimini Sands on South Bimini was painless. The marina and condos are still under development so the basin was wide open and easy. Plans will change that within the next year. The staff of the marina were courteous and helpful. The nearby beach is very nice. Fine dining was mostly aboard, however, as the island only has two restaurants, both owned by the condo. A stroll to the south end of the island took us to Bimini Beach Club, which was completely lacking in guests but the staff was pleasant nonetheless.

We did a couple of excursions to North Bimini on the inexpensive ferry ($2 each way) and found more pleasant folks but a rather run down pair of villages. Between the upscale development of Bimini Sands and the elaborate new development at the north end with Bimini Bay, it looks like the islands will be getting some new trade in the near future which should help it return to its glory days.

The journey back was smooth and the weather still great. Unfortunately, our loving companion Honey, who celebrated her 16th birthday in Bimini, passed away on the voyage home. She had a long and happy life of 16 years but we'll miss her terribly. A couple of nights in one of our favorite stops, Las Olas Marina, then on to LM's new home in Lake Worth at Lake Park Marina.

Laughing Moon rarely has simple journeys anymore. Now that she's berthed at Lake Park Marina, just inside the Lake Worth Inlet, it was time to see what's near. We cruised up the ICW to Hobe Sound and into Peck Lake. Unfortunately, there are 7 bascule bridges en route, many of which were on schedules. The PGA, Donald Ross and Indiantown Bridges were all on half-hour schedules, contrary to the cruising guides. The charts say no depth but the talk among cruisers says otherwise. There were several deep draft vessels and we anchored safely in 7 feet of water. I later took soundings from the dinghy and found 6 to 10 feet from a submerged sailboat to the north end of the beach, from the large weather structure to the ICW.

There are only a few homes visible on the west side, so the area is very natural. The only challenge is the high speed limit of that section of ICW and the wake that results. The hook held firm for a week just fine. There is a small trail from the beach to a lovely stretch of Atlantic beach. Pets are permitted on leash and Coco & Callie had a ball. We kayaked the mangroves, watched manatees at play, enjoyed nice sunsets and had a very good time. A 45 minute dinghy ride took us to Manatee Pocket in Stuart/Port Salerno, where there are restaurants, groceries and marine supplies.

Doug, Deb and Marina joined at the beginning and end of the cruise in their Regal 29' express cruiser, Honey Moon. It's only an hour or so from their home on the Loxahatchee River in Jupiter. They rafted off LM which didn't cause our hook to budge on bit, despite 180 degree turns in the night. The last night in Peck Lake we unhooked HM and cruised up to Manatee Pocket for a nice dinner ashore. All in all a very pleasant trip.