Rum Cay

The sail to Rum Cay was pretty run of the mill...but our “final approach” to the Marina was considerably more exciting.

Goats seeking shade under the car

There is only one marina in Rum Cay and it is free due to hurricane damage. Repairs are underway but a large portion of the docks are in severe disrepair – not to mention the sunken boat in one of the slips.

The channel leading into the marina is a very narrow zigzag bordered by shallow sandy shoals and coral heads. The chart – of course – shows the channel as being clearly marked by buoys which, naturally, are all missing – except for one. One buoy by itself, out of context due to the rest of the missing buoys is useless as there is no way to determine which buoy it is supposed to be. So the only hope is to follow the “magenta line” on the chart plotter and follow the verbal instructions given by the dock master to guide you in.

We were third in our flotilla of four and had the deepest draft. The first boat through took a corner too wide and grounded on a sand bar on the left side of the channel. Trying to stay clear of the first boat in case they suddenly became free, the second boat ventured too far out to the right side of the channel and grounded on a sandbar. The channel, now nicely marked by these two very large “buoys” allowed us to slip through and tie off on the inside of the outer dock, followed the the fourth boat who tied off on the outside of the outer dock.

By the time we were both tied off the first two boats had freed themselves from their respective sandbars and were coming in.

The next “hurdle”...and I do mean hurdle...was the shallow hump in the channel between the outer dock and the actual marina slips. Both of the first two boats had drafts shallow enough to get across and get into a slip...although the second boat with a 5 foot draft bumped and ploughed its way across. With our 6 foot draft there was no way in for us for a few hours until high tide...but the dock master was sure the fourth boat could make it through even though their draft was 5’3”. He was - of course – wrong. So now the fourth boat was securely stuck in the middle of the channel for several hours until lifted off by the tide. We were the only boat in the group to make it to a slip without grounding. With all four of us safely tucked in any trepidation of the events that might take place on our eventual exit were quickly washed away by beer and rum.

The Sandbar...with a sand floor

The next day we explored the outpost of Rum Cay. We’d just missed Rum Cay Days so it was rather quiet. Basically Rum Cay has one road that is a big loop. There are a couple of drinking establishments, a couple of restaurants, a couple of small grocery stores and the BaTelCo (Bahamas Telecom) which provides the internet and our connection to the outside world. All in all a pleasant enough place, except for the evening onslaught of bugs – millions of “no see ‘ums”. Thank goodness we have screens for every window and hatch.

Joe’s Sound

I’m starting to feel like a ‘cruiser’.
 

Flotilla of four

We picked up another sailboat (Sherry & Jim on s/v Dulcinea) on the way from George Town to Joe’s Sound...a couple we met at the “Going South” chat in George Town...so now we are a flotilla of four.
 
When we arrived at the anchorage at Joe’s Sound it was empty but over the next few days more boats arrived and a few departed. By this morning when we left there were about 12 boats counting our group of 4.
 
We arrived in Joe’s Sound last Thursday and all went in for a bit of a ‘happy hour’ on the beach at sunset. We had the place to ourselves.
 
Friday morning while ‘the guys’ went lobstering on the coral reef, ‘the girls’ (led by Leslie) headed off to explore the island. We cut through between a couple of uninhabited beach houses, hit the road and flagged down the first vehicle we saw and hitched a ride...all 4 of us (5 girls if you count Leslie’s little pug “Sadie”). s/v Dulcinea is the only boat in our group that is not Canadian...and Sherry being from Texas was a bit hesitant to get in a strange man’s vehicle (something none of us would ever do in Texas...or any other state) but our good Samaritan was a very nice older gentleman from Ottawa. He and his wife had taken up residence on Long Island and he was heading home...where we all piled out of his SUV and walked back to the crossroads (maybe a quarter mile) to the restaurant/bar and had a beer and shared some plantains before heading back the way came.
 
We flagged down another little van on the way back but it was already full of 3 guys and a lot of tools...so we covered the 2 or 3 miles on foot.
 
When we got back to the beach where our boats were anchored the guys were so busy lobstering they didn’t answer us on the radio and didn’t seem to see us until we walked way down the beach toward the reef they were snorkeling/hunting on. They had snagged 4 lobster...and Doug had a big one but he wiggled off the spear just as he was putting him in the dinghy. Doug went after him and chased him but he was quick and hid deep in a hole.
 
We all went out again in the afternoon – snorkeling and hunting for lobster but came up empty on the lobster, but spent several enjoyable hours watching all kinds of beautifully coloured fish swimming in and out of the crevices and holes in the reef...and I’m happy to report that my snorkeling is much improved but I’ll never be the ‘fish’ that Doug is.
 
Our happy hour on the beach that evening included appetizers - which of course included some of the day’s catch.
 
Saturday morning we were all excited to search for more lobster, but the long and short of it is the only one we caught was the poor lobster that escaped Doug the day before.
 
But the day wasn’t a total loss. For the first time I managed to haul myself back into the dinghy after snorkeling without assistance...a skill that had so far been eluding me...not that it was at all graceful...but I did it by myself. And there was another dinghy lesson. I managed to start the finicky outboard and then maneuver us back to the boat from the reef with absolutely zero finesse...but I’m sure that will come with practice.
 
Happy hour turned into a pot luck dinner with still one lobster remaining from the day before and one

more big one (as well as other contributions from the group) we had quite a feast on the beach.
Sunday was a ‘work day’ as we were all heading for Rum Cay bright and early Monday morning. It’s amazing how quickly and completely things work their way out of stowage whenever we stop for a day or two...so the day was spent tidying, stowing, route/waypoint planning, preparing for docking in Rum Cay (rather than anchoring), hauling the outboard off the dinghy and tying the dinghy on the foredeck, and doing some general maintenance.

A number of ‘new’ boats had taken up residence in the anchorage. One was a boat from Lakeshore Yacht Club that we conversed with (on the VHF radio) as we were crossing the Great Bahama Banks just after landing in Bimini, so when we saw them on the beach we went in to finally have a face-to-face chat.
 
It was a fairly early night for everyone as “anchors up” at 7:00 AM means you are up by 6:00 AM to make that happen...and as planned we were all “anchors up” at 7:00 and on our way to Rum Cay.

George Town...still

We are still in George Town...but heading out tomorrow to the “Far Bahamas”.
 
The next planned stops will be: Joe’s Sound, Thompson Bay, (Long Island) Conception Island, Rum Cay and then Mayaguana Island...all still part of the Bahamas.
 
We are looking forward to some fishing and snorkelling along the way...






 
 
We have “buddied up” with another 2 boats heading south...Nigel & Elizabeth on ‘Hali’ ... and Dave & Leslie (who used to live in Meander River, Alberta back in the 70’s in the only house with running water – first person I ever met who knew where High Level was AND had been there) on ‘Vivace’...and we are picking up another couple on another boat in Thompson Bay.
 
I had to go up the mast again...we lost the VHF antenna...but I installed a new antenna and coil, fixed the windex and ran a new spare halyard thru the mast while I was up there.

George Town

We made it to George Town on Thursday (Feb 7)...a day ahead of the norther coming though. It’s still a bit windy today but the worst is over. Most of the anchorages so far have had a couple of other boats and in the bigger settlements maybe 10 or so. George Town – according to the Cruisers Net on the VHF this morning – counted 285 boats anchored in the harbour...

OMG...it’s like camp for “old folks” (and a few younger ones...even some with little kids). There is bridge club and volleyball, yoga on the beach, bible study, dominoes, organized walks, jam sessions, conch horn oompahpah bands, going south seminars, straw basket making...Valentine’s dances, pig roasts...and the list goes on...

Bimini to Staniel Cay

Yes we are still alive!

Anchored at Shroud Cay

Since clearing in at Bimini we haven’t had any internet. Another couple with a Bahamas BlackBerry offered to let me send out an email but they couldn’t pick up a signal. The Bahamas – other than the main tourist spots – is pretty sparsely populated.

Our first stop across the Great Bahama Bank was New Providence Island...but on the opposite end of the island from Nassau...to get protection from the wind. We stayed there a few days on the anchor. We didn’t put the dinghy in as it was pretty choppy and there was nothing close enough to dinghy to...but it was a nice relaxing couple of days.

Next we headed for Highbourne Cay...again to get protection from the wind which was clocking around to come out of the north...and again we didn’t put the dinghy in as there is only a

small marina at Highbourne Cay. We stayed there for a few days waiting for favourable winds.

Thunderball Grotto - Staniel Cay

Next it was off to Shroud Cay...which is in the Bahamas Land and Sea Park. Finally the dinghy went in and we explored the mangrove swamps all the way to the ocean side of the island, we swam, explored the beaches, snorkeled and socialized with the other cruisers...but the island is uninhabited (as is most of the park) so no internet. We were there for a few days when we got word a norther was heading our way but we were in a spot with good protection from the north so we stayed.

Conch "Fishing"

The strong winds of the norther died down to 10 – 12 kts ...perfect for a sail southward to Staniel Cay...our first landing (since Bimini) in Bahamian civilization. We’ll be here for a few days to provision, fuel, take on water...and visit the swimming pigs at Big Major Cay and Thunderball Cave (from the old Bond movie)...and there is internet here...so we will call if we can get a strong enough signal

Next planned stops are Black Point and then George Town...all weather dependent.