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.