February 10, 2012
The Big Adventure -- Travelling to the Jumentos and Ragged Islands
Not that living on a sailboat and cruising the Bahamas isn't already an adventure, but today we embarked on what we’ve long considered one of our biggest “Big Adventures”. We are heading towards the southernmost chain of islands in the Bahamas … aptly called the “Ragged Islands” because it is much like the Baamas were 50 years ago. There is one settlement, but no grocery store, no water, no fuel. You can order food from Nassau that arrives by mail boat ... when the mail boat comes this far south.
Everything we’ve read about the Jumentos and Ragged Islands has been intimidating, and we figured that maybe next year we’d give it a try after adding a water maker to Maja. But the allure of the Ragged Islands has been strong b/c our friends, Chris and Karen on s/v Synergy, only sail in the Raggeds, and they get so much lobster and fish that she frequently returns to the states at the end of the season with a freezer still full of meat. Ohhhh, to catch fish! We’ve had no luck this year, not even a nibble ….
The scale was tipped when our friends, Ed and Karin on s/v Passages (who we’ve tailed since Vero Beach in November) suggested that we go down with them and they’d make water for us on their boat. So the seed was planted while we were in the marina at Emerald Bay with them to watch the Super Bowl, and continued once we arrived in Long Island.
Long Island was a new destination for us and we had planned to stay there for about a week, exploring, swimming and doing boat projects. However, Ed and Karin came over for beers shortly after we dropped anchor, and the ‘vague notion’ became a ‘solid plan’ when they told us that we were coming with them to the Jumentos, and we were leaving in 2 days! Matter settled! Any concerns we had were waylaid by Ed who assured us that we were carrying plenty of fuel, and that they had more than enough to share should it come to that. Since one of the biggest concerns in the far islands is the ability to be self-sufficient, we figured that that with Ed and Karin’s 10yrs of sailing experience, we’d be travelling in pretty good company. Plus, Chris and Karen (s/v Synergy) are in Hog Cay at the end of the Ragged Islands, so the lure of Big Adventure was too much to resist.
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| Cafe on the beach |
So instead of a week in Long Island, we spent one day! We rented a car with Ed and Karin and spent the day driving from one end of the island to another … the first time we’ve seen the islands by land and driven on the left side of the street. We ended the day with a big shopping trip at an incredibly well-stocked grocery store, and filled up on diesel and extra gasoline (which we use for the dinghy and our Honda generator).
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| Monument to Christoper Columbus, marking the loss of the s/v Santa Maria on Long Island |
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| Our first blue hole on Long Island |
Anchor up and underway at 6:30 for the ~60mile trip to Flamingo Cay. It will take 2 days to reach Hog Cay, and we must get there by Saturday afternoon before the wind shifts to the north/west and increases to 25 knots. Hog Cay offers the only good protection from north/west winds, so that’s the place we want to be.
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| Shadow of our sails in the water |
Our big adventure got off to a good start when we saw our first Water Spout on the ocean. We could get excited b/c it was far enough away, but it looked just like it does on the weather channel! Kinda like watching a tornado move across the surface of the ocean … a narrow funnel cloud that left a big splash where it hit the water…
It was a lovely sail down to Flamingo Cay, with the majority of the trip completed under sail alone. Once the anchors were down, the four boats sharing the anchorage met on shore and discussed the impending weather front.
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| Anchorage at Flamingo Cay |
We had talked with s/v Synergy on the radio, and they urged us to continue south and not stay at Flamingo Cay because the anchorage is too exposed to the high winds predicted to clock from the north to the west, and there was a good chance we’d get hit with big westerly swells during the blow. The big question was how long would the wind blow strong from the west … and how crowded was the anchorage at Hog Cay if we continued south? We’d been hearing on the radio that it was crowded, and no one would be leaving with the cold front coming. So should we stay put or should we go south? Stay or go … stay or go. We discussed it well into the night on shore, and even later back on the boat via the radio. One boat decided to go back to Long Island, one boat decided to stay at Flamingo Cay, and s/v Passages also decided to stay at Flamingo as they did not want to pull into Hog Cay at the end of the day and not find any room. We went back and forth with the discussion until bedtime, when Dan decided that the prudent thing was to return to Long Island since s/v Synergy urged us not to stay at Flamingo Cay for the front.
February 11
In the morning, the weather forecast was no better. As we renewed the 'stay vs. go" discussion, we got a call from s/v Synergy on the SSB radio, and he encouraged us to come on south. He’s never steered us wrong and he’s been down here for a month, so we took his advice, and changed our minds once again! So we raised anchor, waved goodbye to Ed and Karin, hoping to see them in a few days, and pointed our bow south. The one advantage was now our “group” was one boat instead of four, so chances were better that we’d find room in the Hog Cay anchorage.
It was a windy and wet and rolly sail down to Hog Cay, but no sight was better than turning into the Southside anchorage at 4pm and seeing Chris and Karen coming out to meet us in their dinghy! The anchorage is tricky so their help was wonderful … the sea bed is a mix of sand and grass, and you need to drop the hook square on the sand. After 3 tries, we were nestled in soundly. And, Chris and Karen had gone out fishing just before we got there and speared 4 lobsters for dinner on their boat! Welcome to the Jumentos! So good to see them and to be here. After a wonderful dinner and bottle of wine, we were back on s/v Maja, prepared for the winds to start howling …
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| Karen and Dan |
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| Nancy and Chris |
The wind started to blow in earnest at about 2a.m. Nothing in the Bahamas has protection from the west, but our anchorage had a long stretch of shallow water around a point that took the brunt of the heavy swells. This was definitely the place to be … I slept all night and Dan was up just a couple of times to check the anchor. Comparing notes with Ed and Karin reinforced that we made the right decision, and we reminded ourselves that it pays to go with local knowledge. Ed and Karin had an awful night of heavy west winds and swells that pounded them for 24 hrs … so much so that their keel hit bottom and they slept in the cockpit. Since the winds were predicted to stay high for the next few days, they went back to Long Island to wait for a better weather window.
The winds were too strong for us to leave the boat, but at least we were here ... 62 miles from Cuba!
February 13
Finally, the winds moderated and clocked around to the south, so we were able to move over to Hog Cay, a really sweet anchorage. Cruisers have built fire pits on the shore, there is a beautiful beach, and great trails for hiking over to the ocean. After being on the boat for 3 days, getting ashore is always a welcome change of pace. There are probably 15 boats that have stayed here all winter, so it was fun to hang out with a group of people that you could actually recognize from day to day! Other than the fact that they are a touch possessive about ‘their anchorage” and don’t take kindly to newcomers (aka people like us!), we did our best to blend in.
February 14 – Happy Valentine’s Day!
Valentine’s Day is a big deal in the Ragged Islands because the locals put on a big feast on the beach at Hog Cay for the cruisers. And I mean BIG feast … fish, ham, turkey, potato salad, cole slaw, mac/cheese, rice and beans, and a TON of desserts. Festivities started at noon and we didn’t get back to the boat until long after the sun had set.
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| About 30 boats came in for the party, plus lots of locals from Dunkintown. |
After the eating, there was a fundraiser for the local school (serves all ages, 14 kids total). Everyone brought stuff in from their boat and a lively auction ensured. Some stuff was good boating stuff, and some stuff was meant to be donated to the school. We raised over $1000 – not bad from about 30 boats!
There was a fire on the beach at night, and the best part of the evening (for me at least) was when 3 guys got out their guitars and played for the next 2 hours … and one of those guys was Dan the Man! It was so fun to see him put the guitar to good use as this is the scenario he’s been hoping for, playing along with two other experienced players, and he definitely held his own while providing sheet music that others didn’t have.
All in all, a great night!
February 15
The beaches at Hog Cay, and the hiking trails over to the ocean, were my favorite of all the islands we visited. On the ocean side, we found an abundance of sea glass and sea beans (they are considered good luck to find b/c they wash ashore all the way from Africa).
February 16
Time to do a little exploring. The Jumentos and Ragged Islands are a beautiful chain of islands. After just a 10-15mile sail, you can find another unspoiled lovely beach to visit and fish.
We headed north about 15 miles to Buena Vista Cay. Absolutely lovely day to be sailing, no motor needed. We traveled with s/v Synergy and s/v Discovery. Karen, Marilyn and I hiked over to the ocean side, which was primarily over sharp iron shores where you definitely have to step carefully as a fall would result in a serious injury.
Dan, Chris and Carl went hunting for lobster; Dan had no luck but Chris scored 4 large ones for dinner tonite on s/v Discovery as Carl and Marilyn are heading north tomorrow.
February 17
Day 2 at Buena Vista Cay and Dan speared his first fish! And his first lobster! Neither are easy to catch. Fish are fast and lobster like to hide out in small spaces.
Hog fish are very popular in the Bahamas. It's a yummy white fish that we grilled on the boat for dinner. I drove the dinghy around as his ‘support boat’ for the 2nd time; a lot easier this time as the sea conditions were much calmer.
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| Nancy learns to drive the dinghy! zoom zoom |
February 18
Chris and Karen headed back to Hog Cay for a few boat repairs so we went exploring on our own. It was a short sail to our next stop at Raccoon Cay, and since we had light ESE winds at 10 knots , we decided to sail aimlessly where the winds took us until late afternoon, then anchored at Raccoon Cay … our first anchorage to ourselves.
Loving the new camera!
February 19
We had plans to poke along to another anchorage before the next cold front drove us back to the protection of Hog Cay, but as Dan was raising the anchor this morning, the gears on the manual windless loosened and a key part slipped out. So we headed back to Hog Cay early to disassemble the windless, hunt through the grease to find the missing part and reassemble. Not a fun day for Dan, but another successful repair job under his belt (and much better than lifting the anchor by hand!).
Hog Cay is a nice place to hang out b/c it’s got a beautiful beach with fire pit for burning trash. There are about 12 boats here, so there is always company close at hand. And the hiking is the best we’ve found so far. The ocean side has a bountiful supply of sea beans and sea glass. Boaters do a wonderful job of marking the trails over to the ocean using garbage that has washed ashore. You can easily find your way by watching for flipflops hanging on bushes!
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| trail marker! |
We’ll hang here for a few days as a mild front with NE winds passes through.
February 21
Today we celebrated s/v Passages arrival to the Ragged Islands! They had been waiting in Long Island for a settled stretch of weather for the 85 mile sail into Hog Cay.
Today we also were able to do a good deed for a local fisherman who had run out of gas on his way back into shore. A call went out on the radio and Dan took him a gal of gasoline ... and in return got a bounty of fish!
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Our first experience with Tiger Fish
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We never get tired of sunsets.
It's a daily ritual to gather on shore with a drink to watch with other cruisers.
February 26
Even though we are out on the fringes of the Bahamas, there is still a hard-to-resist urge to “civilize” the land. It started with a few benches made from driftwood and old plastic buckets, and grew into a ‘yacht club’ complete with a picnic table, two stone firepits, and a marked bocce playing field in the sand. So, the idea to construct a pergola for shade was not too much of a stretch of the imagination.
After a mid-week trash-burn and happy hour on the beach, the need for shade developed into a full-fledged construction project when s/v Puddle Jumper towed over a bundle of long bamboo poles that they scrounged from the ocean side of the island where all the sea garbage collects. Two days and a handful of helpful cruisers later, the Hog Island Yacht Club has a certified pergola complete with a thatched roof made of palm fronds … all material courtesy of the island itself.
Capt Dan's knot-tieing skills came in handy!
That led to a wonderful cruisers pot luck dinner on the beach as over 18 boats gathered in Hog Cay to dedicate the new structure (as well as hide out from the front headed our way for the next 3 days). It is amazing the assortment of great food that cruisers bring to shore -- especially considering that everyone is limited to the food stores they brought down here with them.
Dan's guitar is getting put to good use!
February 29
Happy Leap Year!
After 3 weeks in the Jumentos/Ragged Islands, we are starting to plan our exit strategy. The thought of leaving kind of sneaks up on you ... one day you are talking about what to bring to happy hour on the beach, when to go beach walking for sea glass, where are the best snorkeling spots, who's been catching the biggest fish ... and then the conversation subtly changes to weather windows for heading north, the need for fresh laundry and fresh vegetables.
And in our case, fresh water. Not having a water maker, means that we've been relying on other boats to keep us supplied. We have an 80gal tank, but when you get a 6-gal jug filled from someone, it doesn't make a big dent on the water meter! Now that we're down to 1/4 tank, we have to do some serious rationing in order to make it back to the next spot where we can fill the tank.
A good weather window for travel basically means you've got one-two days of good sailing wind before a front moves in and changes everything. As it stands now, we either leave tomorrow(Thursday) or wait another 7-10 days as a massive front is moving in.
Chris and Karen (s/v Synergy) are leaving tomorrow, so by late afternoon, we'd made the decision to head north with them ... along with about 6 other boats who have been hanging out in Hog Cay. We will stop in the Jumentos at Water Cay which has a nice beach and good fishing. We'll have to wait there until Sunday in order to have good wind for the run into Long Island, which will bring us back to civilization!
March 1 -- HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO DANIEL W. DEVEREAUX! WISH YOU WERE HERE .....
Anchor up at 6am for the 50 mile trip to Water Cay.
The sailing in the Ragged Islands has been fantastic. We've only had to run the motor to enter/exit an anchorage ... otherwise, it has been fair sailing winds every time we've travelled.
Cannot get enough of days like this!
We dropped the anchor at Water Cay at 4pm, next to s/v Synergy. 30 minutes later, our friends on s/v Sapphire (another Bayfield 40) sailed by the anchorage and announced on the radio that they were going to continue on all the want into Long Island. Since the Thompson Bay anchorage is huge and wide, it's easy to access in the dark.
We knew we couldn't sail to Long Island on either Friday or Saturday, and if we waited until Sunday, then we wouldn't have enough time to fill our water tank at Long Island before the front moved in over night and lasted for 4 days. FYI -- it's too shallow to take the big boat to the water dock, so getting water means a 1.5 mile dinghy ride with 4 jugs (24 gal) that you fill and shuttle back to the boat.... that's 4 trips to fill the tanks plus have extra water on the rail.
Soooo, after a 15 minute discussion, we raised the anchor and left Water Cay! We trailed s/v Sapphire by 4 miles all the way to Long Island, arriving at 1:-00 a.m. A long day, but a safe passage. We had to transit one very shallow channel that we hit at dead low tide, giving us 7 ft of water under our keel! A tad scary in the dark ...
Friday ... March 2
Happy with our choice to get into Long Island, we spent the day shuttling water back and forth to fill our tank, and then went to shore for a late lunch and long-missed internet access.
Saturday - March 3
March weather is definitely coming in like a lion ... and the daily forecast frequently uses the word "ugly" to describe upcoming conditions. Starting Monday, the wind is predicted to blow 25-40knots for the next 7 days, with seas in the Exuma Sound up to 12 feet. We stare in awe at the radio announcing this news .. frequently muttering "holy shit" under our breath!
Today's forecast closed with the warning:
If you want to move your boat, then you'd better do it on Sunday. And find someplace safe.
While the anchorage at Thompson Bay, Long Island, is a safe place to anchor for a big blow, the long distance from shore also means that you won't be getting off the boat for the duration. Over dinner, we weighed the pros and cons of being boat-bound for a week (aka hazards to mental health!) and decided to use Sunday to make the 50 mile run up to Emerald Bay Marina. Nothing like a few creature comforts to make up for lousy weather! Long hot showers ... free laundry .... shuttle service into Georgetown for shopping ... internet on the boat. Ah yes, this is the good life!
Sunday. March 4
Underway by 6 am to take advantage of the better wind earlier in the day. It was a glorious sail, even though we didn't catch any fish while sailing along the 100 ft shelf (where all the mahi should be hanging out). Our friends on s/v Sapphire also decided to move into Georgetown for the big blow, so we got some pictures of them sailing along with us. So these pictures are almost what we looked like under way, except that we had all 4 sails out ...
Our travels now will all be headed north. We are about 15 miles north of Georgetown, and when the weather settles, we'll move on towards Black Point and Staniel Cay. We'll have about 2 weeks to get to Staniel before Jim arrives on the 30th, and we'll probably need all the time based on the weather forecasts we've been hearing for the rest of the month.
One big adventure closes while another awaits to begin ....
waves crashing on the breakwater at Emerald Bay Marina
