The "Whale"

 To move Southeast from Green Turtle Cay to the rest of the Abacos, you have to pass through a cut called Whale Cay Cut. Or known by the locals as the "Whale".  This is a cut from the protected waters of the Abaco Sea to the open Atlantic Ocean. You have to go through this cut because the inside passage is blocked by a large reef. There is a way through the reef, but it is not recommended for boats with more than 3 foot draft. We are 4.5 feet, so through the Whale we go. 

This cut has caused the death of many a sailor over the years. It has a very strong current and when the swell coming from the North Atlantic builds up can cause conditions that will destroy boats much bigger than ours. We waited in Green Turtle Cay for the right conditions to make this passage safely. Monday, January 30th looked like the perfect day. I consulted with the local folks at Donny's and they agreed that we should be fine to make the transit, so we left and headed out of the harbor to see what awaited us. 

We were the lead boat of 5 boats that were communicating on the radio. As we approached, we could see some larger waves, but nothing that SHIFT can't handle with ease. We powered through with no problems. Then we turned to the South and headed down to Great Guana Cay. We anchored in Bakers Bay to complete our day. We had traveled only 12 nm, but I was sure glad to have that one behind us. 

Our view of Green Turtle Key as we departed

This doesn't look like much, but this was the sea state in Whale Cay Cut as we transited south.

Great Guana Cay is known as a place that the rich and famous people come to play. Much of the island is private and off limits to us regular folks. The good news is that you can't own the water in the Bahamas, so we can go to most beaches as far as the high tide line. We were never approached or hassled while we were there. We spent time swimming in the 80 degree water off of the boat and snorkeling on some of the reefs.

Our tender pulled up on the beach in the crystal clear water at an island on the inside. That is Great Guana Cay in the background. 

On the little spoil island with our new friends David and Paula

I did a lot of snorkeling on the reefs. I saw lots of cool fish and even some I would like to eat, but I never got a good shot.

This 150 foot Super Yacht cruised by while we were at anchor. 

Sunset over Bakers Bay, we ended up staying two days.

The crystal clear water is amazing

We pulled anchor on February 1, and headed over to Fishers Bay and put the anchor down there. Fishers is about half way down Great Guana Cay. We wanted to go ashore and visit the famous beach bar called Nippers. It was a very beautiful place on an amazing beach. We met a number of locals and learned about  many places we now want to visit while we are in the area. We stared at the beach and swam in the pool. 

Our day anchorage at Fishers Bay. We had very calm conditions.

The water was so clear. I tried to take a picture of a Sea Star on the bottom in 10 feet of water.

The beach at Nippers is amazingly beautiful. I love the contrast of the turquoise water of the reef with the deep blue of the open water of the North Atlantic beyond

Here is a shot of our "buddy Boaters", David, Kim, Paula, Laura and Richard at Nippers

Darn, kind of fuzzy

Can't get enough of this beach

David and I found lounge chairs under a palm tree, while the other swam in the pool

The pool was salt water and was kind of chilly, but it was a hot day.

After our visit to Nippers, we pulled the anchors and headed over to Foul Cay. Foul Key is a nature preserve and is supposed to have great diving. As we approached, we decided it looked too rough, so we continued on to Man O War Cay. 

We all got our anchors down at Man O War on this beautiful calm day, but that was once again about to change. We had the biggest weather system we have seen since coming to the Bahamas arriving in two days. We needed to find protection. The problem was there were 15 boats in the open, unprotected anchorage. Where would they all go? I will tell this story in my next entry.