Nassau Harbor West

Nassau Harbor West.

Nassau, New Providence Island, and Paradise Island are across the harbor. There was a lot of traffic entering this harbor, cruise ships, Haitian boats, ferries, commercial ships and even seaplanes. The Nassau Port Authority Horbour Control controls the harbor. Your vessel is required to report in before entering the harbor. They want to know all of the details about your boat and your destination. You also have to ask permission to leave the harbor. We splurged and rented a slip at the Nassau Harbour Club. Nassau is known to have a high crime rate and attempted thefts are very likely. They will steal your dinghy if its not locked up.

Staying at a slip tied up to a dock is very nice, we can sleep at night without worrying about the anchor slipping. The security at the marina is great. We went to Atlantis saw the aquarium with the glass-sided fish preserve. It was purely an archaeological fantasy. We went to all of the cruise ship destinations, had drinks at Senor Frogs, shopped at the straw Market. Went to Ardastra Gardens & zoo. Saw rare Bahaman parrots, flamingos and all the beautiful tropical plants that I could ever imagine. It was truly a treat.

Exuma Sound

We then decided to visit the Northern Exuma Cays. The further south you go, the warmer the weather is. We picked Exumas east side, the (Exuma Sound) for it’s deep water so we wouldn’t have any problems with coral heads, sand banks or shoals. It was great day for sailing, with calm seas and nice winds. It was a long days’ sail toward Allans Cay. This island has a ton of Iguanas on the beach. If you land they come meet you, looking for food. It’s the only island that has that many Iguanas.

I stayed in the dinghy wile Carl & Tara went ashore. Tara barked and Carl kept her out of their reach. Dive boats and charter boats came throughout the day letting people off to see the Iguanas. It was quite the attraction. I did a little snorkeling far away from that cay, but stayed aboard the rest of the time. We enjoyed the warmer weather in the cockpit of our boat.

Next stop was just a hop away, Normans Cay. As we were pulling up to the anchorage we saw Lynne & George on Ketch’n Dreams. They told us to follow them so we did we went up just a little ways to Shroud Cay. This island is located in The Exuma Land & Sea Park it‘s about 176 square miles of protected spectacular subtropical waters, coral reefs and fish-breeding grounds. Fishing or gathering of any kind is not permitted. When we got there they introduced us to Lynn & Peter Forgosh in First Edition, nice people we had drinks all together.

As we looked around we saw Beth & Jim from Madcap. Now the fun begins again. This Island has a channel mangrove like a swamp with mangrove trees lining the banks they look like half planted root like fibrous just like what you would see in the Everglades, but the water is so clear you can see the bottom and every grain of sand. We all got into our dinghies and went exploring.

On the way we saw 2 lemon sharks and 2 manta rays. The water was shallow so we walked the dinghy part of the way. About 100 years ago a hermit built a hut on the top of a mountain over looking an uninhibited beautiful beach. He lived there all by himself. Some ruins are still there. Cruisers leave offering up there for good luck. We just wrote our names of our boats on a palm tree. Went snorkeling and had a great day.

The next stop was Hawksbill Cay. Just 1 hour away. There are move ruins and another great beach on the other side of the Island. You can’t anchor there because the sea is to rough. We haven’t done so much walking in our whole lives, but it feels good to be in the tropical Islands and we sleep well!

More snorkeling the next day. I got to tell you that I really enjoy seeing small multi-colored fish and coral reefs, but this time we saw a nurse shark about 3 ft long a 18” grouper and a 8” barracuda within arms length. I just froze as they swam by. I don’t think I like them big guys that close.

Next stop Warderick Wells: This island is still located within the protected park and is covered with marked walking trails. It’s got some of the clearest water in the world. We picked up a pamphlet showing all the rare birds to spot on the trails. There is also Boo Boo Hill where cruisers leave the boats name as a memento.
The weather started to get rough a front was coming in we all decided to stay here until it passed. In spite of the weather we enjoyed the snorkeling. The water just continues to get clearer. I saw beautiful coral reefs with sea fans, Queen angelfish, Yellow goatfish, Trumpet fish, Stoplight parrotfish. It was truly amazing! Carl thinks that I’ve become a fish myself. All the boaters had a big bomb fire on the beach, everyone brought a snack to share and their own drinks. Everyone showed up it was a great turn out, everyone has so much in common living on a boat. There were doctors, lawyers, a lot of teachers and just plain old people like us. Now it doesn’t matter out here who you are we are all the same. I guess that’s why we are all out here living a dream.