Hog Cay, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 A beautiful day....sunny but still a bit on the breezy side.  Still using a light blanket at night.  Usually we sleep with just a sheet and the hatch open.... Weird weather!

  

After a couple of hours trying to figure out a business accounting issue involving a mis-match when trying to reconcile an account....finally figured it out.  After lunch we decided to brave a snorkel trip. Earlier the water temp was 72°F but is now 75°F.    I donned my full wetsuit to try to lesson the shock of the chilly water!

We took the dinghy up to then north end of Hog Cay and it wasn't too choppy. 

 

 Unfortunately, the visibility was not the greatest, not the worst either. A nice size ray swam slowly by. 

Some juvenile grunts.

I spotted and Duane speared a very nice lobster!  Unfortunately he was deep in a hole and the tentacles were lost in the struggle to pull him out.

On our return to the boat, we had a nice warm shower - the sun is finally at an angle to give us excess power.  

 

Hog Cay, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 We took the dinghy to the shore south of the cruiser hut to get a look at a table that had been washed away in the hurricane this past summer.  Maxine had asked if we could look for it.

This is all we could find of the table....not sure if it can be reclaimed.  Maxine is going to see if she can send over some materials to rebuild it.....we'll see if that works out or not.

Lovely day....

 

  

A gathering for a cookout was planned for the evening.  Cruisers got the fire going and we all cooked meat on the grills we brought along. 

  

Nice gathering with lots of nice kiddos.  

Lots of conversations, of course.  And a yummy meal!  I had marinated some of the last of the tuna we had caught on the way south and it was delicious.

 

 

Hog Cay, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 We had a rather nice day....with the nice sunny skies, I did a few loads of laundry that had been piling up.

  

Beautiful anchorage.

We took the dinghy over to Duncan Town.  Passing the Hog Cay anchorage, starting to fill up with boats from Southside.

 

 Approaching the marked channel to Duncan Town.  Choppy waves that were at our back on the trip over.....you know what that means....a sloppy ride back into the wind on the return trip!

Mid-tide....water rushing into the channel from the flats.

 

Up the hill to Maxine's store.

Not a lot going on in town.....had a nice visit with Maxine and picked up a few items.  Talked with her about the upcoming Valentine's party and about palm fronds to repair the cruiser hut.

We went in for sundown at the cruiser hut.  A few new faces and some we've met before.  A couple of the boats have some very nice kids on board.  This threesome of young ladies sailed the dinghy back to their boat unassisted! 

 

 Nice gathering at the hut but no green flash.
 

Hog Cay, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 Finally a nice sunny day, we motored up to Hog Cay since I needed a change in scenery!!!  Wind was in the wrong direction so we didn't bother with the sails.

 

We opted for the quieter north anchorage.   Lovely scenery.  

 

 The sunset was very pretty with shimmery light up into the sky.

 

Little Ragged Cut, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 Broken record here....windy and chilly.  I know, 66 °F

 is not that cold....but I'm more accustomed to 76 °F !

At least the sky was mostly blue!  The batteries recovered somewhat but will need another sunny day to be fully charged. 

 

Mid-day a skiff with Bahamians (I think from one of the fishing boats still anchored nearby) came to shore and dove for conch.  I guess they must have been itching for something to do as well.  The shoreline was choppy all day with the northwest winds.

I was in the mood for some different bread so got out the recipe or hamburger buns.

 

 Turned out lovely. 

The sunset was brilliant and I saw just a hint of a green flash!

 

Little Ragged Cut, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 Another less-than-ideal weather day.  The morning was very grey and rainy for hours. 

We worked on getting all our business info to the accountant for taxes.  Never fun but a must do..... 

I heard an aircraft engine and went on deck as this twin engine airplane took off in low ceilings.  It looked like they were closer to us than the photo appears.  

 

 At different points during the day, the wind was either howling or dead calm.  Here we were just hovering over our anchor chain.  Before sunset we cranked up the engines and pulled hard on the anchor to make sure all was still well as we had some 30 knot west winds forecast overnight.

 

Sunset was mostly cloudy to the west but pretty looking to the east (due to reflected light I assume)!  There are 8 boats in the cut and I counted 10 boats anchored at the Southside anchorage plus two Bahamian fishing boats.  All seeking protection from the prolonged west winds.

Little Ragged Cut, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 Well, I hate to be a Debbie Downer....but the weather kinda stinks.  This season's weather has not been very cooperative.  At least it's warm now.  

Still breezy and the winds continue to clock around cyclically every 5-7 days, making it necessary to stay here in the protected cut anchorage when the winds are strong and from the west.  

More rain today.  I guess we'll read another book and bake some cookies!

 

Little Ragged Cut, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 Nothing much to report today!  The winds are still fairly strong but the temperature has gotten milder.  Beautiful sunrise though.

 

Little Ragged Cut, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 Feeling a bit boat-bound, we decided to make a trek up to Duncan Town.  We had a nice contingent with the same feeling.

 

Over the hill with Duncan Town in the distance.

The mailboat is still at the dock and leaving soon.  Lots of activity with a Bahamian fishing boat anchored off Little Ragged.  

 Townsfolk joined in bringing all their recent catch for shipment on the mailboat.   Kind of organized chaos.

 

 The cruisers got a few groceries at Maxines and did some visiting.  Note the jackets as we were all a bit chilly at 66°F!  (Thanks to Deb from 360 for the photo)

 

The trek back to the dinghies was pleasant as the day warmed up.  Don't often see us in long sleeves!
 

 

Back to the boat....cloudy skies are making solar power generation a bit of a struggle.

Jerry and Donna invited us over for a wonderful taco dinner and games in the evening.  I forgot to snap a photo but it was a wonderful time!

 

Little Ragged Cut, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 Blustery day......this is our view into an approaching squall.  Maranatha in the foreground.

 

We went for a short beach walk on a western beach out the cut just to stretch our legs.  We were on guard all day due to the arrival of the mailboat with our grocery orders from Nassau!!

 

Since it's so windy, we couldn't get around to the government dock.  I contacted Phicol in Duncan Town to arrange for them to delivery our grocery order to the airport where we can anchor and pick up the boxes.  Three of the cruisers had ordered groceries.  I was down to literally 2 carrots as my only fresh vegetable.  Not to worry, we won't starve, it's just nicer to have fresh stuff of course!

The unloading process was lengthy apparently because we didn't get the call to come ashore until well after dark.  Not really a fun process in the dark in howling winds.....but it worked out fine.

Phicol and a helper from the Captain C were at the end of the runway when we arrived.

 

Phicol helped unload, always cheerful!

Since it was high tide, we had an easy dinghy ride back to the boats.  (The area between the anchorage and the airport is notoriously shallow but navigable at high tide in the dinghy).  

Our address here - Karen McCraw  Ragged Island  Captain C 

 

 We dropped off groceries for Bluejacket so they didn't have to make the trip over.  Worked out well.

My grocery haul...I ordered and paid for tomatoes but somehow they didn't arrive.  Oh well.  Maxine will have tomatoes in her store so I can get some there. It may be several days before we make it back to Duncan Town due to the winds.....common story this year! 

 

Little Ragged Cut, Ragged Islands, Bahamas

 Getting a little stir crazy on the boat....we got in the dinghy for a oceanside walk just to stretch our legs.  

 

 

 A couple of the other boats had the same idea.  We crossed paths and chatted with them a bit.  Lovely but windy day.  It was low tide so the little pools were calm.... 

 

Further down the island in the wide open bay the sargassum weed was being blown in from the Atlantic Ocean.  Not a pretty sight but no one cares on these uninhabited islands.

We walked all the way to the southern tip of Little Ragged.  Pretty but churned up water.

 

Ocean side views were better.

 

On the way back I spotted this board that was obviously from a shipwreck of some nature.  The nails caught my eye...usually nails in flotsam are rusty iron...

But a close look at these - green - must be copper.  Wonder how old?  A quick Google search says they were used in the late 18th century!