Our next destination was an anchorage at the northern end of the Exuma Land and Sea Park, this area has dedicated moorings and anchorages and all the wildlife, flora and fauna above and below the waves is protected. There would be no fishing for a little while.
There were lots of boats in the anchorage at Shroud Cay, including our friends on SV Serendipity and the US boat who had helped us at the marina in Nassau. It had only been a short sail, we had towed the dinghy behind us meaning it took no time before we could get off the boat and go explore. After a quick dip to check the anchor had set and was well dug into golden sand and away from any coral or rocks, we jumped in the dinghy and made our way to a small beach we had read about in the guide book. Apparently there was a path you could take leading you across the island for a view of the windward side of the island and a beautiful beach, along with the honesty box was for the anchorage payment. We pulled the dinghy above the high water line and set off for an exploration trying to find the path, we made our way through the vegetation, Ross having to duck under the branches, but all we found was a few dead ends and with only flip flops on our feet we didn’t fancy fighting our way through. Back at the beach, we paddled in the clear blue water and enjoyed the stunning view out across the anchorage.
On our way back to the boat we stopped by SV Serendipity who were having issues with their outboard, it had taken a thorough soaking during the squall at Highbourne in which they’d lost their external fuel tank and was now failing to start. Ross fetched a few tools from Blue Mist and proceeded to help Bridget figure out the issues, this ended up being salt water in the fuel line which needed bleeding out, a result of the external fuel hose being ripped off in the squall and water being able to get into the system. Ross got it started and as they were now back in business, they shot off towards the beach for a sunset stroll, inviting us for a BBQ the following evening on board.
The next day, we took the dinghy and drove along the coral and rock coastline, we didn’t time it very well as by the time we reached the small channel we’d seen on Navionics which we could take through the mangroves it was low water and with very little water, we could only go a small way in before it was too shallow to even paddle. We still saw lots of turtles darting by as we glided through the shallows, it is surprising how fast they can swim. Lots of crabs and birds taking advantage of the exposed sand of low water to find food.
Our next destination was to be Warderick Well, there are a few different anchorages but the one everyone wants to be in is the North Channel and you needed a confirmed reservation from the ranger station. Usually this is accomplished over the radio every morning, you requested a mooring and got added to a waiting list. Each morning as moorings became available the ones at the top of the list (there also different availability depending on size of yacht and depth to consider) were notified that they had a reservation for that day. We’d been trying to reach them on Radio for a few days since we arriving in the park at Shroud Cay but our VHF signal wasn’t being received, so in the end I phoned up and got us added to the list, crossing our fingers that we’d be given a mooring the next day when we’d hoped to move further south.
That evening we headed over the Serendipity for a lovely BBQ, a few glasses of wine and a catch up. They’d also been trying to get onto the wait list and would be heading south with us in the morning hoping that they’d be successful once we’d arrived outside the mooring fields.
We left Shroud Cay for the short sail around 7.30am the next day, trying to time our arrival for high water as much as possible as there was a sand bank at the entrance to the channel. As we got closer we could finally hear the Park rangers on the radio and after a few attempts found out that we’d been allocated a mooring and could make our approach and pick up mooring number 14. This is a horseshoe shaped channel, which has a relatively large tidal flow and a very tight entry and exit. With a 7ft draft this would be one of our more challenging moorings, as there was a small reef to cross as you entered the channel and once through it wasn’t much more than 50 metres wide, including the already moored yachts and motorboats. With tide running and the steady breeze things could get interesting.
We’d been allocated a ball about a 1⁄3 of the way around the horseshoe and luckily the tide had the boats all lined up nicely. We tried to stay in the centre as much as possible, passing the other boats closely to stay in the deeper water, before picking up the mooring on the 1st attempt, phew! Once secure we could properly look at our surroundings and we were not disappointed, all the books and reviews we’d read were correct, this was one of the most beautiful places we had ever taken Blue Mist. As we sat there all within the first hour we saw eagle rays gracefully gliding by, trigger fish (wo would chase us when we went for a swim a little later) and lots of turtles all casually swimming past and feeding on the sea grass.
Hopping into the dinghy we made our way to the dock and ranger office to check in, pay our fees and get a map of the island, the lady was super friendly, explaining all about the park, what we could/couldn’t do here and the multiple hikes, snorkelling spots and activities on land and sea. We bumped into our friends at the office and made a date for the next day to walk up to the windward side via the shrine at the top of Boo Boo Hill, where cruisers and visitors leave tokens and driftwood handmade boat signs. You get a beautiful view over both the windward and leeward side of the island and in stronger weather there is a blow hole which spray water high into the air. After our walk we brought beers from the office and proceeded to cool off in the water by the beach, meeting quite a few of the other boat crews.
Over the next few days we spent time swimming, snorkelling and exploring this stunning national park. The sea life that swam by the boat was truly spectacular. On a daily basis we had turtles, sting rays and eagle rays all stemming the tide and gliding effortless past us and we could jump in to cool off at any time. At low water this was when we found out that Ross could stand with the water up to his waist and still reach the stern of Blue Mist, who’s rudder would gently brush through the soft sand as we swayed back and forth in the breeze and tide. It was quite extraordinary to see and unnerving if not for the fact the sand was so soft there was zero pressure on the rudder.
As I mentioned previously the channel is tight and you must stick to the deep water to ensure you don’t hit the reef or beach on the sand bar. One morning a new catamaran arrived which we had heard on the radio well before they entered between the red and green buoys. They seemed to be completely ignoring the instructions of the rangers and were steaming in, well outside the channel on the wrong side of the moored boats so right over the sand bar. Several of the other skippers and the ranger station on VHF were shouting to get them to move closer away from the shallows beneath them, and Ross made a shout out as they passed us, luckily they seemed finally get the point and made a swift turn closer in and finally between two yachts into the deeper water. We still don’t know how they missed grounding their vessel, but they clearly were a bareboat charter who didn’t speak a huge amount of English so hadn’t really understood the instructions or studied their charts enough. We have seen this happen quite a few times in our journey from the UK, not just on charter boats, where people make assumptions or don’t prepare enough for a mooring or berthing situation, it highlights how critical it is to include anchorages and mooring information into your passage plans.
On one snorkelling adventure we headed out of the North Channel into the other anchorage to check out sea life around a small rocky outcrop that was identified on the park map. Picking up one of the dinghy moorings we were delightfully surprised when we entered the water to find a large nurse shark, sleeping peacefully in the rocks our mooring was anchored to. He/she seemed oblivious to our splashing about, so we had a lovely view of this beautiful creature. We swam all around the rock, hoping to find more but alas, our sleeping shark was the best of the bunch on this trip and as we climbed back into the dinghy he/she hadn’t moved an inch despite all our noise.
We made the decision to move on in the next few days, as the weather was good for a move to Staniel Cay, our next destination. On our last full day, we packed up a picnic, filled a cooler with beers and beverages and headed to the beach for a chill day. It was glorious, we pulled the plastic beach chairs into the surf and relaxed, swimming, chatting and splashing about for the day. It was a wonderful way to end our time in the Nature Reserve.
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