The Ragged Islands – February 29 to March 4, 2012

Once again we used the nearly uninhabited Ragged Islands as our path out of the Bahamas and on to Cuba. From Thompson Bay on Long island we steered for the Comer Channel with a ten knot wind on our stern.  After passing to the south of Little Exuma Island we made a turn to port, travelling on the west side of the Jumento Cays at the top of the Ragged Island Chain.

Ever trying to be self-sufficient we had two fishing lines out on rods. Nothing edible was brought on board but we were entertained. Shortly after midday three hooks had been snatched and spit out and one more bitten off. A large barracuda was landed and released on starboard while his brother on the port side swam away with the hook, line, reel and rod after breaking the rod holder!

 We anchored at Flamingo Cay, sans fresh fish for dinner, with Sail Away and La Rose des Vents V just off of Two Palms Beach.

In the morning we continued to move south down the Ragged Island chain. About two hours from Raccoon Cay we were hailed on the radio by the catamaran Amazing Grace, who had made the crossing with us in 2011. They were just returning from Cuba and apprised us of adverse crossing conditions.  They reported southeast winds of 20 to 25 knots, quite a bit higher than forecast, and 6 to 8 foot waves near the Cuban coastline, conditions that Polar Pacer likes the least.  It was our intention to use Raccoon Cay as the jumping off point as we had the previous year and we were concerned that if we did not cross in this window we might not get another opportunity for weeks. We went over the ditch bag check list and had an early dinner, still planning an early morning departure. In the end we came to our senses and decided to wait. It was just not worth getting beat up for.

The next day we moved down to Hog Cay and an anchorage that would provide more weather protection for the next couple of days. The Ragged islands are not known for an abundance of all-round protected anchorages and it is common to have to move frequently to avoid uncomfortable ocean swells that come around the cays. Middle Pen Bay on the west side of Hog Cay was suitable while we waited two days for the weather window we needed.

Hog Cay is inhabited by goats only. There must be a source of fresh water on the cay somewhere as they are not tended by anyone.

This cutie couldn’t quite keep up with mom when she heard us coming and scuttled off in the dense brush.

Another little one.

The Ragged Island Regulars have used found objects to mark some passable routes to the ocean beaches.

A fossil in progress.

The wait time at Hog Cay afforded an opportunity to practice adapting my bread recipe to make cinnamon buns.

Not exactly Cinnabon but an acceptable alternative under the circumstances.

Speaking of found objects. This pot luck happy hour venue has  been built from objects found on the beach. Note the construction grade bamboo poles. They are not native to the island.

Sun Cast also arrived in the anchorage to stage for a crossing to Puerto de Vita, Cuba. Their preference was to leave early in the morning and cross in daylight for an afternoon arrival while we intended to depart in the early evening and make landfall early in the morning. As we left the Bahamas just before sunset we heard Sun Cast calling us on the VHF radio as clearly as if they were right next door. They had  heard us talking on the radio to another boat in the Hog Cay anchorage and were  wondering where we were as they could hear us very clearly as well. They were approaching the entrance to Puerto de Vita and were being hailed by the Cuban coast guard whom we could also hear. The VHF propagation was amazing.

The great ball of fire dips into the ocean once again.