Current cut, Bathtime and Wahoo

Since we are making this trip up as we go I decided on the way to current cut we could stop and snorkel. Anchor up by 945am and an hour later we are anchored next to Comfort Cay. After searching around I found the best snorkeling on the north side. Sheri was not getting out of the dinghy so when I found something interesting to see I would pull the dinghy over and she would use the look bucket. By 1145 we were back on board and headed for Current Cut.

Our snorkeling spot

It is great to follow the chain to the anchor

If you’re traveling from Spanish Wells down the island of Eleuthera on the west side the closest passage is current cut. As the name implies the tidal current through there can be very strong. We arrived as the flow was in our favor by 3 knots. I was thrilled but Sheri had been reading about how it could be problematic so she was tense as speed rose from 6 to 8.7 kts. Once through we turned left and traveled over the banks to the beach near the Glass Bridge where we attempted to anchor.
We have heard of the Bahamas hard anchoring ground but this was our first experience.
After the anchor and chain was set out I snorkeled down and tried to ram the tip of the 55lb anchor into the bottom. Having no success we pulled it up, reset and it caught a bit so I let out 25 more feet of chain and off we went to explore.

Our anchorage was sheltered by the home of Lenny Kravitz
He did a nice article about the Bahamas for Travel and Leisure magazine
It can be accessed online

The first stop was the beach leading to the trail for the Queens Baths.There was about 25 passengers from the Schooner Liberty Clipper on the beach and I started talking with some about their trip and the boat. As I was walking away I could hear a couple of the guys shout out something in a mocking Boston accent. As I travel I am used to people that ask me to say park or smart so they can hear the accent. Walking away I was yah yah smaat ok. It wasn’t until a few days later that I saw the commercial from the Super Bowl (unable to watch on the boat) about a car with smart park ability...I’m glad I didn’t say anything rude to those guys.

The rocks look like a relief map

The pools fed by waves can be a whirlpool at higher tide times.
There are cool quarter to half inch snails that line the side

The open cave was an added bonus

We cross the road headed for Queens Bath. The pine trees open up to an open rock area that looked out over the ocean and soon down into a small sculptured canyon that had many pools and a large open cave. The pictures help to show this special place that we enjoyed more than expected. Next we dInghyed to the small spit of land that is called the glass window. We walked a quarter-mile down the only N/S Island road, Queens Highway, to the bridge. One of the special features here is that you can look at the ocean and the sound from one location but I could not help to be more interested in the bridge. What was once a two lane road was reshaped to a one lane road when the waves of a hurricane knocked the bridge 10 feet to the west. The repair was to fasten the road right where it stopped and with new supports and cement that was accomplished. I think engineers and bridge inspectors from the states would be amazed and scared. This was an enjoyable and busy day.

They were also able to save a little extra money by using some of the old concrete

After a morning of planning we headed the 12nm to Rainbow Beach. After a while we were able to put up sail and I was so distracted we almost went past the beach. Anchored behind a small outcropping of island the anchor set well which was important as the winds were supposed to increase overnight.We went ashore to meet Ron who had bee patiently waiting on the beach. He and Sue would be our hosts for the afternoon and evening. Ron is the cousin of Ken Babineau at Willow Links in Sarasota. We went back to their home, Fish Tales, and met Sue who was resting her sprained and swollen ankle. They toured us around the development, which he is the current association president, back to check the boat and then to the local convenience store before returning to their home for snacks, sunset and dinner. We dined on Waho that he caught and absorbed as much of their Island wisdom as we could.They are great hosts who for over 25 years have been enjoying this special place. In a few years they hope to sell and spend more time in the states so pass the pictures along so we can help them find a buyer.