Exploring the Exumas – a sailors playground!

After Nassau we make our way down to the Exumas. This is where the fun really begins! We are wowed by the sheer beauty of the waters, beaches and little cays. There is so much to explore and so much to enjoy, it’s hard to capture in words or pictures. It’s worth a visit and best done by boat. And we fall in love with this part of The Bahamas. So many remote anchorages and an abundance of sea life, but also many small communities with places to fill up water, fuel or buy some provisions. We are ready to spend a whole month exploring with a stop at Georgetown at the southern end.

The Exumas are a 209 km long chain of over 365 cays and islands which lie in a north to south orientation pretty much in the middle of The Bahamas. Even from the satellite map one can clearly see the shallow waters of the banks to the west and the deeper, often rougher waters of the Exuma sound to the east. There are numerous cuts between the cays, some easily navigable, some take local knowledge, and since there is a tidal range of 3-4 feet, one has to pay attention to currents and tides, with opposing winds. There are many anchorages but the typical Bahamian clocking winds add some complexity to life on boat here. Even in paradise there has to be something to add a challenge. The predominant wind direction in the Bahamas is easterly depending on the time of the year, with the North-East Tradewinds being bent up to SE by the Antilles currents. Cold fronts from the North American continent interrupt the east winds on a weekly basis, sometimes more often. The colder, dryer north west winds can be stronger. In general, any winds with north are cooler and dryer, while southerly winds bring warm air and humidity from the tropics. There’s a good explanation of these weather patterns in the article “The Climate Of The Bahamas” by Neil Sealey, where I found the following graphic as well:

Many of the preferred anchorages and shallow areas of the banks in the Exumas have decent shelter from anything easterly, but during a clocking of the winds to the west, all the boats seek shelter between islands and spots are more at a prime. There are marinas as well but they are not numerous and they are pricey. Anchoring is definitely still the way to go and holding is mostly very good. Since it’s so shallow with 6′ to 10′ in most areas and such great visibility with sandy bottom, we rarely had a problem. Sometimes it got a little bumpy and windy but the breeze was welcome as it got hotter as we moved further south toward Georgetown.

Highborne Cay

From Nassau we sailed eastwards for a few hours but since it was our first experience with navigating the shallow banks between New Providence Island and the Exuma chain, we decided to motor to take the more southern deeper route. On our charts there were areas and channels marked VPR (Visual Piloting Rules), where one had to watch for coral heads below the surface of the water. They are easily visible from the bow of the boat as dark clusters in the crystal clear waters. Judging how deep they are is a different story though, as one has to train one’s eyes to judging depth by the colour of the water.

Our first stop was at Highborne Cay SW to anchor and then dinghy over to Allen’s Cay, where we had to visit the famous Iguanas. These Northern Bahamian Rock Iguanas are endangered and can only be found on a few cays in the Exumas and on Andros Island but no where else in the world. At Allen’s Cay they are quite accustomed to human visitors and used to the daily tour boats coming from Nassau to feed them and take pictures. So when we arrived by dinghy dozens of them came running out towards us expecting to be fed. Luckily, our friend Cheri had brought some lettuce and veggie scraps that they eagerly devoured. Some of them looked quite mature and big. Apparently, they can get up to 40 years old and weigh as much as 24lbs. I must say, I found them a bit intimidating at Allen’s Cay, but a few weeks later we happened to stop at Leaf Cay* further south and here they seemed much friendlier – maybe because they saw less visitors. We were able to hand feed them and even pet them. (*Note: Some of the charts seem to call the Cay east of Allen’s Cay Leaf Cay, which is where we first fed the Iguanas. However, the one I am referring to in the pictures below is by Norman’s Pond and Lee Stocking Island further south in the Exuma chain. That’s where the friendlier Iguanas are!)

Norman’s Cay

From here we had a good sail over to Norman’s Cay just 12NM south. We anchored right in the cut which is not very protected from easterly winds. Surprisingly, although windy, we were relatively sheltered by the reef from any large waves. It was a bit of a wild anchorage with strong currents flowing through and swinging our boat around. During max current we had to make sure to have the life buoy with floating rope to hold onto when swimming from the boat. We waited for slack water and dinghied over to the sunken airplane wreck which lies just below the surface close by. It’s a fun place to snorkel around and see some of the smaller reef fish who have made it their home. We heard it referred to as the Pablo Escobar plane, which supposedly went down just short of the runway being to heavily overloaded with drugs. After some research the story was not quite as dramatic but no less amusing. During the drug running area during the 70’s and early 80’s Norman’s Cay was used as a stopping point for the drug transportation between Columbia and the US. It wasn’t Escobar but Carlos Lehder of the Medellin Cartel who operated in these islands (Escobar was non-the-less the supplier of the cocaine). Apparently, it was a pilot acquaintance of his, “British Andy”, who had found this C-46, an old WWII aircraft in the US and brought it across to see if Lehder might want to use it for his drug running. Being invited to spend a few days on the island by Lehder, the friend and pilot, who loved a good drink decided to practice some take offs and landings one day after having had a few too many. It didn’t go so well and the plane basically just landed in the water where it sits now. No one was harmed. Part of the story can be read here. And if you’re looking for a list of interesting fictional and non-fiction reads about The Bahamas, look no further.

O’Briens Cay

After a couple days in these strong currents it was time to move on and we followed our buddy boat African Queen to O’Briens Cay about 28NM miles further south. This Cay is only about 5.5km long but part of the Exumas Land and Sea Park, a marine reserve of 112,640 acres of protected land and sea area in The Bahamas. There are mooring balls, but anchoring is permitted as well. However, a small fee applies for either and a park warden boat comes by each morning to collect the fees. They do have a website and fees can be paid online as well. (In 2024 it was about BSD$20 for anchoring and BSD$30 for a mooring ball). Our first day here was gorgeous and calm so we decided to anchor between Soldiers Cay and the “Johnny Depp Island“, actually called Halls Pond Cay, which he purchased in 2004 for $3.6 million. It has since been sold to JK Rowling in 2016 for $75 million.

The day was perfect, we all dinghied over to the Aquarium, a small very protected reef within the cay, tied our dinghy to the mooring ball provided by the park and snorkelled with the numerous fish that make this their home. We saw lion fish, grouper, blue tang, a small ray and many others. I must admit I am not that well versed in all the fish species around here, but there’s nothing more exhilarating than being surrounded by dozens of different fish while snorkelling. Since people are encouraged to bring oats to feed them, most fish come right up expecting a hand out.

We ended the evening with snacks and sunset drinks on African Queen, which turned into a dance party on the foredeck well past cruisers midnight. In fact, we must have been so rowdy – it was just the 4 of us – that a jeep pulled up to the dock on the adjacent privately owned Soldier’s Cay and flashed their lights at us and not because they enjoyed our dancing and merry-making. Oh, well – it’s been a while since we all got in trouble for partying too loudly! Makes me feel young again.

We spent a few days in this paradise, moving to a park mooring ball with the winds increasing. Even when it was blowing we were able to throw our fold up kayaks in the dinghy, zip over to a very protected and shallow bay and have a beach day.

Staniel Cay

From O’Brien’s Cay it was just a little over 3 hours to get to the famous Staniel Cay known for it’s Pig Beach and the Thunderball Grotto where the James Bond movie with the same name was filmed. It’s a busy place but has a lot to offer, apart from feeding the swimming pigs. Yes, I know they are kind of cute when they swim out to your dinghy in the shallow blue water, but be aware, some are even greedier than those Iguanas at Allen’s Cay. We saw some larger pigs climbing right into peoples boats trying to get to the food. Yes, again you are encouraged to bring food and do they know it. When we went with Cheri and Jon in their nice new Highfield dinghy, Jon was smart enough to keep the dinghy in the water, while we jumped onto the beach. Boy, these pigs were greedy!

We had anchored on the west side at Big Majors, not far off the Pig Beach, which is great in the prevailing east winds. It’s a huge anchorage area in shallow turquoise waters and gets full of boats, even huge luxury motor yachts with staff. They usually have a big run about, yet skies and lots of other water toys and floaties attached to their yachts.

I just couldn’t resist taking pictures of the incredibly clear water!

Of course, you also get a clear view of all the creatures below and around your boat. Below is a pic of Nellie, the nurse shark, that our friend Jon took. He named her Nellie, and she would come by many times a day making the rounds checking under the boats. (Well, there might have been more than one nurse shark and maybe they took turns.) Nellie, apparently hung out under Jon and Cheri’s boat for a while, taking a nap – eager to help Jon clean the boat bottom. She really didn’t understand why Cheri didn’t want to get in the water anymore! Nurse sharks are rather docile and not really aggressive toward humans, but when you are not used to seeing them, they are intimidating.

Staniel Cay was a great stop for some provisions as well. The Staniel Cay Yacht Club has a very sheltered little dinghy landing protected by a small break wall. They have a t-dock with depth for keel boats as well. We did a run over at high tide straight from our anchorage in Big Majors just to make sure we had at least 6′ and brought Vitae to the dock to fill the water tanks (for a small fee). It’s a bit easier than lugging water in jugs! The yacht club bar/restaurant was also a great stop during Happy Hour with tasty Rum punch and appetizers. (And important for every cruiser: they take garbage for BSD$ 6/bag.)

Of course, we had to snorkel the Thunderball Grotto as well. We brought our dinghies over, anchored them and did the snorkel at low tide. There is a strong current going through the grotto but one doesn’t need to dive, you can actually comfortably snorkel through the entrance and exit on either side at low tide. Some fish can be spotted on the outside but swimming and diving through the actual cave is an awesome experience. Once through the opening the cave opens up and lets light in from the top so visibility is very good. There’s even some ropes below the water to help you along the way. As is typical here, a few tour boats came and brought tourists over, but we timed it right and enjoyed a little time inside just the 4 of us with lots of fish.

Great Guana Cay (Black Point Settlement)

From Staniel Cay we had a fabulous and fast sail down to Black Point Settlement at Great Guana Cay. Another sailboat named “Departure” sailed beside us for a while and we were able to take some great shots of each others boats under full sail and text them to each other. Ah, the joys of modern connectivity.

Black Point Settlement is another huge anchorage with crystal clear water and a shallow sandy bay with a beach. The little village is super friendly and has everything us cruisers need and all accessible by free dinghy docks. Filtered water for free by the government dock (a spigot across the road), a couple small restaurants and bars, a lady who bakes the most delicious coconut breads (sold in the little White House beside Lorraine’s Cafe), the Rockside Laundry with the best view ever, a couple of very small grocery stores and a little blow hole on the ocean side (where the waves crash through a hole in the rock and spray straight up. ) Black Point is also a lot quieter than Staniel Cay and has a beautiful laid back and welcoming feel to it. It was great to see our whole gang together again and we had a few nights with Happy Hour at the Black Point Yacht Club. On the second night the waitress kept bringing out fries and conch fritters and other delicious appies on the house. So all we could do is stay and order more drinks… really we were helpless!

One night we had a visitor in our enclosure and our boat cat, Momo, was very convinced it would be tasty. I have never seen a moth this large, but apparently the witch moth is also common in the Southern USA, Mexico and even Brazil and they migrate as far as Canada. Of course, we didn’t let Momo eat it, but for the next few weeks he would check the ceiling of the dodger each night.

Rat Cay

From Black Point we went north east through the Dotham Cut to the Exuma sound. At low tide we encountered 4kts current against us. At times it felt like we were almost moving backwards, but we slowly motored through it, following African Queen. It’s always nice to have a buddy boat making sure you are ok. There was no wind so waves were no issue, just the strong current. Then we turned south and sailed down towards Lee Stocking Island where we entered another cut and followed a shallow channel on the west side of the island. Watching carefully we had no depth issues and anchored at Rat Cay joining African Queen. Jon and Cheri had gone around the outside through deeper water to get here.

This place was a true paradise. Remote with hardly any other boats, rugged with waves crashing onto the shore on the Sound side and beautiful sheltered waters and pools on the west side. We loved hanging out at the great blow hole (this one is much more spectacular than the one in Black Point). The sound alone is awe-inspiring. There’s also a small pool where waves from the east side break over rocks and then fill a small bay. Jon and Cheri had 4 blow up floating chairs and we spent the afternoon floating in blissful heaven.

Date	Description	Distance	Travel time
Jan. 3/24	Nassau, New Providence Island, Bahamas to Highborne Cay (West Beach 2 anchorage), Exumas, Bahamas	36.53NM	7:37h
Jan. 4/24	stayed at Highborne Cay
Jan. 5/24	Highborne Cay to Norman’s Cay (Norman’s Cay 1)	12.22NM	3:30h
Jan. 6/24	stayed at Norman’s Cay
Jan. 7/24	Norman’s Cay to O’Brien’s Cay (anchored W of Soldier’s Cay in front of private pier)	28NM	5:48h
Jan. 8 + 9/24	stayed at O’Brien’s but moved to a park mooring ball (Exuma Land and Sea Park)		9:17h
Jan. 10/24	O’Brien’s Cay to Staniel Cay (Big Majors spot)	13.82NM	3:02h
Jan. 11 to 14/24	stayed in Staniel Cay for 5 days, went to Staniel Yacht Club Marina for water
Jan. 15/24	Staniel Cay to Black Point Settlement, Great Guana Cay	13.5NM	2:53h
Jan. 16/24	stayed at Black Point
Jan. 17/24	Black Point Settlement to Rat Cay	33.42NM	6:28h
Jan. 18/24	stayed at Rat Cay
16 days	Total	137.49NM	38:35h
222	Total trip so far	3,749.02NM	754:55h