Manjack Cay to Treasure Cay
We spent a peaceful
night at anchor and woke to a partly cloudy sky with a temperature of 68 and
wind less than 5 knots. Carla sat in the
cockpit drinking her coffee and wishing we could stay here another few days. This is a wonderful anchorage as it has a
lengthy beach which runs for miles and boats here are well protected from all
but winds from the west. The water is
gin clear. We’d be swimming today if we
didn’t have to leave so soon.
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| Treasure Cay Mooring Field |
We made our
0900 rendezvous with Hakuna Matata and
Silver Girl a mile off the approach
to the Little Green Turtle Marina and Resort.
Claus and Marie spent the night in Black Sound and phoned us the night
before and asked when we were going to pass through Whale Cut. They wanted to buddy boat for the
passage. Our three boats joined the
parade of boats heading to the Whale to cross over the sandbars and shoals
which block us from continuing south on the Sea of Abaco. We counted 10 boats ahead of us and others
began to appear to our rear.
The Whale
Cay Cut is a couple of hundred yards wide.
Whale Cay is to your starboard (right) and reefs lie to your port (left)
as you head out into the Atlantic Ocean.
The Whale Cay Channel is about 12 feet deep during mean low water. The narrow gap is susceptible to a rage sea in
which breakers block the passage through Whale Cut. This most often happens when there are strong
winds from the northeast which is what is forecast beginning late tomorrow. As a result, vessels are trapped on either
side of Whale Cay Cut until conditions improve which takes several days and
sometimes weeks. Today, everyone is
running for shelter as the winds are forecast to get as high as 40 knots within
the next two days.
Seeing so
many boats heading toward the Whale gave us comfort as we knew the cut was
passable. We really felt good when boats
transiting the cut reported very mild conditions. When we arrived we were amazed at how calm it
was today compared to the 6 foot waves reported there yesterday. Once through the cut, half the boats
continued to head south through the Loggerhead Channel; the rest headed for
Treasure Cay. Claus had a friend with a
private mooring ball in Great Guana Cay so he continued south as we tacked over
for the well protected harbor of Treasure Cay.
We were able
to grab one of the few mooring balls still available in the Treasure Cay basin.
It was noon when we arrived and two hours later all the moorings were full. Hakuna Matata went to a slip. We plan to stay here at least 5 days waiting
for the weather to improve. This is a
great place to be if we have to hole up for a while.
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| Up-Scale Housing on Treasure Cay |
Treasure Cay is a small community whose economy is built around the vacation resorts and associated activities. Besides the marina, there are numerous condominiums and homes for rent which keeps the locals busily employed catering to the foreigners like us who come here for rest and relaxation. The cay has one of the few airports in the Abacos and a ferry both of which make this location a hub for travelers.
The early
developers made a wise choice in selecting this location for their
investment. The harbor offers excellent
protection from wind and waves. The
sport fishing boats can be in the deep Atlantic waters in less than an
hour. It is a great layover location for
vessels transiting Whale Cay Cut. The
waterfront allows for numerous condos and homes with beautiful views of the
harbor. A short walk to the north and
you find yourself on one of the most beautiful beaches in the Bahamas. It runs for over 3 miles and faces out onto
the shallow banks which block north-south travel. Whale Cay, Two Rocks, Little Turtle Island
and Manjack Cay are visible across the white and turquoise water. It is what we imagine when we think of the
Bahamas.
We are
looking forward to exploring the settlement tomorrow.
Sounds wonderful! I'll add that spot to my bucket list!
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