Double Breasted Cay, Moraine Cay
Trip Start
Jul 21, 2001
1
40
45
Trip End
Apr 22, 2002
Moriane Cay,
Bahamas
Friday, January 18, 2002
NICOU and RIVERDANCE anchored at the entrance to the channel between the coral reef while we went in quite a ways. We had a very comfortable night, well protected and secure with our two anchors down in a typical Bahamian moor - anchors at 180 degrees to each other both leading from the bow. RIVERDANCE was okay until higher winds in the morning put them aground. Dave and I worked with them to get their anchor reset and then when they were safe went to help Dave with his boat. NICOU also had two anchors but was tied bow and stern and they were pushed very close to the coral banks and had a very difficult night. Although nothing happened they were awake most of the night worrying about the coral ledge only a few feet away with no way of doing anything in the darkness.
NICOU's third anchor is a Fortress and excellent in sand but not in the weed surrounding most of the boat. As soon as John and I could find a clear patch of sand, the anchor set perfectly. After setting out a third anchor, it was apparent that they were still in quite an exposed area and so we helped retrieve all three anchors while keeping him off the coral shelf. They then went up past us and anchored in the same Bahamian way that we were in much quieter waters. Dave has vowed never to anchor bow and stern again in a setting such as we were in as strong side winds make it very unpleasant aboard. Riding bow to the wind or current is certainly much more desirable.
All of the above took a long time so we just rested until after lunch and then the boys started on their dinghy adventure to the same fishing community of Grand Cay about four miles away. The houses are built on a hill overlooking the bay and in most cases were in quite a good state of repair and quite colourful. New construction was going on and this appeared to be a thriving little community.
The roads are quite interesting as golf carts were the only mechanized mode of transportation. The cement roads were just wide enough for carts and when one came along we had to step to the side to let it pass. As we passed the cemetery, we went inside to view headstones. There is very little soil on the island so the shallow graves are covered in cement. This is the first time any of us have seen the inscription Asleep instead of the traditional Died. Several of the gravestones were inscribed in this manner.
Note for Sailors With Pets
Your documentation of good health and a rabies shot must have been provided by a veterinarian at least 10 days before entering the country and not more than 9 months. In addition, the Bahamas requires a permit to import your pet. Mail your request for a permit to the Director of Agriculture, PO Box N-3704, Nassau, Bahamas. Once you get the form return it with $10 and make sure you send it in the form of an International Money order so if you don't receive the permit in time, at least you have a copy to show customs that you did indeed request the permit.
January 16 at Double Breasted
We purchased huge lobster tails for the ladies while at Grand Cay at $11 a pound. Shortly after we returned to our boats a young fisherman came by to sell us lobster and conch. He stopped at MYSTIC LOON last and tried to sell us conch but I said I was only interested in lobster tails. He had sold his last one to NICOU but he said no problem. He would dive for as many as we wanted and be back immediately. We said two would be great. Fifteen minutes later he returned with four lobster and promptly proceeded to kill them and give Margaret their tails for $10. I said that the other boats had also received a few conch. He said "No Problem Mon" and then proceeded to show us how fast he could accomplish this task.
Howard held the shell with the opening face down. He then made a hole in the shell hitting it with the tongs of his hammer between the second and third row of the horny nodes on the shell. This step is known as cracking or knocking. Then he inserted a long thin bladed filleting knife in the hole cutting the foot or tendon so he could pull the conch out of its shell. This step is called 'jooking". Finally, he cleaned the conch by skinning it. Although he made it look easy, we have been told by others that this is a tricky procedure and amateurs often find the job a sticky, slimy mess. A black mucous substance emerges with the conch frequently gets all over your boat, your clothes or both and it is next to impossible to get off, except with lime and lemon juice combined with vinegar. This final step is appropriately called slopping.
He then showed us how to cut up one conch, adding lime juice and the three of us had some raw. Never thought we'd do that but it was okay. We've read that conch properly prepared, raw or cooked is tasty and full of nutrients and vitamins. We found it had a firm, chewy texture with a delicate taste. Over the next two days, Margaret fried it like calamari, made conch fritters for everyone another night and Connie made a conch chowder for all of us a third night.
January 17 to Moraine Cay
Beautiful morning for a sail. The Waterway Net weather reports that we will have light to moderate winds for the next four days. Great news for Judy on NICOU. Unfortunately RIVERDANCE ran into problems before we even got started.
After dragging the previous day, they took their third anchor out in a dinghy and set the Fortress in a sand spot clear of weed. It held so well that when they tried to retrieve it, it wouldn't budge. Since the anchor was in four feet of water, it was too shallow for the big boat to retrieve it with its windless and impossible to pick up even with John and I both trying to pull it up from the dinghy.
To make a long story short, the only way it finally came up was after I dove countless times and dug it out of the sand/clay bottom. It had been buried about two and a half feet down. It is no wonder that the Fortress brand of anchors have won top awards for their holding in sand.
Finally we were underway and in light winds, motored and sailed to Moraine Cay.Moraine is listed as a good weather anchorage as it is quite exposed to the prevailing winds. It has a beautiful beach and the reef which protected us from the light east winds provided fabulous snorkeling. The breakers which came all the way from Africa broke on the reef even in calm weather but we remained very protected behind it. As the guide book states: "the vista from this anchorage gives one the feeling of being anchored on the edge of civilization".
January 18
Temperature 85 F 29 C, not a cloud in the sky. What a fabulous day! Everything was perfect. There was absolutely no wind, the seas were a mirror, the boats looked like they were floating in a salt water aquarium of beautiful sea life. Best news of the day, John and Connie were able to fix their engine problem this morning.
We walked the white sand beach and some of the inland trails on Moraine Island. After lunch, we snorkeled the reef for most of the afternoon. Margaret went snorkeling for the first time and had a wonderful experience as we went along the edge of the reef seeing small, incredibly brilliant coloured fish, and off the edge some larger fish. We saw brain coral, fan coral and elkhorn coral. Divers off a 50 foot sailboat, which came in for the afternoon, gave us 4 frozen lobster tails when I went over to their boat to ask for advice on how to catch/spear lobster. Later, as we were diving, one of the men speared a lobster near us and brought it over on the spear and dumped it in our dingy. Lobster for all three of our boats!
Tonight we are celebrating Dave's 66th birthday aboard NICOU. Trying to use up the conch we purchased the day before, Margaret is making conch fritters and we are finishing off Connie's conch chowder, Judy baked the birthday cake. Great ending to a perfect day. What a way for Dave to spend his 66th birthday. We should all be so lucky.
