From Nassau to Exuma Cays

Catching Jack Fish on the way to Allan's Cay.

Iguana's in Allen's Cay

We have arrived to Allan’s Cay after spending 2 nights in Nassau Harbour.

Allan’s Cay is at the northern end of the Exuma Cays – a narrow band of islands or small groupings of rocks.  Allan’s Cay is known for its iguanas.  No one lives on most of these cays and many are part of a national reserve.  Surprisingly, we are here with 11 other boats of which at least four of us are flying Canadian flags. 

Our stay in Nassau was interesting.  This town has suffered from the recession, but I would hazard to say that it has been on the decline for some time.  Don’t get me wrong, it is still beautiful and friendly.  And there is still plenty of money around – huge homes and estates, name brand shops and so on.  But you can see that the money is only spent on the areas where the big cruise ships come in.  It is clear they have refurbished a 1 mile strip from the docks; after that it quickly changes back to a worn out, unkempt looking island.  The harbour is noisy and busy.  We spoke to a couple at the antique map store who say the recession has been hard on them but they believe Bahamas is back in the top three favourite destinations.  The number of cruise ships coming into port have increased from one or two per week to two or three per night. 

It was nice to get out of there and back to the clear turquoise waters of the Bahamas.  Twenty meters deep and you can still see the bottom.  There was almost no wind so the sea was flat and smooth.  A gorgeous day for traveling, but not enough wind for sailing.  We caught two Jack fish and a Barracuda on the way across to Exuma Cays.  We didn't keep the Barracuda (too big) but had the Jack fish for dinner.  So the score is now tied at 4 all.  

We plan to stay in Allan’s Cay for the day and start heading south again tomorrow morning stopping at Warderick's Well and then off to Staniel's Cay.