We are now in the Ragged Islands, the southern part of the Jumentos. These islands are small and uninhabited except for the one settlement of Duncan Town on Ragged Island. We were here two years ago when we were returning from the Caribbean and the Covid Pandemic was causing borders to shut down. It is good to be back. But how did we get here?
We were in Royal Sound on Eleuthera and planned to go to George Town on Great Exuma Island. We pulled anchor in the afternoon and motored out to Exuma Sound by sunset. We hoisted the headsail and the mizzen expecting winds up to 20 knots. It was a rough trip through the night but by sunrise we had reached the cut that would lead us into Elizabeth Harbor and the anchorages at George Town. We arrived at the cut just as a supply boat was approaching so we followed them through the convoluted channel. Once in the harbor we dropped anchor at the first available spot and crashed for the rest of the day. It had been another tiring overnight trip. In the afternoon our friends Mike and Mary, friends from Mathews Point Marina, stopped over to say Hello. The next day was very windy so we stayed on the boat relaxing. Thursday we launched the dinghy and made a run into George Town getting very wet on the way. In town we dropped off our garbage, hit the grocery store and checked out the straw market. On the way back to the boat we stopped at Chat and Chill which is a bar and meeting area across the harbor. We met a number of other cruisers, had a beer and checked out the activities. We stopped at Mike and Mary's boat for a visit then back to Hi Flite for the night. The next day the winds dropped and we went ashore and followed a path to the ocean side feeling good about getting off the boat. On Saturday we went to Chat and Chill for a "Treasures of the Bilge" sale where boaters bring in things they want to get rid of. I got another rope to make a rug and Cori picked up some fabric. From there we crossed back to George Town to buy more gasoline for the outboards and generator. They also have a water hose at the dock and we filled jerry jugs with water. Back at the boat we pulled anchor and moved two miles down the harbor and re-anchored. We were closer to town and were preparing to move on. First we made two more trips to town for more water then dinghied around checking out this part of the harbor. Sunday the winds kicked up so we took care of some boat projects and later made a last trip into Chat and Chill for a beer and conch salad. Elizabeth Harbor is large, the official count that day was 304 boats.
Monday morning, 2/7/22, we pulled anchor and headed off to Thompson Bay on Long Island, a new island for us. The winds were contrary and we ended up motoring almost all of the way. Our friends on Tilt came by to fill us in with information about the island. Later we went ashore and followed their directions to a path to the ocean side. We spent a bit of time beach-combing and then back tot he boat. The next day was windy, rainy and rough so we spent the day on the boat. The next day we transferred the diesel we were carrying in jerry jugs into the main tank and made several trips to town for more fuel topping off before we would leave the next day. We also made a trip to the grocery store to pick up last minute provisions.
There was a break in the weather and we took advantage of it to move on into the Jumentos. The Jumentos are a chain of uninhabited islands, except for one, that are near the bottom of the Bahamas Islands. We were able to sail the entire day arriving at Flamingo Cay before sunset. After several attempts to set the anchor we were finally down for the night. In the morning, after getting the weather repot at 6:30, we pulled anchor and continued on to Buena Vista Cay. The next morning we went ashore and hiked across tot he ocean side. In the afternoon we motored down to Hog Cay where the others cruisers were gathering for the annual Valentine Party put on by the locals from Duncan Town. In the late afternoon we joined some of the others for evening sundowners, a tradition here. On Monday Cori attended a basket weaving class and I worked on making a mat from some rope I salvaged from a beach. Again we joined the others for sundowners. The next day was windy and rainy so we spent the day on the boat. The next day Cori was off to the beach on the ocean side and I worked on the rope mat then sat in on a basket weaving class, finishing the day off with sundowners on the beach. The rest of the week was more of the same and helping prepare for the party. Saturday was the party and there were a lot of boats in attendance along with locals. The locals along with the cruisers have built a thatched roof hut for our use and that is where everything happens. There was a lot of food provided and prepared by the locals and then an auction of things donated by the cruisers to benefit the local school. At present there is one little girl living in town but the feeling is if they can get the school running and a teacher hired more people will move back to the island. The next day we debated moving the boat or dinghying down to Southside Bay which is between Ragged and Little Ragged Islands. We opted to go in the dinghy which was about a fifteen mile round trip. We had good luck with conch last time we were here but this time we were nearly skunked only bringing back three. We spent the week hiking trails, walking beaches and learning basket weaving. One of the cruisers had put in a request to the locals for a goat and on Thursday it was delivered. Being too large for one couple it was divided up with cooking instructions and brought to shore for an impromptu party. The goat was finished cooking at the firepit and sides and deserts were supplied by the other boats. A good time was had by all.
Many of the boats were leaving the anchorage and we decided to move down to Southside Bay for a couple of days. The next day, Sunday, we launched the dinghy and went down to Little Ragged Cay. We had been given the location of a trail across the island and walked the beaches to the bottom of the island. At this point the next island was Cuba sixty miles away. The anchorage turned out to be a little more rolling then we like so we pulled anchor the next day and moved past Hog Cay to Double Breasted Cay. We were anchored by noon and then took the dinghy out looking for conch. We found a lot of young one but only a couple of keepers. The next day we went looking for conch and checked out the beaches on the next island. Later we hiked a trail on Double Breasted Cay to the ocean side to check out those beaches.
The weather forecast was calling for strong winds over the weekend so we pulled anchor and moved back to Hog Cay to ride it out. We spent the next couple of days hiking the trails, walking the beaches, learning how to basket weave and drinking at sundown. A number of boats showed up to ride out the blow including our friends Mike and Mary. The winds have been blowing over 20 knots for several days but we have been able to get off the boat most days. Once on shore we are protected from the wind. The other day I stayed on the boat after taking Cori ashore to take care of some maintenance and Ali from Wabi Sabi gave Cori a ride back. Later she stopped by to drop off two lobster tails for us. We haven't had local lobster in many years. We have also been joining them and several others on beach clean-up. The beaches on the ocean side are littered with trash that washes up, most of it plastic, and we have been gathering it to be burned. It's not the best solution but something has to be done with it.
The forecast is calling for high winds again this weekend so we decided to stay for another week. We hiked more of the trails, combed more beaches and when the winds died down we joined another cruiser snorkeling in the cut between islands looking for conch. He was better at finding them than I was but he was kind enough to share. We now have some conch meat in the freezer and several more conch shells. The winds kicked up over the weekend as forecast but we are in a well protected spot so we only experienced a little uncomfortable rolling as we listened to the wind in the rigging.
We plan on starting back in the next couple of days hoping to visit several islands that we have not been to yet. That's what has been happening here.
