Laying New Tracks

George Town to Water Cay  |  8.9 Hours  |  61.7 Miles   

The best compensation for an early alarm is a beautiful dawn sky. Elizabeth Harbour was basking in a beautiful orange glow as I claimed my spot on the bow to raise the anchor. We were underway by the time the sun finally emerged from behind Stocking Island. At Middle Rocks we exited the harbor into the Exuma Sound and continued south along Great Guana Cay and then Little Guana Cay. At this point we began laying new tracks on our chartplotter. The tide was not in our favor as we arrived at Hog Cay Cut almost exactly at low tide. Chicken may be a bit strong of a term, but we are risk averse. We elected to go around the cut and gain a few extra inches of depth in the process. We consistently saw depth readings of less than two feet below our keel. Occasionally, it was too shallow to register a reading. 

On the positive side, the shallow water made for beautiful scenery ...

which made our three hour detour more bearable. (The shortest distance would have been the red dotted line through Hog Cay Cut.) Soon we spotted land and several small boats fishing in the area. As we rounded a point, we saw the "mothership" where all the little boats would later return with their catch. This boat in no way compares to the beautiful Spanish Wells fleet, but it seemed to be serviceable. We eased into an anchorage at Water Cay in the Jumentos, noting this is the furthest south we've ever been aboard Crossroads. 

We cleaned up and I followed a few basketball games in the late afternoon hours. Just before sunset, the friendly voices of Kelly and Richard (Untethered) came from our stern and they invited us to join them for a sunset cruise in their dinghy. Kelly showed us their favorite snorkeling spots and took us close to the rocky hills. The setting sun cast a golden glow on the island.

The real show was developing to the west. Everyone pulled out their phone cameras to capture a stunning sunset. Occasionally we looked to the east to see a snowy egret flying overhead or a large osprey roosting in a waterfront tree. 

The clouds and colors continued to hold our attention long after the sun disappeared. We made plans for tomorrow and returned to Crossroads in darkness. In separate news, our little boat self-guided tour that was filmed during last week's Selene gathering was posted to the Selene Youtube channel this morning. We won't be challenging Wicked Part 2 for any Oscar next year, but it may give you a little insight to our home on the water.