March 8-9, 2010... Long Island Journey

We spent Monday exploring Simms and Alligator Bay. The Bay provided a wonderfully calm anchorage, so we splashed the kayak for another tour. We went south and saw bonefish (one that was at least two feet long), a ray, and an osprey perched on a log on the beach. The water was of course that beautiful turquoise color and we began to see it reflected in the clouds above the bank! We found an inlet off the Bay that was a quiet mangrove creek. It ended at a boat ramp. We beached the boat and took off for a walk. A local man encouraged us to visit the Blue Chip Restaurant (that we would find by the big rubber tree) so we did. There we met Mario who has been running that place for over 40 years. We had a wonderful conversation about how Simms used to be. Leaving we thought that was one of the nicest stops we've had in the Bahamas.
Tuesday we were up early to weigh anchor at 5am. Sanctuary pulled out of the anchorage in front of us so we followed their navigation lights to get on the rhumb line for the north. We had a big day ahead of us; rounding the northern Cape Santa Maria to return southeast down the coast of Long Island to Clarence Town harbor - about 60 miles. The winds were about what we expected, but the ocean swell was out of the E-ESE catching us on the beam as we turned for the south. Luckily the waves were only about 5-6 feet, so they weren't that bad. But the journey could have been much smoother had the seas just cooperated. We had all three sails up, but in order to get to the harbor before dark we added the engine for more speed. Arriving in the harbor thankful that the high seas stayed out, we had the anchor down by 4pm. We were sound asleep by 7:30!

Clarence Town, Long Island: +23° 6' 4.86", -74° 57' 3.00"