Wednesday, April 15, 2009
15 April - Day #42. This morning it's clear, sunny and 81F. The Bahamas and Camelot have something in common, it only rains at night. The 5-day weather forecast is for strong north easterlies and 'rage' conditions at Whale Cay Pass. So what's a 'rage'? It's an aptly descriptive Bahamian term for the huge sea conditions found at ocean passes when large, wind driven swells, transition from deep to shallow water. For the mariner, a rage is a bar crossing with breaking seas. Not wishing to test our mettle, or sanity, we slip the mooring in Hope Town, Elbow Cay and head north. After some 20nm we enter the pass and find large swells but nothing breaking. We transit a tight, but well marked, little channel into Green Turtle Cay's White Sound. Once inside we find lots of boats on their 'hooks'. The bottom is only 6' away but feels much closer because of the clear water. The bottom is grass and sand over a hard pack. Perfect holding ground; until the winds pipe up. While out exploring in the dink, I offer a tow to a fellow cruiser who is rowing out to his sailboat. Turns out that he's a former crewmate of Bill Lowell's (37' LNVT, Gray Ghost #56). Jim and Jenny Allan, Rebel Star, join us for dinner and are thoroughly delightful with their myriad cruising stories. At 3:46 PM (utc) Nellie D's position was 26°46.79'N 077°20.29'W 27nm today: 1260nm total. DBH
