"Flying Pig" wrote in message
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"Bruce In Bangkok" wrote in message
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On Wed, 30 Sep 2009 13:05:45 -0400, Moi wrote:

Wilbur Hubbard wrote:

[snip usually idiotic drivel]

Translation: Skip is out there doing what I can barely dream about and
I'm damned jealous.

Cheers
Martin

Apparently Wilbur hasn't yet realized that Skip, albeit with all his
problems, is now light years more experienced then Wilbur will ever
be. Skip has actually sailed somewhere and back while Wilbur has not.

Unfortunately for Wilbur, reading sailing magazines does not count for
experience.

Cheers,

Bruce
(bruceinbangkokatgmaildotcom)

Now, Bruce,

You'll recall Aragorn's post of a while ago. Whether it's Neal or his
boyfriend, there was a lot of sailing in Wilbur's past. His detailed
knowledge of the Bahamas has been useful to me. Just now, we're
experiencing the mosquitos he warned about before we were to leave, nearly
6 months ago, now, before all the repairs/refit stuff we did.

While he was mistaken about our demise on a shoal, we WERE in the area,
but since I was driving :{)) we weren't anywhere near shallow. We anchored
in 20 feet of water that night, I got up at a reasonable hour for having
retired at 4, and continued.

I look forward to his recommendations as we move further south. Right
now, we elected to stay at Powell - a bit too close to shore, anchoring in
about 9 feet of water, occasioned by my diving the bottom of the keel
which had grown a small menagerie of calcium-based life-forms sitting in
the mud at the dock in St. Simons for those 4 months, and cleaning off the
depth sounders, groundplane and keel cooler bronzes as well, while the
ladies went and explored the magical beach on the other side - and have a
few skeeters. Citronella candles kept them at bay as the girls watched the
Hobbit on one of the electronic sets Wilbur decries :{))

Tomorrow we'll head over to Cooperstown, and then start moving south
toward Marsh Harbor where the girls will get off in about 10 days, and a
couple of weeks later my son and wife will join us. I'd enjoy (under
separate thread heading, please!) recommendations for beachcombing,
snorkeling, fishing (somehow I got a speargun permit!!) and conching
between here and there...

L8R, y'all


It's good to hear you didn't get tangled up with Lily Shoal though you were
close and they do shift some. But being just giant sand washes they
generally don't do much harm should you run up on one. Most of them you can
just sail over at high water but the water is so clean you'd swear it's only
a couple feet deep.

Powell is nice, especially the beach on the ocean side. There is also a nice
beach ocean side on the north end of Powell and a path to it from the
bayside. Good beachcombing on the north beach as it is less frequented.
There is a pretty nice little cliff with a path up to it on the north
central part of the island at the outcrop on the bayside that affords a
great view of the anchorage.

Coopers Town isn't anything special and the anchorage is rough in prevailing
winds.

I would stop at Manjack Cay aka Nunjack Cay if you have the time. It used to
be uninhabited but with mowed off paths and building lots for sale but no
habitation yet. More great beaches on the ocean side with a path from
Nunjack Beach is nice on the Bayside for picnics. There used to be a dock
with enough water for me to tie up to it. You could probably make it to the
dock as well. I can anchor right off NunJack beach but you might have to
anchor outside the little reef that projects from the south that makes the
little NunJack Beach Harbor. Some cruisers feel their way around NunJack
Rocks and anchor in the little harbor on the north. It's a beautiful place
there.

South of that is Green Turtle Cay. The main anchorage is not too great as
there is lots of faster motorboat traffic going back and forth to the
mainland (Abaco Island). Anchoring in White Sound is more peaceful and Black
Sound is nice, too. I would definitely spend a day or two at Green Turtle
Cay poking around. New Plymouth is quaint and has all the amenities. I can
get my boat into Settlement Creek and New Plymouth harbor but it is small
and shallow. You might be able to get FP in there but I'd check it out with
the dinghy first if I were you.

From Green Turtle you will probably want to take FP on the outside route
around Whale Cay as the inside channel is quite shoal. In settled weather
the Whale Channel outside route is no problem. Don't do it in heavy weather,
though, as there can be a 'rage' which amounts to breaking waves in the
inlets. Once you transit Whale Cay you'll see Great Guana to the Southeast.
The north side of the island has Bakers Bay which used to be undeveloped and
contained the wreckage of an old cruise ship port and the channel was
dredged deep with a turning basin at the end for a cruise ship. When I was
there Bakers Bay was a cruisers anchorage with a path to the great beach on
the ocean side.

Further south you can anchor in Fisher's Bay north or Delia's Cay and dinghy
into the Guana Beach Resort where you can walk to the settlement which has a
nice little grocery store and you can walk across the island to Nippers to
have a frozen Nippers. You can't NOT visit Nippers as it is world famous.

Have fun.

Wilbur Hubbard