On to Nassau

We took our time getting to Nassau, stopping one night at Bond Key. The area is beautiful, but it is a long way in, and our E-80 Raymarine chart was off by several hundred feet....not a problem if you enter at high tide, but we scuffed along the sand and felt our way gently across the waters, our depth sounder reading 6 feet or less. Don't think well try that spot again. We should have trusted the ipad with Navionics. Their charts were more accurate. The deep water anchoring hole proved to be just over 7 feet at low tide and it was over a half mile dinghy ride to the beach.

On May 11, 2017, we motored into the Nassau Harbor, our first time there. The Nassau Harbor Club Hotel and Marina, on the far side of the harbor, proved to be a safe and nicely located marina, across the street from the shopping area with grocery store and Starbucks, which had wifi, very nice since the wifi at the marina was weak. Lots of nice people there. The bathrooms, however, were terrible, clogged toilets and dirty. We went sightseeing and exploring while we waited for Atlantica to join us. One of our best meals was freshly caught conch salad under the bridge in Nassau.

Our exploration took us up The Queens Staircase to  Fort Fincastle at the top of the island.There is also a pretty colonial center of town in Nassau. We were surprised to find the town much smaller than expected. An interesting fact. You can walk the mile and a half, or take a cab from the marina to downtown, for about $20, or you can ride the local bus for about 50 cents.

Atlantica arrived in Nassau to join us for the rest of the trip. However, Emerald City needed some work. Black Pearl and Wind Dancer chose to journey to Norman Island, in the Exumas. Traditionally, people pass through the White Bank, keeping a sharp eye out for its well known wicked coral heads. We took the recommended, slightly longer route, between the White Bank and the Yellow Bank, passed lots of big boats along the way and never saw less than 15 feet of water. Never saw a coral head or rocks the entire way. The day's travel was slightly longer than anticipated in bumpy seas,  with 5 hours of running the engine, and 3 hours of sailing. We arrived at 4:00 and anchored off Norman Island.