After a fantastic day and quiet evening at Meeks Patch, just south of Spanish Wells, we departed for Hatchet Bay. We headed south and east, passed west to east through Current Cut and had a delightfully quiet sail (engine off) all the way to Hatchet Bay.
Current Cut is a relatively narrow passage that separates Eleuthera and Current Island. The current through the cut can reach 10 knots which makes it impassable (in our boat) unless timed correctly. There are no tide tables for the cut, only opinions which can vary widely. We made an educated guess based on the most credible information and seemed to time it perfectly. Best guess for slack tide is two hours after Nassau so we anchored 30 minutes prior, just outside the cut. We grabbed our handheld GPS and jumped in the dinghy to take a test run. The current was still running west to east at 1.5 knots and it was very choppy. We headed back to the boat, tied everything down and pulled up anchor just prior to slack tide. We entered the cut exactly two hours after high tide in Nassau and had a perfect trip through the cut! We had almost no current, no wave or chop, almost flat calm, it was perfect! We turned south for about a mile then headed due east, shut off the engine and sailed for three hours! Just as we reached the west coast of central Eleuthera two dolphins showed up and played under the bow of our boat. Dolphins playing around the boat never gets old.
Link to map, description and pictures of current cut. The map shows the entire area in Eleuthera we have been cruising in so far, Egg Island, Royal Island, Spanish Wells, and Current.
http://www.discover-eleuthera-bahamas.com/current-cut.html
Link to a panoramic photo of current cut. Click on the little circle at the bottom left in the picture and it will expand full screen, hit escape to return to normal view.
http://www.eleuthera-map.com/current-cut-pano-photo.htm
Aerial view current cut:
Current cut looking west to east:
Motoring through the cut:
Government dock on the Eleuthera side of the cut:
Current cut looking back to the west:
Cliffs along the west coast of central Eleuthera:
Two dolphins playing under the bow:
The entrance to Hatchet Bay suddenly appeared in the cliffs:
Looking right:
…and left:
Welcome:
Alice Town Fire Station:
We had dinner at The Front Porch overlooking the harbour. The Front Porch is owned by Francis and Gina, two wonderful and friendly people.
Tanya had the shrimp, I had the stone crab, and both were excellent:
Then I got my butt kicked in Trivial Pursuit:
Random shot from inside the bay looking out:
Dea Latis, storm anchor out, Hatchet Bay:
Shots of the anchorage:
It was very cloudy and rainy the first few days we were here. This was the first sun we had seen in a while. Sunrise Hatchet Bay:
Cruiser’s get together on the dock, food, drink, two guitar players, great times. Met some really nice people…then most of them left…
Conch trio at sunset, the guy on the left is from Brunswick Maine:
Tanya made me birthday brownies!
Our friends, Dirk and Nancy on Renegade, showed up a few days later which was nice. We all made a quick trip to the beach and got some fishing in as well. We are both heading south in a day or two but they are heading to the Exumas while we are headed for Governor’s Harbour. It was nice to see them again.