Hi John,

Have you ever been in there? Pretty good spot, though it's a pity you can't go ashore... But you couldn't possibly be more protected, a little basin maybe 150-200 meters across. I had it to myself Friday night, then a couple of Canadian 30-footers showed up Saturday night. Since much of it was dredged, the bottom might be a little suspect - I stayed hooked with no problem, but my anchor did come up a bit more easily than usual, and one of the other boats dragged somewhat during the frontal passage Saturday night...

It seems unclear whether it's really OK to go in there or not... The Pavlidis guide designates it as a recommended anchorage, only mentioning that the previous owner of Rudder Cut Cay used to put a chain across the dredged entrance... But since he's now in prison in Florida, and the state laid claim to his property, seems that's no longer the case.. However, the Explorer Charts carry the notation that the pond itself is private property, and anchoring in there should only be done with prior permission of the owner... Well, I went in there anyway, not having handy the email addy or cell phone # of the magician David Copperfield, who bought all the cays in the area recently for a reported $50 million... Anyway, he hasn't made me disappear yet, so I suppose it was OK... You definitely don't want to even think about going ashore there, however - there are some dogs that appear to resemble dingos patrolling the shore... Never saw any sign of another human in the two days I was there, but someone must be coming by to feed them from time to time, wouldn't you think?

Frankly, I'm surprised the Exumas are as popular as they are with cruisers... With so many of the cays now privately owned, chances to go ashore really have become few and far between... It's just a matter of time before moorings fill the Exumas anyway, it's pretty disappointing how many cruisers seem to crave them now, preferring them to anchoring... Listening to some of the pleas of desperation for moorings in the Park, or around Staniel Cay, can be pretty amusing... Riding out a major frontal passage on a Bahamian mooring? No, thank you... (grin)

Had a great sail Sunday down Exuma Sound in the NW breeze behind the front, arrived in Clarence Town yesterday just after sunrise... Lots of current running north through the Sound and over the top of Cape Santa Maria, thought I would never get past there... LOL! Of course, that's when the breeze began to fade a bit, although not quite enough to prevent me from managing to break my spinnaker halyard, and dealing with a massive ambiguously gay sea anchor in the middle of the night... Oh, joy - now I get to go to the top of the mast sometime in the next few days, either in the surge here in Clarence Town, or perhaps down in Little Harbor in a couple of days...

Bracing for the next front coming thru tonight, it's now blowing 20-25 out of the S here, will probably go W about midnight and blow harder tomorrow... I'm anchored right over near the mail boat dock, a bit exposed at the moment, but once it goes SW, I'll be fine... there are several boats anchored over by Strahan Cay, I think they're in for a bit of a surprise once it goes W-NW, I expect I'll have a few neighbors here by this time tomorrow... (grin)

Have you ever been into Little Harbor? I've always wanted to stop there, never had the chance, but I think I'll go down there for the NEXT front - which isn't due to pass through here for almost THREE WHOLE DAYS from now! LOL! Damn, this winter has been one for the books, alright...

Name of the boat is CHANCY... The way the weather has been, my plans at this point are a real crapshoot, though I expect I'll make an appearance in Georgetown within the next couple of weeks... although that place is not really my kind of scene, there still is a lot to like about being there for at least a little while, and I always run into someone I know there, or make some great new acquaintances...

best regards,