A new Island…Prime

 

This is not to scale…5 were easily there

We make our way the short distance to Prime Cay by weaving between the islands on the bank/west side. It is in the lee of the wind and waves. I use the time to look over the ground tackle (anchor and connections) and make sure that everything is in good shape. Thankfully it is. I was going to put a soft shackle on as an emergency back up but it would not fit.

We exit out the cut at the south end of Rudder Cay and enter back in at Prime without any issues. We arrive before high water so we cannot go over the shallows into the anchorage pocket. I radio a boater who is in the anchorage to check conditions and he is going to be leaving at high tide and was very helpful in providing information on getting through. By quarter to three we were in, anchor down and waiting for Chris and Allison on s/v Purrfect to arrive. It is good to see your friends, pass on all their merchandise they shipped to us on Amazon and get together for the evening to catch up and look ahead. 

Our three safely out of the weather 

The next morning another boat that they have been traveling around with called O’Deas arrived but anchored outside for the late afternoon high tide. We all travel around to different snorkel sites to see the sea life and perhaps capture one from dinner. I am new at this spear fishing and am constantly asking which fish to target but no matter the fish are safe with me but Chris got a small one that became fried fish bites in our pot luck dinner that night. These anchorages are very nice especially on a calm moonlit night….mostly. 

Sheri had developed a back ache that got compounded by a boatload of no-see-ums arriving when the wind quit. I usually am pretty resilient but they were ferocious and with early AM the arrival of the storm front I may have captured 3 hours of sleep.

Pic of jellyfish thru look bucket

My lazy late morning was interrupted by an exploration of the nearby tidal shallows. Rays, turtles and another type of upside down jellyfish were there. 

The shore party explores

On foot we find a trail to the opposite side set up by cruisers who came before. On several islands similar trail markings are from the crazy amount of plastic…nets, buckets, shoes etc. 

Back to the boat to get all the fixings for a beach BBQ on our wood grills. The ladies climb the nearby hill and the guys relax. We start early to get ahead of the bugs.

Chris cooks up fresh rolls and we share a bunch of  salads as well as marshmallows.

Back to the boats to prepare for our predawn departure through one of the most shallow areas on the banks, The Pimlico Cays, on our way to Lee Stocking.

I captured this picture of Zeus sneaking up

You can get a sense of the Bank side and Sound side. What looks like sand is often too low but always beautiful.