Today we left Allens Cay for a short 10 mile sail to Normans Cay. The conditions were perfect and we were able to comfortably sail at 7 knots.
Getting into the anchorage looked tough on the charts. We had to go through a shallow area that showed 5 feet of water and, we were at low tide, I think. There are no tide stations so I split the difference between the Eleuthera and Nassau stations.
The other aide I had was the new Garmin chart plotters record the depths along with coordinates. Those breadcrumb trails with depth readings then get uploaded to Garmin. I downloaded someone else’s trip with depths and followed their path. The depths were pretty accurate and I was able to make it into the anchorage without issue.
In the 80s, Carlos Lehder, partner to Pablo Escobar, ran a drug smuggling operation out of Normans Cay. The operation was shut down long ago but many of the artifacts are still here. The most popular is the DC-3 that crashed just off the Cay.
Once we anchored and had an early lunch, we loaded up the dingy and headed to the DC-3. The wind and current was strong so Sue stayed on the dingy while I swam on the wreck. I was surprised at the condition of the wreck. It has been sitting in saltwater for over 30 years.
After the the plane wreck, we went to check out Normans Pond. It’s a large pond with deep water inside. Well, deep water for around here. 15 to 20 feet deep. The problem is getting into the pond. The entrance is narrow and shallow. We have a west wind coming soon, and Normans Pond would be an excellent hiding spot, so I wanted to check it out in the dingy to see if I could make it in. Well, I’m not doing it. I could probably get in at high tide, but I’m not going to chance it. There are other hiding spots out there.
Tomorrow, Sue and I will be entering the Exumas Cay Land and Sea Park for several days. Its a national park and there are no developments. No towns, stores, or cell service, not even a gift shop. So, our position map will update since that uses satellites, but no blog posts or phone calls for a while.
Note: The following underwater shots are provided complements of Sue’s friend, Kim-lien, who left us with an underwater camera when she came to visit in Norfolk.
Kurt & Sue Sail 