Position           24:22.94N 076:37.88W

Date                1800 Tuesday 27 March 2012

A leisurely start, i.e.1250, was followed by a cracking good reach for most of the 18nm to Warderick Wells with a steady 8 to 9 knots in calm turquoise waters.

Warderick Wells is the home of the Ranger Station for the Exuma Land and Sea Park and there are mooring buoys in three locations around the Cay.  With the attraction of possible WiFi available we endeavoured to call up the Rangers VHF to book a mooring in the creek, the only place with adequate depth of water for our 2.1 (2.2, 2.3?) metres.  A combination of Bahamian attention to the VHF and our installation once again not performing very well meant to contact was made so we anchored well out off Emerald Rock with 1 metre under the keel.  If anyone is using this diary as a guide the location was 24:22.61N 076:38.07W. This was miles out!

Post late lunch an expedition was mounted in the dinghy and with the hand held depth sounder – I remember the doubters when this was purchased!  Sing an anchored motor yacht as a reference we plotted the depth in and found that with low water approaching we should have at least ½ metre clearance.  Returning to the boat and with shades of Hornblower once again we felt our way in with the Mate calling the depth from the digital display at the chart table; it is rather more accurate than the analogue display in the cockpit which rather gives up under a metre (all below the keel). The final position is as quoted for the day and whilst still quite a way out was at least as close as the Emerald Rock mooring field and was FOC.

Dinner was a sensational first for the cook; chicken breast stuffed with Feta, dried tomatoes and fresh basil wrapped in prosciutto.