Stocking Island to Hetty's Land & Little Farmers Cay, Exumas, Bahamas

We start out early for a day trip back toward Dotham Cut and Hetty’s Land. It is a nice day with a mild wind and small waves so Larry decides to shake things up a little on this cruise and put out a line for trolling. We cut our speed a bit and within a hour I hear the reel run. Larry gives me the helm and starts his battle with the fish. We put the headsets on as it appears that this will not be a quick fight. I get him a deck chair and cut the port engine to reduce our speed but still keep course. Larry fights the fish for another half hour and then lets me know that I need to turn the boat into the waves (for stabilization) and come down and net the fish. He gets the fish to the swim platform but I can’t seem to net it, so I just grab the line and pull it on board. My job is done and I go back to driving the boat and leave Larry to dispatch the fish. From here the story is not as one would expect. The fish did not end up on my dinner plate. I guess that darn fish knew what a scupper was and while it was chased around the cockpit he slithered himself through the scupper and escaped back into the sea! It was a beautiful fish so I hope it survived his encounter with us…and we have a crazy fish story now.

The Dotham Cut is calm today and we rush through with the tide. Another hour and we are anchored at Hetty’s Land (55NM), a sweet little anchorage, that we have all to ourselves. There is truly something special about being at anchor, on your own. The only sound is the waves and the birds. We decide to sleep outside and as night falls the stars appear blazing from the horizon to the sky above.

The following day we take the tender to Oven Rock to explore the beaches and then ride over to Little Farmers Cay. A sweet, sleepy little stop with friendly people. Our friend Terry Bain from Ocean Cabin relayed the following to us…Little Farmers Cay was settled 165 years ago by freed slaves from Exuma. A woman by the name of Chrisanna Nixon and her children, James Michael Nixon and Adam & Eve Brown, bought all of the Cay and willed it to their descendents. Today approximately seventy permanent residents are their descendants.

On our way to the cut Larry hooks a fish and the fight begins

Time for a deck chair as this is not ending anytime soon

The beautiful fish appears…they call it Mahi Mahi here, Dorado or Dolphin Fish to others

In the cockpit with Larry…the rest is history…

Oven Rock with a large Osprey nest (with chicks) at the top right

View of the beach looking south toward Little Farmers Cay

Conch shells in the north facing view with Oven Rock in the background

Little Harbour and fish hut at Little Farmers Cay

Ocean Cabin was most inviting. Larry had read that Little Farmers Cay is the only Cay/Island in the Bahamas to have their own flag. So when he ordered a couple Kalik beers from Terry he also asked if he could purchase a flag.

Terry is very proud of their flag and gave us the history and meaning behind the flag. He chatted with us until he had to go back to work…what an amazing person. Larry had him sign the flag and we left an Independence shirt for him at our next sto… — Terry is very proud of their flag and gave us the history and meaning behind the flag. He chatted with us until he had to go back to work…what an amazing person. Larry had him sign the flag and we left an Independence shirt for him at our next stop on Black Point Settlement at Lorraine’s...we hope he gets it!