Anchoring in Nassau Harbour, Channel between Paradise Island

We are getting pretty comfortable with anchoring out for extended periods and not heading to a dock as often as we use to. This is saving us quite a bit of money on docking, which in the Bahamas can cost anywhere from $2 to $4 per foot. In fact we have not been at a dock now since we left our mooring ball in Georgetown, over a week ago. Now in Nassau where docking is $4 per foot, for a boat our size $160 per night. We decided to anchor in the channel between Nassau and Paradise Island. It is actually not a bad place to anchor, from here we can take our dinghy to near by restaurants with wifi, and the mainland for provisioning. You just need to make sure your anchor is dug in and you have the anchor rode scope right for proper holding, but not too long, be aware of your swing in relation to other boats that are anchored near by. The trickiest part is that approximately every 6 hours the tide changes, and there is a current in the channel at this time, your boat will change swing based on the current, and then if there is counter wind that is differing from the current, the boat will float strangely in what seems like a random pattern. This is when you may collide with other boats, if you anchor too closely. Also when the tide changes, you want to make sure your anchor re-sets. The last time we anchored in this channel, I remember waking up in the middle of the night, witnessing a boat, floating right through the anchorage bumping off of many boats. He was the victim of an anchor that did not reset!

What is the best Anchor? And Used Anchor for Sale! We managed to do ok with our 35lb Delta, and large fortress Danforth as our secondary. But for our next trip down to the Bahamas, we have just purchased what I consider to be the best anchor out there. It is a Ultra, have a look at this link for more information on the Ultra Anchor. With all the controversy between the Rocna and Manson anchors, I did a lot of research and testing, and settled on this anchor. The delta 35lb fully stainless steel anchor I had is still very good, and new is worth almost $2,000 because it is made of Stainless Steel.  This Delta is now for sale, I am offering it for $600 and will include free shipping anywhere in North America. It is still in almost new condition, beautiful piece of jewellery on your bow. Great for any boat between 30 to 40 feet in length.

We managed to survive over a week with the 400 litres (Approx. 80 gallons) of water the boat can hold. Our family of 4 is accustomed to showering each night, and consume a fair bit of water. We bath in the salt water, rinse off at the swim platform with the shower head. For washing dishes, we draw a couple of buckets of salt water, wash the dishes in the sink with the salt water, then just rinse them with fresh water. This allows us to survive a couple weeks on the water we can carry. In any case its a long ride to Florida, so we filled the water and fuel tanks, and stocked up on some food and drinks. Spent a couple of nights here in Nassau, and then we were on our way.

Below are some pics of the Harbour, Channel, Main Land, Cruise Terminal and Atlantis in the background.