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March 7, 2024; Shroud Cay to Black Point: Today’s Run: 28 miles
It was a surprise to find so many sailboats anchored at Black Point when we arrived. We had seen very few sailboats along our route due to potentially shallow waters in the rivers and the Gulf ICW.
Why were there so many sailboats here, I wondered? George Town, (population 1000), on Great Exuma Island, (indicated by one of the blue dots on the above chart), and approximately 100 miles south of here, attracts up to 600 boats to their annual regattas during the winter months. Generally, keelboats traveling south, use the southbound ICW, not the shallow river route and GICW as we had taken. Some boaters stay in Georgetown the entire winter, while others leave after the regattas and head back north while making stopovers in the islands. Due to its location, and development, Black Point, (population 350), is a popular stopover.
A cruiser’s radio network, probably stationed from an owner’s boat, had organized events for those who stopped there. Dinners at restaurants, social get-togethers at bars, (there are several), and beach-time activities, games and other fun competitions, organized by volunteer boaters were announced.
Each morning, precisely at 9:00, the cruiser’s net is heard over the VHF radio. The net controller invites those in the anchorage, to introduce themselves. It is an opportunity for boaters to learn what boats have arrived and who they might reconnect with. At radio-net time, anyone can announce items they need, or wish to sell or give away.
One women seemed desperate to find nail polish, another was seeking a haircut, someone else needed help with repairs, and a crewmember on another boat had cut a finger and needed advice on where to go to receive stitches.
Also during the net, restaurants advertised Happy Hours: special drinks and prices, and whether they were featuring buffet dinners. Above: Hi Tide restaurant served good food.
Black Point is more developed than most islands in Exuma.
A few restaurants are located overlooking the water, and a cafe or two stand along the sandy road. (Pictured below.)
*In the early 1800s, casual mail service took place when England and America exchanged occasional pieces of mail. In 1832, 2 schooners became part of the official government mail service. Today, they deliver just about anything, including animals.
I have learned since returning from the Bahamas, that most schools appreciate donations of pencils, rulers, sharpeners, exercise books, small boxes of coloured pencils, erasers, and geometry kits.
This is one of two super yachts that was anchored off Black Point. There was no name on the side of the 232ft/70m yacht, (above), but appearing in large lettering, was the number 9906. The yacht’s name is in fact SKAT. (Skat, like bear droppings? No, the Danish word for ‘treasure’ ). The design of the yacht resembles a navy vessel, and the number, the yachts project number, emphasizes the naval look; it is what the owner wanted to achieve. The yacht has in fact, (according to an unofficial report), been taken for a navy ship. On one occasion, when a genuine navy ship was about to enter a harbour, the navy vessel stood off while security measures were completed because the Commander could not confirm that 9906 was a friendly naval vessel.
The previous owner, overseer of Excel and Word at Microsoft, had firm ideas of what he expected in a yacht. He believed that “most boats looked as if they were carved out of soft cheese “. To read more, and to view pictures of the interior, click here. :https://www.boatinternational.com/yachts/the-superyacht-directory/skat–60591
SKAT was delivered in 2002, and went up for sale in 2023 for $58 million. The owner had a larger yacht built in similar design.
To read more about SKAT, including making the yacht super quiet, and her unique features, click here: https://www.boatinternational.com/yachts/editorial-features/lurssen-superyacht-skat
Traveling the Great Loop 
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