February 4, 2010.

We’ve got the worst weather of the season headed our way. Cold fronts typically careen off the continent of North America and down through the Bahamas. They lose much of their destructive force as they head south through the islands.

Its not uncommon to hear weather forecasts that predict winds around 30 knots or more in the Abacos, 20 knots in the Exumas and 10 to 15 knots down through the Jumentos with each passing front.

This front promises to be a bit different. We’re supposed to have winds in the 15 knot range from out of the south as the front approaches. When the front arrives the wind will build to 20 knots from the southwest and then west. As the front passes we’re promised winds over 20 knots with squalls in the 30 to 40 knot range.

There’s no anchorage in the area that offers protection for the duration of the event so we’ve got to decide from which direction we’d like our asses kicked. The other option would be to hide in amongst several cays and move from place to place as the wind shifts around. I don’t want to chance having the wind shift in the middle of the night forcing us to consider moving. So we’re opting for a “controlled” ass kicking.

So we spent the morning hunting with the crews of Far Niente and Savage Son. We all were home at our boats, each with a lobster before 1130. We had the hooks up and were headed south to the bottom end of Ragged Island. We’ll be exposed to the south but with good sand and plenty of room to deploy chain we should be okay. Especially when the squalls come through bringing their higher winds. We’re tucked up just north of Wilson Point so we have a bit of protection from the west.

With the setting sun as a reference you can see that we are tucked in just enough to get ourselves some westerly protection. If you look at the map we found drawn on the wall at the local all age school; we’re down at the southern end of Ragged Island near the basketball. (The school here has just 9 students from K through 8th grades.)