December 3, 2013.

Never again will I take an Ocean Trigger (Editors note: Yes he will, they're very tasty). Filleting him turned into a full time job. Nothing as heinous as working for John Norton but still, it was not easy. His skin was tough as hell. It was like filleting a combat boot. But he was very good.

So of course during the night the wind built directly out of the north and into our private wide open anchorage. It was only a paltry 12 knots but we were swung stern to shore and listening to the wavelets beating against the shore was less than relaxing. I wasn't worried about dragging but my imagination was running wild and I couldn't sleep. So at 0530 I got up and plotted a course to our next destination and got the boat ready to go.

We were underway by 0630 and headed for Hog Cay. We once again found ourselves as the only boat around and had the cay to ourselves. We hiked a bit and explored “The Structure” and noted various reminders of several of our friends passing through.

The only settlement in the Jumentos is Duncantown and is just over a mile and a half away on Ragged Island. There are only about 60 people in the very small community. Maxine who runs the local grocery store hosts an annual Valentines Day party that is not to be missed. She hosts it here on Hog Cay and the lack of shade has always been an issue.

The cruisers gathered hundreds of pieces of bamboo driftwood and built “The Structure” to provide some shade. This past year Maxine gathered some building materials and had some of the locals come over and build a more permanent structure to help house the party.

They did a fantastic job.

We're hiding from 20 – 25 knots out of the east with at least another 4 days of the same in the forecast. One day the wind dropped down to 15 – 20 knots so we rounded the southern tip of the cay to try a little spearfishing. The seas were still up and conditions were less than optimal with a lot of sand suspended in the water due to the roughness.

I didn't dare go around to the windward side of the reefs as the waves would pick me up and unceremoniously deposit me on top of the reef. Which would be bad unless you're into extreme exfoliation. I did find 2 parallel reefs. The waves were breaking on the outermost reef which allowed me to hunt the backside of the inside reef with decent visibility. I grabbed 3 bugs in a half an hour while Christy handled the dinghy in the rough conditions. Thirty minutes was all I could ask of her as the wind pushed her one way while the current sent her in another direction, all while surrounded by coral.

On the way home we did stop at a cove with the only coconut palms on the cay. We grabbed a half dozen newly fallen coconuts to add to the larder before heading back to the boat.

On an unrelated front, someone asked about Hamburger Beans.  Heres a link to a story I wrote about them a while ago.....Click Here

You'll have to scroll down to January 16th to read about the beans....