Duncan Town, Ragged Islands

Mid April we sail from Raccoon Cay to the Ragged Island and spend time in Duncan Town, the only inhabited town in the Jumentos Cays. Even though it does not provide water, fuel, food for cruisers, we find the fisherwoman, Maxine, runs a store, and will arrange for small amounts of gas and diesel from her stock and her relatives personal stock to top us off for our crossing. She is a very busy person - fishes, runs a store, dries conch for Nassau and Eleuthera, and has a beautiful 40 year old daughter in the hospital in Nassau that she visits and plans to take to Cuba for a brain operation.

D sits on porch and talks with Daniel, Maxine's fishing partner
They are waiting for Phicol 

We find the people of Duncan Town to be the most industrious of all the islands we have visited. It is the end of the island chain - the next island is 62 nm south, Cuba! So they must be self sufficient. The mailboat delivers food, supplies, and fuel to individual houses!  We see the pick up trucks running from the mail boat to deliver all the goods. Flo Hepburn bakes bread for cruisers, but you must order it one day and pick up another day.

Phicol Wallace arrives and syphons diesel from his personal stock
He  and his wife, Erica, run charters, hotel, restaurant and he is the utilities guy, too
Good man to know!

We saw lots of goats and a huge pen and farm near the salt ponds.

Maxine and her husband, the preacher, clean, pound and dry conch
to ship to Nassau and Eleuthera

Dried conch process -  2 pounded conch tied with thatch palm lashings
Surprisingly, no flies or smell

Salt accumulates on the edges of rocks. Doesn't it look like frost?
We see barrels of salt in this operational salt pond.
We do not see anyone working it while we are there. 

The beautiful symmetry of the salt ponds

Rows of rocks to increase production of salt pond

A walking path through the salt pond

Overview of the canal into Duncan Town.
We time our speed in our dinghy at close to 20 mph.
We slow to see mounds of conch shells, fish, small sharks.

The canal to Duncan Town is long and narrow.
Only for small boats and dinghies. 

First view of Duncan Town, an industrious small town on Ragged Island

The water is a disappointing green and looks like our Gulf of Mexico. We stay in the Southside Harbor as the weather becomes rough with a front passing south of us. Our next destination is Cay Sal Bank, 230 nm crossing, so we must be safe and get a good weather window for 3-4 days.

From our anchorage we see several planes land at the airport
Here is a Bahamian Air Defense plane. 

D walks the empty airstrip
Notice the air scoop and lights in the ground.

Welcome to the Ragged Island! Airport terminal, open 24/7

We are always on the look for coconuts 

A resident has several wrecked boats and is famous
for a plane on the roof of a former restaurant.

We hike from the anchorage over the hill to Duncan Town to pick up bread and supplies.

Unique island homes in Duncan Town

Another islandy home
notice the shells and palm fronds

View from the hill overlooking Duncan Town
salt pond and the rough Atlantic Ocean

Ragged Island is the furthest point south of our trip.  From now on, we will be heading back home, which saddens me, but the best is yet to come!  The incredible crossing to and solitude of Cay Sal Banks!