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The Fish Cays, Crooked/Acklins District, Southern Bahamas

The chart and following text are from The Southern Bahamas Guide by Stephen J. Pavlidis

The Fish Cays

Entrance to anchorage:
22º 28.00’ N, 74º 16.20’ W

Navigational Information
Southeast of Long Cay lies a string of small islands called the Fish Cays as shown on Chart CA-4.  The waters to their east are shallow with many sand bores and are virtually impassable except for small boats.  Some of the areas between the cays, east of the cays, and to seaward of the cays to the one fathom line dry at low water.  These shallow waters are teeming with sea fans and you may even find some conch.  Along the western shores of these cays the drop-off offers excellent trolling and diving opportunities for the adventure loving SCUBA diver.  There are numerous shallow water reefs with abundant marine life waiting to become your dinner.  Just southeast of Long Cay lies North Cay with its large reef/sandbar off its northwest tip.  Give it a wide berth.

South of North Cay, the larger Fish Cay is home to a large population of small iguanas.  One would think that the Guana Cays (which actually does have a small colony of iguanas), which lie just to the south of Fish Cay, would be their home instead.  Rather, the better fishing is around the Guana Cays.  Doesn’t quite make sense does it?  Perhaps someone misnamed the cays? 

The only viable anchorage in the area lies between Fish Cay and the Guana Cays in 8’-12’ of water as shown on Chart CA-4.  A waypoint at 22º 28.00’ N, 74º 16.20’ W, will place you ¼ mile southwest of the entrance to the dark blue channel that leads to the anchorage.  From this position you can head generally northeast-east/northeast across a bar with 7’ at low water.  Once past the bar, and the sea fans that inhabit it, you will find the depths getting progressively deeper to about 12’ between the cays.  This is not a good spot in southerly to northwesterly winds and there’s a lot of current here so use two anchors.  Fish Cay’s western shore has an absolutely gorgeous beach, good for beachcombing, sunbathing, swimming, or whatever other recreational diversions you can imagine and employ.  You can also anchor on the northwestern side of Guana Cay, working your way across the shallow bank to a deeper area with 7’ at MLW.

The waters south of Fish Cay, between Guana Cays and South Cay are very shallow and strewn with sandbores as are the waters to the east of these cays.  There’s little here for cruising vessels but plenty for dinghy exploration, lots of sea fans, conch, and marine life.  However there are two anchorages, one south of and one north of, the lovely beach surrounded South Cay, but these anchorages are best only in light prevailing winds.

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