In my January 17 report I mentioned how crowded paradise can be.  We had gotten up to 26 boats in little Allan's Cay by Saturday night and began worrying about the nearness of boats anchored around us.  This is a location notorious for its current, and frontal passages were coming in one after the next (probably why so many boats were here).   While most boaters understand how vital it is to have a proper anchor set, it is difficult to do in conditions that may be new to the skipper and crew.  With four tidal shifts, strong north/south current, and heavy winds from most every direction, it is amazing there are not more calamities, with the density of boats in the harbor.   Just before dusk, two more sailboats came in to our side of the harbor, wondered around looking for a spot and with one settling northwest of us and one settling northeast of us, we were surrounded, and closely!

I grumbled to myself about this but said nothing. One of the skippers rode over in his dinghy inquiring as to the number and types of anchors we had down.  We gave him full detail (two anchors, 120 ft. of scope, 180 degrees apart running with the current north/south).  This gave me some security that he was aware of his proximity to us and considering the consequences.  The other skipper did not do this, and in the middle of the night rousted us to move our boat!

The lesson here is that [text missing] chain you have out, the wind direction, the current, and whether your neighbor has anchored similarly to you (number of anchors, scope of rode, direction of anchors for holding).