Safe anchorages in Belize

[chinex]

Hi Everyone, we are getting into Belize tomorrow from Rio Dulce, Guatemala.
We'll be in Sapotilla cays in the south for a couple of days but there is bad weather coming this weekend with strong north/westerly winds.
Can someone recommend safe anchorages in the Belize cays that could give us reasonable protection? Many thanks in advance,
Pablo
SV Da Capo
Moody 44, draft 1.8m

[Kettlewell]

Placencia should be good in northwest to north winds.

[chinex]

Thank you very much. How about any cays on the east side of Belize, we don't want to check in in Belize, so in Placencia we might get approach by authorities.

[Kettlewell]

I personally would not anchor in a country without checking in, plus most of the good anchorages in the east tend to be mainly sheltered from the east due to the prevailing tradewinds. The low-lying reefs don't offer much protection. There's some nice cruising in Belize. Don't miss the Great Blue Hole.

[geoleo]

Originally Posted by chinex

Hi Everyone, we are getting into Belize tomorrow from Rio Dulce, Guatemala.
We'll be in Sapotilla cays in the south for a couple of days but there is bad weather coming this weekend with strong north/westerly winds.
Can someone recommend safe anchorages in the Belize cays that could give us reasonable protection? Many thanks in advance,
Pablo
SV Da Capo
Moody 44, draft 1.8m

Just north of the main ship channel on east side of the traditional inshore route

[Benz]

Pelican Cays have very good shelter if they're not too far north for you. Depending on draft, you could get pretty far into a very sheltered hole.

[hlev00]

We cruised in the area of Placencia about 15 years ago. You do need to be careful of which cays you anchor in. Some look like they would be cozy but are surprisingly deep for their overall size making it hard to get enough scope. However there are definitely some snug anchorages with good depth and no coral. I wish I could be more specific but I don't have my log handy with where we anchored.

[belizesailor]

Lots of good foul weather anchorages to choose from!

"Foul Weather Anchorages

In the event that foul weather threatens, there are a number of good foul weather anchorages available. The
prudent strategy is to head for one when a strong cold front is forecast, regardless of forecast wind direction.
Brief descriptions of some recommended anchorages below, arranged roughly N to S.

Drowned Cayes. Many bogues, running roughly E-W, divide these cayes and offer a multitude of well protected
anchorages and interesting exploring.

Robinson Cayes. Not as well protected as some, but OK as long as wind doesn't go SW. Holding in N
anchorage not very good in soupy mud.

Bluefields. Two slightly tricky entrances, but good protection.

Tobacco Caye Range (not Tobacco Caye). Just W of Tobacco Caye. There is a hole in the S end of Tobacco
Caye Range that can shelter a few boats. You can also just anchor in the lee if winds are NW-W.

Twin Cayes. Just W of Southwater Caye. Inside Twin Cayes in a very protected lagoon. Entrance is a bit tricky.

Sapodilla Lagoon. Mainland lagoon with an entrance from the E. S of Sittee River. Complete 360 protection.

Blue Ground Range. W of Twin Cayes. Slow going picking your way across the shoals from Southwater.
Entrance from the W is easier.

Lark Caye Range. Just across from Placencia. Very deep (60'), but good holding and protection.

Placencia Harbour. Popular anchorage with good holding. Open to the SE-S. Can get ugly here if winds pick up
from this direction. Many move to the N side of the cut or to the back lagoon in that case.

Placencia Lagoon. A little tricky to get into, and best suited to vessels drawing no more than 6', but offers miles
of well protected anchoring options. There are also several mangrove holes accessible from the back lagoon in
case really ugly weather threatens.

Big Creek. The mangrove creek that exits Big Creek to the W and extends for miles, offers many very well
protected anchoring options.

No Name Point Lagoon. North of Monkey River. Entrance is a bit tricky so refer to Freya's guide. All roundprotection with good holding. Interesting dinghy exploring in the nearby miles of mangrove channels (don't get
lost!). Drive cautiously in these channels as they are frequently used by tourist boats.

New Haven Bay. Way south by Ycacos lagoon and Snake Cayes. Excellent holding and full protection from
almost every direction, except for partial protection from the S-SW.

Rio Dulce, Guatemala. If serious weather threatens then run for the Rio, the ultimate hurricane hole in the
region.
"

From my "Belize Notes"

https://www.amazon.com/stores/Curtis...alEnabled=true

[belizesailor]

A few others that could be added to that list:

Sittee River. Local knowledge required to cross the bar. Best to side tie to a dock up the river if you know someone.

Sittee River Bight. Just S of Sittee River a large bight is formed in the mainland. Totally open to E & S quadrants but well protected from W-N.

Sibun Bight. Between Belize City and Cucumber Beach Marina. Totally open to E & S quadrants but well protected W-N.

Pelican Cayes. Similar to Lark Caye in that it is deep, good holding, and well protected. Has the bonus of Hideaway Caye for drinks and meals while waiting out the weather.

[belizesailor]

Related weather notes:

"
Applying Local Land Effect

You will often hear complaints by cruisers in Belize that the NOAA weather forecasts are often wrong.
However, this is really a case of misunderstanding the scope of the NOAA forecasts and how to integrate those
with local Belize land effects.
It is actually pretty easy to apply knowledge of local Belizean land effect to the synoptic forecast. The closer
your are to the Belizean mainland the more friction from the land, combined with the Coriolis Effect, will affect
the wind. Specifically, this effect will cause the wind to “back” (shift to the left). Along Belizean Coast, this
will result in westerly shift to the forecast winds. This shift will be more pronounced closer to shore and less
pronounced further from shore. Once you are well away from the mainland (20+ miles) the land effect is for all
practical purposes nil and the NOAA forecast wind speeds and direction will be much more accurate.
Closer to shore, the velocity forecast tends to be reasonably accurate, but the direction is not. Apply a westerly
shift (counter clockwise if you will) of about 10-15 degrees and this corrected direction will be much closer to
what you experience on the water. The closer to shore the greater the correction. In the evening, as the land
breeze fills in, this correction factor will be greater. Potentially 30 degrees or more as the example below shows.
So, let's take a real world example of this land effect. I am sitting at anchor on the western side St. George's
Caye as I write this. A weak cold front is approaching the area and the forecast winds are N. If I apply a 10
degree westerly correction then I would expect to see winds from about 350°. In fact, the winds I am seeing
here in the harbor are from about 345°. The velocity forecast, of about 5-10 knots is, fortunately, correct
because St. George's western anchorage, as many in the cayes, is open to the W-NW. By late evening the wind
direction had shifted to about 330° due to the influence of the land breeze. This is a full 30 degrees more
westerly than forecast and would have made for a very uncomfortable night had the wind speeds been higher.
This land induced westerly shift is most important when cold fronts are approaching. Many anchorages in the
cayes do not have good protection from the NW-SW. So, if the synoptic forecasts call for winds from the N and
you then apply a 10 degree westerly shift you are going to have winds from about 350 degrees. Also, stronger
cold fronts will almost certainly bring with them intense squalls which can pack strong winds (I've seen gusts in
these squalls up to about 60 knots) from potentially any direction. So, these factors combined mean that when a
strong cold front is approaching Belize, the best strategy is to go find a hole to hide in. Most of the better
protected anchorages are in lagoons along the coast, but a few cayes do have better protected anchorages. For
better protected anchorages in the cayes, see Pelican Cayes, Lark Caye Range, Tobacco Range (not Tobacco
Caye), and Twin Cayes.
Bayamas. A “Bayama” is a strong SW wind which develops ahead of significant change in the weather. This
can make some otherwise well protected anchorages, like Placencia Harbor, untenable. If the wind goes SW,
pay attention, something big is coming...in the summer months this is likely tropical weather (Tropical Storm or
Hurricane)."

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by chinex

Hi Everyone, we are getting into Belize tomorrow from Rio Dulce, Guatemala.
We'll be in Sapotilla cays in the south for a couple of days but there is bad weather coming this weekend with strong north/westerly winds.
Can someone recommend safe anchorages in the Belize cays that could give us reasonable protection? Many thanks in advance,
Pablo
SV Da Capo
Moody 44, draft 1.8m

From the Sapodillas Cayes, I would head to New Haven Bay...short easy sail...excellent anchorage.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by chinex

Thank you very much. How about any cays on the east side of Belize, we don't want to check in in Belize, so in Placencia we might get approach by authorities.

Not condoning illegal behavior, but New Haven Bay is remote. Unlikely to be noticed by officials there.

[chinex]

This is exactly what we were looking for, so much appreciated. Thanks for taking the time putting together such a comprehensive list of anchorages. We are on our way now to Tom Owen's Cay, that looks protected, do you know anything about it by any chance? thanks!

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by chinex

This is exactly what we were looking for, so much appreciated. Thanks for taking the time putting together such a comprehensive list of anchorages. We are on our way now to Tom Owen's Cay, that looks protected, do you know anything about it by any chance? thanks!

You're welcome.

Tom Owens is a beautiful place, but it would not be my choice for a cold front. There is effectively no wind protection from any west quadarant (just shoals for wave protection). And, if your draft allows you to get inside of Tom Owens, then you have very little drag room and a very risky exit plan (I always consider excape routes for foul weather anchorages). Example: a strong squall comes thru in the wee hours, you drag, and need to go "walk about" till it passes. Tom Owens is not a good place to be for that scenario.

Moorings scratched Tom Owens off their list of approved over night anchorages years ago for similar reasons.

My preference is to tuck into one of the many excellent all weather anchorages any time a significant front threatens (sometimes even for the weak ones...just in case). I sleep much better that way.

The forecast per ECMWF only calls for gusts to 23 knots in the Sapodillas. The forecast CAPE index is very low (so strong squalls are unlikely, not impossilbe, just unlikely). Hopefully that proves to be the case and you have a good watch at Tom Owens.

Enjoy it when the front clears!

Be sure and update here how it worked out for you.

[chinex]

thank you very much again. Also, we subscribed to your belize notes on amazon, as we have a kindle unlimited plan! thanks!