We joined the crowd yesterday waiting outside Isles grocery store in Staniel Cay. The freight boat had come in and customers waiting outside were helping to unload boxes of produce so as to expedite the process. No one would be allowed to enter the store until boxes were emptied and everything was in place. We found Carolyn and Keith from Whim waiting with the rest. Whim had seemed to follow us for days down the ICW - or were we following them? We would anchor somewhere and turn to see Whim anchored as well. When we last met Carolyn and Keith, we agreed that we would get together next time so they're coming by later for drinks. Once in the store, we were part of the general free for all - everyone quickly picking up food treasures (spinach! avocado! cucumber!) - and then we joined the long line to the counter where 3 women worked quickly enough considering they had no fancy cash register to call up prices.
That morning we had moved from Big Majors (home of "pig beach") to anchor closer to Staniel Cay - all the better to nip in for shopping and guest pick up. In more challenging weather, not many anchor here so we were wary but we did find a spot with apparent good holding. For added excitement, at low tide our depth sounder reads 00! - but Bob was generous when he entered the keel offset so we are not really grounded - it just looks that way.
We've ditched plans to stay at the yacht club for the early part of the week while the kids are here. A predicted Sunday night blow from the west changed our minds. On the banks side west of the Exuma islands (where we are) protection from most wind directions can be found except from the west and then it gets more difficult. All morning, we listened to boats booking Sunday night stays at marinas - but at Staniel Cay, we've been told, "You don't want to be on our docks in a west wind" - so we'll stay anchored here tonight awaiting the kids' arrival this aft. and then tomorrow morning, along with Gemini and Chanceux, we'll go back to the protected anchorage at Pipe Cay. By then we'll have the "fast boat" we've rented from Raymond "Breadboy" Andrews and we hope to have the kids follow us in the fast boat - with Sean at the helm. Once there, we can use our boat as a jumping off place for a day of sight seeing adventures. (We haven't yet asked where Raymond got his Breadboy name.)
So - Krista, Sean and Michelle arrive this afternoon - and we've decided that rather than rent a golf cart, we'll dinghy up the little inlet to the airstrip to greet them and then put their bags in the dinghy for Bob to bring back while I walk the travelers to their "Nautica" cottage overlooking the bay (while almost - overlooking the road next to the beach overlooking the bay). This morning we are going to the All-Age School fund raiser which just happens to be on the beach in front of the kids' cottage. We'll take some breakfast food to leave in the cottage and then we'll join Joe and his fiancee Jodie for the fund raiser lunch.
Today is the day. It's warm, clear and beautiful and couldn't be a better day to greet the visiting three.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Hanging Around the Exumas
Saturday, February 21st: Little Farmer's Cay
We were anchored for 5 nights in Pipe Creek. That's a fair bit of time for us to stay in one place but it's protected from the big waves and there's lots to do. We explored in the dinghy, hiked and visited with back and forth with Carole and Joe (Just Ducky).
On Tuesday afternoon, we went in to check out a nearby island: Sampson Cay and the yacht club there - an upscale club on a pretty piece of land. The club has lovely cottages that look more like homes: each is surrounded by greenery and is very private. There is also a beach and nature trails for the use of guests; however, like other places we've visited, there were few people on the grounds or in the bar and restaurant although there were a number of large cruising boats on the docks as well as 7 or 8 sailboats anchored in the bay. You don't have to pay to anchor but sailors would likely spend money at the club for Web access (which I did), for the odd meal at their restaurant and for groceries at the club store. The weekly freight boat was due the next day, so we returned on Wednesday and bought fresh items that I hadn't found elsewhere: cheddar cheese, cream cheese and yogurt. Carole and Joe turned up- they were also on the hunt for items they needed so we stayed to have lunch with them.
Shopping here is a little like going on a treasure hunt. After looking in tiny stores where there are may be almost no fresh food available, you feel as though you've hit the jackpot when you see fresh vegetables or dairy foods. Everyone knows when the freight boat from Nassau is scheduled or about changes in arrival times - it can be due one day but come the next - and as soon as the boat has deposited supplies, people rush to stores to buy whatever fresh items they can find. A few days later - even the day after - there will be precious little left other than the usual canned and boxed non-perishables and perhaps a few sweet potatoes, onions, or green tomatoes.
Back at Pipe Creek, we spent a morning hiking one of the trails on Thomas Cay. Richard had showed us the trail - so we knew to look for the pile of conch shells on the beach and then plastic crates at each side of the entrance. Someone has cut a trail through the bush to the other side of the cay and this winter Joe has been keeping it clear of overgrowth. When we got to the ocean side we found Carole shelling on the beach - Joe had gone hiking but when he returned, he told us how to get beyond the big rock we had climbed with Richard so that we could walk along another beach, use the rope left hanging down the side of the next rocky hill to climb it and climb down the other side to walk a third beach. Following all instructions we were able to walk and climb our way to the end of the cay where water moves in and out of a small cut from the bay to the ocean waters of Exuma Sound. There were several beautiful views and I was busy all the way taking pictures.
By Friday morning, we were ready to explore someplace new. I wanted to check out a few of the anchorages and sites further south that are described in the Madcap blog (I have the blog printed out and keep it on the boat) - so we pulled anchor, said our goodbyes and thank yous to Joe and Carole for their good company and all of their help, and headed south to Little Farmer's Cay.
It's been interesting here at Little Farmer's Cay. We're anchored smack in the middle of the bay. Much of the bay has a scoured and rock strewn bottom so is not good for anchoring We tried one of the moorings but with the wind pushing one way and the current pushing harder the other, the mooring ball immediately began bumping against the hull. Then we tried anchoring in the area just behind the mooring ball but when I reversed the engine, Bob reported that the anchor was just dragging along the bottom. Finally, we anchored at the edge of a sandbar where the chart showed good holding. The anchor dug in and we have remained firmly in place since yesterday - in spite of 20 knot winds this afternoon.
This is a very small community (or "settlement"). There is a tiny, tiny bar, a little store with sparse stock, and if you want to buy fish you ask at the green house near the dock. A little ways up the hill you find the Ocean Club restaurant and at the other tip of the bay, there's the Little Farmer's Cay Yacht Club. When we walked over, there were no boats at the one dock nor was there anyone inside except the owner who was eating his "late supper" (lunch to us).
Well - we really lived it up at Little Farmer's Cay - We bought a can of evaporated milk and 2 cans of New Zealand butter in the store, we had a drink in the teeny bar and sat and talked to locals. We took our dinghy into the yacht club to eat dinner (we had ordered our dinner ahead - as most places in the Exumas ask you to do). Today, we took our garbage in (leaving money in the garbage disposal fee box), brought in four jerry cans to fill with town water (and tipped the fellow who filled our cans and helped carry them back to the dock), had lunch at the Ocean Club (we were the only patrons and the centre of attention from town people who popped in and out), and then bought lobster from the fishermen who had just brought their small boat into the dock - they knew we might be interested as we had already asked at the green house the day before. We bought 3 medium sized lobsters ( a fourth lobster they had was absolutely huge) and as soon as we got back to the boat, Bob snapped off the tails so that I could steam all 3 in my largest pot. Guess what we're having for dinner?
We were the only "out of towners" we saw during our visit to the Cay other than a Swedish couple and their little boy eating dinner at the yacht club the night we were there. Their boat ( a new 40 ft. Jeanneau they bought in Nassau) is anchored near us in the channel. There are 2 other boats anchored way on the other side, but we didn't see the occupants in town.
At both Little Farmer's Cay Yacht Club and the Ocean Club the owners pulled up a chair to sit and talk. Just as in the bar, the state of the economy, here and elsewhere, was the main topic of conversation. Ernestine, at Ocean Club, said that everything is so much slower this year that if things don't pick up by June, she "will really begin to worry" . We found everyone surprisingly well informed about Canada, its resources and health care system. As the fellow in the bar said, Canada is a British colony just like the Bahamas (well maybe not anymore - but we didn't quibble). Everyone that we passed said hello, many said welcome and how are you enjoying your time here? Everything fine? The Bahamians are eager to please. We have found them to be helpful and honest. They know how much their economy depends on people like us and how important it is that we say good things to our friends and that we want to return ourselves. Little Farmer's Cay succeeded in being the friendliest of the friendly Bahamian places we've visited.
These last couple of weeks we've been on a reconnaissance mission preparing for the coming of the kids. As part of that, this morning we dinghied and hiked to Oven Rock Cave to check it out. Would it be worth bringing the "kids"? - It's a fairly large cave - with water dripping from stalactites and a pool at the bottom - yes - probably a good destination. In the next couple of days, we hope to anchor near a beach where there is supposed to be a colony of iguanas. This iguanas location is less well known than Allens Cay further north in the Exumas where there are a large number. If we find the iguanas , we'll take the kids for a viewing. It's a good thing that we arrived well in advance of our guests. It's taken us most of the month to figure our how we are going to provision so as to feed everyone, and to scout out places to take them. Are we not the perfect hosts?
Sunday, February 22nd: Jack's Bay
As a postscript to the blog I wrote yesterday - after sitting at the Nav table for a considerable length of time writing the blog, I got up to discover that I wasn't feeling so well. Nevertheless, I started pulling out ingredients to make English Muffins - a kind of cruisers' recipe which involves "baking" them on a skillet. After searching in lockers here and there and gathering what I needed, I realized that I was rapidly feeling worse so I dumped all the containers in the rear berth and went up top to sit a while. Our anchorage was not the best - we were getting some surge from a cut near by and the boat was doing quite a dance. OK - what was the problem I thought? - The fried fish fingers lunch at Ocean Club? Sitting too long hunched over the computer? - but when Bob started to stir fry some vegetables for dinner and I couldn't stand the smell - I knew I was in trouble - I was sea sick! - Sitting below staring at a computer screen in a bouncing boat had done the trick - and there was no going back - there I sat up top (going below again not being a good idea) - and there I stayed until near midnight when the current changed, the rocking stopped and I felt well enough to go below. Bob stayed up top with me and slept on the other seat - nice guy isn't he?
We moved this morning a little further north to anchor in Jack's Bay on Bitter Guana Cay. The wind has dropped and we peacefully bobbed in the glass clear water - once again, we couldn't get over the clarity and colour of the water. (I wish I could upload pictures! Oh well - soon.) John and Madeleine from Chanceux dinghied over to see us ; they are anchored in the next little cove and had been exploring the beach in front of our boat. We met John and Madeleine a couple of weeks ago at a Happy Hour at Scopios restaurant/bar in Black Point - and no in spite of the French name of their boat - they are not from Quebec - they're not even Canadian - but live in New Bern, Maryland. Before joining them later for a drink on Chanceux, we took the dinghy to admire the limestone formations along the water where they were anchored. We were also looking for the cave that John and Madeleine had told us about: it was sitting just above the water and we were able to ease the boat inside to enjoy the light and colours along the walls and ceiling.
Monday, February 23rd: Black Point
We've came back to Black Point for the same reason that most cruisers come here: to anchor in the relatively sheltered harbour, to do laundry at the "best laundromat in the Bahamas" (and it really is) and while the clothes are washing - to check email, and to sit visit with other cruisers over lunch. Chanceux is here as well as Gemini - Joe joined us a big table of cruisers at Lorraine's cafe.
Tonight we moved around the corner to Little Bay and we'll likely stay for a couple of days until the big winds calm down. It's a bit of a walk, but we can still get to the Black Point settlement so tomorrow we'll likely go back to Lorraine s to answer emails and for me to post this blog - and perhaps we'll hit Scorpio's Happy Hour, have one or two $3 drinks (2 rum drinks for $5) and mingle with other cruisers there - if we're lucky, there will be a few that we've already met.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Fun and Adventure in Pipe Creek
I have some great pictures to go with this post but I have to wait until my "system administrator" (Sean) comes at the end of the month and fixes a problem with my computer. I'll upload the pictures then.
Sunday, February 5th: Anchorage at Big Majors
We will not be going south to Georgetown on Great Exuma Island even though it's a popular destination for many boats traveling in the Exumas. Some years, there are as many as 500 boats anchored in the Georgetown harbour - this year there are far fewer - just over 200 (the economy again). Once there, it's possible to become involved in activities of every kind organized by and for cruisers: hobbies, exercise and parties on the beach - stuff like that. Some settle in for the winter, while the more adventuresome travel further still further south to Long Island and beyond. Another time, we might do the same, but not this year. We're content to explore areas close by until our kids arrive at the end of the month and then we'll begin a slow trip north.
We've spent a careful week moving back and forth between the marina at Staniel Cay Yacht Club, the anchorage nearby at Big Majors, and Black Point settlement (3 miles south). We've been careful in that although we've kept an eye out for water colour indicating shallows and rocks, for the most part we've followed charted paths through the water.
As in Georgetown, but to a lesser extent, there's cruisers' society here. The VHF is busy with people calling one another - arranging rendezvous and catching up on news. They have met this year or in years past at happy hours, local fund raisers and beach gatherings announced on the VHF and at special dinners put on by restaurants, or when they have gathered somewhere to do laundry or email. Many cruisers return again and again to the Bahamas and develop a network of friends here.
When we first arrived, we felt on the outside of it all until we began to run into people we had met earlier in our travels. When you meet cruisers a second or third time, you begin to feel as though you know them. Last night we had Richard and Carole from Kalissa and Joe from Gemini over for drinks.
We first met Richard and Carole in St. Mary's, Georgia. Every year, there is a cruisers' Thanksgiving lunch there and leading up to that, a week of activities. For Thanksgiving, the town supplies roasted oysters followed by turkey with the balance of the meal provided pot luck style by cruisers. Some 80 boats were anchored in the harbour that week. We went to an hors d'ouevres and drinks party (where we met Richard and Carole) but skipped the lunch and moved across the Georgia state border to St. Augustine, Florida where we went to a Thanksgiving lunch provided by the Methodist church. Although we met and lunched with a great couple, who we met again and had over for drinks in Titusville, our decision not to attend the cruisers lunch at St. Mary's was probably a mistake. It's the best networking opportunity going for boaters moving south. Nevertheless, who did we meet up with here at Staniel Cay but Richard and Carole on Kalissa and today we are following them into a sheltered anchorage in Pipe Creek where along with Kalissa, Gemini, and a third boat, Just Ducky, owned by friends of Richard and Carole, we'll wait out Monday night's "blow".
When we rented a Boston Whaler with our friends, Glen and Janet a couple of days ago, we went into the waters in and around Pipe Cay. Janet was surprised at my anxiety over getting into shallow water over rocks. I was the most jumpy person in the boat. She and Glen were much more relaxed. It was perhaps the memory of hearing our dinghy prop grind over rocks on 2 different occasions earlier in our trip in admittedly less transparent water. Finding water deep enough for a keeled boat is a special challenge in this area - and that is why we followed Kalissa. Here was an opportunity to anchor in a pretty and well protected area without the angst of picking our way in among the sandbars and rocks.
Glen and Janet - do you remember the bay that we motored through? and the sailboat anchored there? Well - the boat was Just Ducky. Today, we are one of three boats anchored near her and for the first time ever we have put out 2 anchors to guard against an unwanted "up-anchor" situation in the strong current here. Bob was not thrilled at the idea of setting a second anchor but felt better when both Joes (from Just Ducky and from Gemini) told him that they set a second anchor by taking it out and dropping it from their dinghy. This sounded easier than the method described in guide books where you fall back to set the first anchor and then bring the boat forward again at a 45 degree angle to set the second. In addition to the fact that we don't have a double anchor roller to facilitate feeding out a second anchor, I think that Bob feared that since he would be standing with the anchor at the bow, his crew at the wheel would have trouble getting it right.
Richard and the 2 Joe's went diving and spearing fish today - so tonight at happy hour on Kalissa, we had tasty pieces of sautéed fresh fish, chunks of lobster (from the lobster that Joe caught) as well as hot olive puffs, and raw vegetables and dip. It was supper for most of us. Incidentally on the 3 boats, there are 3 Caroles (with an e) - so that's 2 Joes, 3 Caroles, a Bob and a Richard.
Earlier this afternoon Bob and I got on our snorkeling gear and followed the divers outside into the Exuma Sound. We paddled around and saw a few fish but the chief part of the exercise for me was trying to adjust my mask properly and for both of us - the challenge of getting back into the dingy from the water. To add to the challenge, our dinghy has particularly high puffy sides. Richard and Carole loaned us a dinghy ladder which made the struggle less for me but Bob was determined to climb in by propelling himself forward using his flippers and then finding hand holds in the dinghy to pull himself in. It wasn't easy. He's asleep right now - I wonder why?
We'll give it a go again tomorrow. Richard tells us that colourful fish can be found in places inside this bay. He'll show us where and lend us the dinghy ladder again. Meanwhile, the hunters will be going back "outside" with their spears. But not us - when you still haven't mastered your mask and dinghy return skills, you can hardly think of carrying a spear.
Tuesday, February 17th: Pipe Creek
We didn't snorkel again after all. Instead, Richard and Carole took us walking along trails on a nearby cay. One trail went from the side of the bay where our boats are anchored to a beautiful beach and the open ocean waters of Exuma sound. Following a second trail, we climbed to a high point on the cay to see a stunning view: on one side, a beach of white sand and black, grey or white faced limestone rocks rising out of the blue ocean and looking back toward our boats, the enclosed bay where the water is patterned in strips of transparent yellow sandbars and aqua, and turquoise water.
We had more seafood at happy hour. Joe (from Gemini) caught 2 large lobsters - one being particularly humongous - so that there was plenty of meat for us to put together dinner. Carole from Kalissa made bean salad and I made potato salad. While eating and socializing on Gemini (a Tartan 37), we were lucky to watch an outstanding sunset and as per the custom among certain cruisers in the Bahamas, some in the group blew the conch shell to mark the disappearance of the sun. Richard does an excellent job of producing a loud clear tone. Bob gave it a try as well. His high school trombone experience paid off and he was able to get a decent and sustained sound and then, with some success, he blew the first notes of Taps.
We've also had a little excitement in the bay. In the late afternoon, Carole and Richard noticed a boat off in a part of the bay where the water is very shallow. Bob grabbed the binoculars to see for himself. It seemed likely that the boat had gone aground. The skipper was pacing back and forth on the deck. The boat wasn't moving and the anchor wasn't down. Finally, Bob and Joe from Just Ducky got into their dinghies and rode over to see what was happening. The fellow on the boat was very happy to see them. Joe had brought his hand held depth finder so that he could tell the captain where the deeper water was and also gave him some advise for strategies to get the boat off the sandbar where he was good and stuck. There would be no hope of that until the tide came up at about midnight. Just before we went to bed, Bob called to check on the stuck boat (Water Music) and he and Joe both talked to the captain. Joe assured the captain that if he found himself in further trouble that he could call - the VHF would be on all night - and somehow he and Bob would come and try to help (we left our VHF on as well). The captain said that they'd been doing a lot of crying (in the background we could hear his wife laughing at that) - he also shakily admitted, that it was very good "to hear their voices". The following morning he called: at high tide, he had been able to get Water Music off of the sandbar by pulling in the anchors he had deployed in deeper water. Imagine doing that in pitch dark at midnight!
Kalissa and Gemini are leaving today. They'll do laundry in Blackpoint and then Kalissa is leaving to head south to Georgetown. We'll hang in at the anchorage another day or two and then move to someplace new but close by. We don't want to get too far away before our company arrives and anyway - it's unlikely that we'll find many other places as beautiful as this.
Sunday, February 5th: Anchorage at Big Majors
We will not be going south to Georgetown on Great Exuma Island even though it's a popular destination for many boats traveling in the Exumas. Some years, there are as many as 500 boats anchored in the Georgetown harbour - this year there are far fewer - just over 200 (the economy again). Once there, it's possible to become involved in activities of every kind organized by and for cruisers: hobbies, exercise and parties on the beach - stuff like that. Some settle in for the winter, while the more adventuresome travel further still further south to Long Island and beyond. Another time, we might do the same, but not this year. We're content to explore areas close by until our kids arrive at the end of the month and then we'll begin a slow trip north.
We've spent a careful week moving back and forth between the marina at Staniel Cay Yacht Club, the anchorage nearby at Big Majors, and Black Point settlement (3 miles south). We've been careful in that although we've kept an eye out for water colour indicating shallows and rocks, for the most part we've followed charted paths through the water.
As in Georgetown, but to a lesser extent, there's cruisers' society here. The VHF is busy with people calling one another - arranging rendezvous and catching up on news. They have met this year or in years past at happy hours, local fund raisers and beach gatherings announced on the VHF and at special dinners put on by restaurants, or when they have gathered somewhere to do laundry or email. Many cruisers return again and again to the Bahamas and develop a network of friends here.
When we first arrived, we felt on the outside of it all until we began to run into people we had met earlier in our travels. When you meet cruisers a second or third time, you begin to feel as though you know them. Last night we had Richard and Carole from Kalissa and Joe from Gemini over for drinks.
We first met Richard and Carole in St. Mary's, Georgia. Every year, there is a cruisers' Thanksgiving lunch there and leading up to that, a week of activities. For Thanksgiving, the town supplies roasted oysters followed by turkey with the balance of the meal provided pot luck style by cruisers. Some 80 boats were anchored in the harbour that week. We went to an hors d'ouevres and drinks party (where we met Richard and Carole) but skipped the lunch and moved across the Georgia state border to St. Augustine, Florida where we went to a Thanksgiving lunch provided by the Methodist church. Although we met and lunched with a great couple, who we met again and had over for drinks in Titusville, our decision not to attend the cruisers lunch at St. Mary's was probably a mistake. It's the best networking opportunity going for boaters moving south. Nevertheless, who did we meet up with here at Staniel Cay but Richard and Carole on Kalissa and today we are following them into a sheltered anchorage in Pipe Creek where along with Kalissa, Gemini, and a third boat, Just Ducky, owned by friends of Richard and Carole, we'll wait out Monday night's "blow".
When we rented a Boston Whaler with our friends, Glen and Janet a couple of days ago, we went into the waters in and around Pipe Cay. Janet was surprised at my anxiety over getting into shallow water over rocks. I was the most jumpy person in the boat. She and Glen were much more relaxed. It was perhaps the memory of hearing our dinghy prop grind over rocks on 2 different occasions earlier in our trip in admittedly less transparent water. Finding water deep enough for a keeled boat is a special challenge in this area - and that is why we followed Kalissa. Here was an opportunity to anchor in a pretty and well protected area without the angst of picking our way in among the sandbars and rocks.
Glen and Janet - do you remember the bay that we motored through? and the sailboat anchored there? Well - the boat was Just Ducky. Today, we are one of three boats anchored near her and for the first time ever we have put out 2 anchors to guard against an unwanted "up-anchor" situation in the strong current here. Bob was not thrilled at the idea of setting a second anchor but felt better when both Joes (from Just Ducky and from Gemini) told him that they set a second anchor by taking it out and dropping it from their dinghy. This sounded easier than the method described in guide books where you fall back to set the first anchor and then bring the boat forward again at a 45 degree angle to set the second. In addition to the fact that we don't have a double anchor roller to facilitate feeding out a second anchor, I think that Bob feared that since he would be standing with the anchor at the bow, his crew at the wheel would have trouble getting it right.
Richard and the 2 Joe's went diving and spearing fish today - so tonight at happy hour on Kalissa, we had tasty pieces of sautéed fresh fish, chunks of lobster (from the lobster that Joe caught) as well as hot olive puffs, and raw vegetables and dip. It was supper for most of us. Incidentally on the 3 boats, there are 3 Caroles (with an e) - so that's 2 Joes, 3 Caroles, a Bob and a Richard.
Earlier this afternoon Bob and I got on our snorkeling gear and followed the divers outside into the Exuma Sound. We paddled around and saw a few fish but the chief part of the exercise for me was trying to adjust my mask properly and for both of us - the challenge of getting back into the dingy from the water. To add to the challenge, our dinghy has particularly high puffy sides. Richard and Carole loaned us a dinghy ladder which made the struggle less for me but Bob was determined to climb in by propelling himself forward using his flippers and then finding hand holds in the dinghy to pull himself in. It wasn't easy. He's asleep right now - I wonder why?
We'll give it a go again tomorrow. Richard tells us that colourful fish can be found in places inside this bay. He'll show us where and lend us the dinghy ladder again. Meanwhile, the hunters will be going back "outside" with their spears. But not us - when you still haven't mastered your mask and dinghy return skills, you can hardly think of carrying a spear.
Tuesday, February 17th: Pipe Creek
We didn't snorkel again after all. Instead, Richard and Carole took us walking along trails on a nearby cay. One trail went from the side of the bay where our boats are anchored to a beautiful beach and the open ocean waters of Exuma sound. Following a second trail, we climbed to a high point on the cay to see a stunning view: on one side, a beach of white sand and black, grey or white faced limestone rocks rising out of the blue ocean and looking back toward our boats, the enclosed bay where the water is patterned in strips of transparent yellow sandbars and aqua, and turquoise water.
We had more seafood at happy hour. Joe (from Gemini) caught 2 large lobsters - one being particularly humongous - so that there was plenty of meat for us to put together dinner. Carole from Kalissa made bean salad and I made potato salad. While eating and socializing on Gemini (a Tartan 37), we were lucky to watch an outstanding sunset and as per the custom among certain cruisers in the Bahamas, some in the group blew the conch shell to mark the disappearance of the sun. Richard does an excellent job of producing a loud clear tone. Bob gave it a try as well. His high school trombone experience paid off and he was able to get a decent and sustained sound and then, with some success, he blew the first notes of Taps.
We've also had a little excitement in the bay. In the late afternoon, Carole and Richard noticed a boat off in a part of the bay where the water is very shallow. Bob grabbed the binoculars to see for himself. It seemed likely that the boat had gone aground. The skipper was pacing back and forth on the deck. The boat wasn't moving and the anchor wasn't down. Finally, Bob and Joe from Just Ducky got into their dinghies and rode over to see what was happening. The fellow on the boat was very happy to see them. Joe had brought his hand held depth finder so that he could tell the captain where the deeper water was and also gave him some advise for strategies to get the boat off the sandbar where he was good and stuck. There would be no hope of that until the tide came up at about midnight. Just before we went to bed, Bob called to check on the stuck boat (Water Music) and he and Joe both talked to the captain. Joe assured the captain that if he found himself in further trouble that he could call - the VHF would be on all night - and somehow he and Bob would come and try to help (we left our VHF on as well). The captain said that they'd been doing a lot of crying (in the background we could hear his wife laughing at that) - he also shakily admitted, that it was very good "to hear their voices". The following morning he called: at high tide, he had been able to get Water Music off of the sandbar by pulling in the anchors he had deployed in deeper water. Imagine doing that in pitch dark at midnight!
Kalissa and Gemini are leaving today. They'll do laundry in Blackpoint and then Kalissa is leaving to head south to Georgetown. We'll hang in at the anchorage another day or two and then move to someplace new but close by. We don't want to get too far away before our company arrives and anyway - it's unlikely that we'll find many other places as beautiful as this.
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