Traveling the Exumas II

Feb. 9-23

Days 90-104

These two weeks have been spent mostly finding places to hide from one cold front after another. The locals and cruisers that come here often tell us that this is the worst winter they have seen in many years.  Of course!  The cold fronts bring strong winds so we have not traveled as much as we intended.  After a couple days of wind Jess is ready to head back to the states and forget about making this trip again.  Then we will have an absolutely gorgeous day and he is ready to spend every winter here!  Luckily the nice days make up for the windy ones.  Melinda spent a few days with us while we unfortunately were riding out the worst weather we have seen since coming to the Bahamas.  We did have one nice day and were able to snorkel in Thunderball Grotto which is breathtaking.  It was fun just having company for a few days.  The weather improved on Sunday, allowing us to finally head north for one more stop before we leave the Exumas.  Shroud Cay provided spectacular channels for dinking through the mangroves.  Jess and Roger also managed to find some coral heads that were teaming with life.  Now it is time to point Bama Dream a little to the north and east as we leave the Exumas behind and journey to the Eleutheras.

We took a short trip down to Black Point on Guana Cay in order to use "the best" laundromat in the Bahamas.  There is a very nice little settlement here with a small grocery store and a couple of restaurants.  Lunch is definitely on Bahamian time. It took over 2 hours, but we had nowhere else to be anyway.

The famous swimming pigs at Staniel Cay meet our dink hoping for a morning snack.  If you don't feed them fast enough they will try to get in the boat with you!

Some of my favorite walks on the beach take place at low tide.  I love searching for all of the sea life that can be found along the rock ledges and out in the shallows.

On one of our dinghy rides, Jess and I landed for a walk on this uninhabited island.  We labeled it "the Badlands of the Bahamas" for obvious reasons.

The large tidal pools provide relief in what would otherwise be a rather desolate landscape.

Melinda arrives to spend a few days with us!  We so wanted her to be able to experience the beauty of these islands, but unfortunately we can not control the weather.

The pigs must have had plenty to eat before we took Melinda to their beach.  They were being rather lazy and didn't want to swim out to the boat so we headed for shore.  We very soon had more pigs than we could handle.  

Thunderball Grotto (filmed in the 007 movie Thunderball) is a must see snorkeling spot in the harbor of Staniel Cay.  At low tide swimmers can enter through an opening in the cave and experience another world.  

When the local fishermen return to the docks to clean their catch of the day, sharks gather to consume the scraps.  I know these are only perfectly harmless nurse sharks but I still don't want to meet up with any of them while I am swimming.  

These guys had a good day lobstering off shore.

Melinda and Jess headed off in search of sea turtles and coral heads for snorkeling. 

Saturday morning arrived with another stunning sunrise.  Unfortunately it was also time for Melinda to head back to Atlanta.  We had a very nice visit even if we rocked and rolled part of the time.

Shroud Cay is everything I expected to find when i came to the Bahamas!  The water is amazing, the beaches are abundant, and the scenery is breathtaking.

After a very nice dinghy ride through the mangroves, we found our beach for the day.

Jess discovered some old fishing net that had washed ashore.  Of course it was a perfect fit for a short rest from his busy morning.

Our footprints were the only ones on the beach and the waves quickly washed them away.

Jess tried a little body surfing!

The view from Camp Driftwood looking toward the west into the Exuma Bank.  

The view from Camp Driftwood looking east out into the Atlantic.  

Jess has no lack of "pets" on this trip.  We had a shark sucker that traveled with us so long that Jess actually gave him a name, and this morning when he was getting the dink ready for the day this pelican came over for a visit.

A nice sized ray (at least 8 feet), we came across on our way back through the channel.

Traveling the Exumas

Feb. 2-8

Days 83-89

We enjoyed a relatively smooth ride from Nassau to our first stop, Allen's Cay.  This cay is home to a large population of endangered iguanas.  They are not supposed to be fed by tourists, but if you land on a beach it only takes seconds for them to start coming out of the bushes.  I don't believe they are just coming to say Hi.  Posing for pictures seems to be their second favorite thing to do, because they hung around as long as I was willing to keep clicking.  Thank goodness for digital photography!  

As we continue our amazing trip, it has been so much fun to get to know cruisers from many different ports of call.  One of the highlights of entering another anchorage is knowing that the odds are pretty good that we will find someone we have traveled with before and, if not, there will be someone new to meet.  

The weather has not been the best this winter in the Bahamas.  We have found that many of our days activities have been determined by where we can get the best anchorages out of the wind.  Sometimes this means we have stayed in one spot longer than we had planned, or left a beautiful anchorage sooner than we would have liked.  The cruisers we have spoken to that come to the Bahamas every winter have told us that this is not the norm.  Just our luck!

I learned something about Jess today!  He has always given me a bad time when I am startled by unexpected things. Today it was his turn.  We were checking out some ruins on Allen's Cay when he turned and was quite surprised to see this guy checking us out. 

As soon as our dink touched the beach the iguanas started coming down to see what we had to offer. This fellow stayed right with us as we wandered the island.  Guess he wanted to make sure that I got his best side!

Our beautiful tropical anchorage at Allen's Cay.

The sun sets on a Bahamian parking lot at Warderick Wells Cay. 

The blow holes at Warderick Wells are great during high tide.  The surf was pretty rough so the crashes against the rocky shoreline on the Atlantic side of the island were quite spectacular!  I got this shot just seconds before being drenched. Thank goodness for a lifeproof phone case!

Jess got some exercise by chasing after his hat after holding it over a blow hole.  The force would shoot his hat 30 feet into the air.  Of course he had to do it several times before I was able to get this shot.

During low tide at Cambridge Cay we were able to find some amazing sea creatures strolling through the flats.  This is in The Exumas Land and Sea Park so there is no fishing, lobstering, or conch harvesting allowed.  This meant we were able to find our first live conchs.

I never have my underwater camera with me when I need it.  The water is so clear that it didn't matter when Jess discovered this sea star while he was snorkeling along the shore.

The clouds made for a gorgeous sunset when we arrived in Staniel Cay.  

Our anchorage between Little Majors and Big Majors has become a hidey-hole for a few days while yet another cold front pushes through.  The water was so rough we couldn't get our dink into Staniel Cay so we spent a few hours just enjoying a walk around the beach on Big Majors. There were about 25 of us riding out the wind.  Most boats here are sailboats, so quite often Bama Dream looks a little out of place.

Such a strenuous morning!  A few palm fronds and Jess is able to relax while I wander the beach.

Nassau

Several boats left Bimini with the intention of traveling to Cat Cay (Bahamian for Key) to drop anchor before making the long run to Nassau.  The ride was not bad so we committed to traveling a few more hours before dropping the hook. Sounded like a great idea until the sun sunk into the sea and we all set our anchors. The seas became so rough that no one could get any rest, so we pulled up and continued on to the cut between Andros and Chub Cay.  Got a little shut eye before continuing on to New Providence.  Enjoyed the very busy downtown area and a fun trip to the zoo on Saturday, before heading out to explore the many cays in the Exumas.

The harbor is very busy with cruise ships coming and going.  As we were entering Ta Ta made their way past this huge girl as she moved through the channel.

Pompey Square provides local craftsmen an opportunity to sell their handiwork.  

Even with this many cruise ships in port there were very few people on the beaches.  It appears shopping in the duty free stores is a much larger lure for the thousands that come ashore.

Jess was happy to see one of his favorite lunch spots.  I was excited to use their wifi.

The zoo was very small by our standards, but we had a very nice time strolling the grounds.  The tropical foliage was just as interesting as the animal life.

It may be the 1st of February, but many plants are blooming beautifully in the Bahamas!

Jess really enjoys the giant trees and vines that always seem to thrive on each other.  He would love to have had some of these available to climb when he was much younger.

I think these flamingos must be able to read! They actually put on a fun little demonstration with their large group of native flamingos.

Cody, the cockatoo, gave me a kiss on the cheek as he thanked us for spending our afternoon at the zoo.  By the way I was informed that Cody is a girl.  Not sure how she got her name.

Our Visit in Bimini

Jan. 21-29

Days 71-79

After waiting patiently for our weather window to cross the fearful Gulf Stream we have finally succeeded.  Our flotilla of 6 trawlers left Pumpkin Key before the sun peeked its head above the horizon.  Roger and Mary on TaTa had made their way through the channel the previous afternoon leaving bread crumbs for us to follow in the darkness of predawn.  Other than being waked by some rude fishermen in a hurry to get out to their favorite spot on the reef we had no problems. The blue of the water was amazing, unfortunately my photos don't do it justice.  One of the trawlers with us is a Albin 40.  It is a little strange to look across and see almost our mirror image cutting through the waves.  We arrived in Bimini about 2:30 with beautiful sunshine, huge rays leading us in to the marina, and clear turquoise waters.  This is an island of contrasts.  The south end of North Bimini (where our marina is located) is where the Bahamians live.  The north end of North Bimini is owned by foreign  interests.  There is a large 1st class resort with a casino and marina, as well as, a huge new Hilton being built.  There is basically 2 classes here: locals and tourists.  Everyone is very friendly and always ready to offer assistance and advice.  We have enjoyed our walks on the beach, did a little snorkeling, a bit of fishing, covered pretty much every corner of our end of North Bimini, and ferried over to South Bimini.  We are ready to move on.

Ta Ta in the lead as we make our way toward the Gulf Stream.  The stunning sunrise promised us a wonderful crossing.

We were certainly alone out here in open water.  This is just one of several cargo ships that we had to maneuver around during our 8 hour trip to the Bahamas.

                              Arriving safely into the harbor at North Bimini.  

Off the boat for a walk about town.  This is the "world famous" Dolphin House.  The builder greeted us as we checked out his handiwork. He builds with materials he picks up on the island.  The entire building is covered with shells, bottles, broken tiles and anything else he finds.  He is now adding a second floor and says that he has nephews that will continue his life's work when he is gone.

A quiet day on the beach.  This is a great place to pick up sea glass, conch shells and just take a nice walk.

One of the many conch shell piles along the water's edge.  According to what we have been told the shells can't be left in the ocean because the conch would leave the area if they found all of the dead shells.  Don't know if this is true, but it sure gives the locals a good excuse to just dump the shells allover  the place.

Not all of the conchs have been harvested and thrown into piles.

This ship is a prime example of what salt water can do to steel.  I don't know how long ago this one went aground, but it doesn't appear to have much time left.

Another "world famous" establishment.  Joe was preparing his famous conch salad for a large lunch crowd.  I know I will have to give in eventually and try some conch, but to be honest it took him so long to chop it up, with a very large knife, that I am not sure that I could chew it up.

There are surprises on every corner in Bimini.  We really have no idea what they were celebrating, but Sunday afternoon must have been special.  We heard the music from the marina and rushed out to the street just in time to watch the parade go by.  Really didn't need to hurry, they went down to the end of the street and turned around and came back.  I guess if you live on a small island it is no big deal to march up and down the road twice.  By the way, for you late sleepers out there, Sunday services at the Methodist church start at 2:30 p.m.  Remember we are on island time here.

Haven't seen any lawn mowers, but these guys appear to have everything under control.  They don't seem to have near as much problem avoiding the traffic as we do.  Between remembering that they drive on the opposite side of the road than we do, the fact that the streets are very narrow, and that obviously pedestrians DO NOT have the right of way here, there have been several close calls.

Thought this was an interesting addition to the local flora.  We found this cotton plant growing wild in amongst other tropical plants.  I suppose it looked a lot like this before it was tamed as a cash crop in the south.

The waves are not always calm here.  We have actually stayed in Bimini longer than planned because there has been so much wind.  From what we hear that is typical during the winter months, but it usually starts calming down in February.  Hope they know what they are talking about.

The entrance to the resort at the north end of Bimini.  A beautiful development, but it is largely empty at this time of year.

Another picture for Tammy.  This is the infinity pool at the resort.  You can see how busy it is in January.

We took the ferry over to South Bimini on our search for Ponce De Leon's Fountain of Youth.  Yes, it seems Florida does not have the monopoly on these wells.  Roger has to work fast to get his drink, the  bottom of the rusted bucket isn't capable of holding water for long.  

Can you tell how much more youthful I am after my drink from the well?  Hey, no point in passing up the opportunity to give it a try.

This was a very nice little nature trail through the tropical forest.  We found out later that this is the preferred home of the local boa species.  They evidently are nocturnal, live in the trees and rock crevices (like the well).  I would have spent a lot more time looking up on my walk if I had known about the snakes.  I have a not so great history with snakes in trees.

A potluck was organized last night so that we could get together one more time before we scatter across the many islands of the Bahamas.  Some are headed for the Berries, others to Nassau and the Exumas, others on to the Abacos.  We are headed to Nassau with Ta Ta, then on to the Exumas to find a perfect spot to enjoy with Melinda when she meets us in February for a short visit.