Dunmore Towne, Harbour Island

Today is our 25th wedding anniversary.  So we decide to take the fast ferry over to Harbour Island and visit Dunmore Towne.  I was amazed that the ferry could even fit into the Spanish Wells harbor, much less traverse the dreaded "Devil's Backbone" over to Harbour Island.

The Devils Backbone is a narrow, winding passage between the reefs and the beach on Eleuthera.  Many a boat has been lost here and the passage is not recommended without the aid of a local pilot.  The ferry is a large vessel...

The ferry was actually very nice with comfortable seats...

In no time at all we were standing on the government dock at Harbour Island.

It's hard to read, but the sign says: "Home of the Friendly People"

We rent another golf cart to get around the island.

Which seems to be the principle mode of transportation.  A typical street scene...

Some of the beautiful, original houses....

A work dock where conch were being cleaned...

The local Pigly Wigly...

The beaches were also beautiful (pink sand)..

We had lunch at Valentines Resort and Marina and caught the ferry back to Spanish Wells.  It was a great anniversary treat.

Spanish Wells, St George's Cay, Eleuthera

June 27 - 29, 2010

We pulled away from the tidy docks at Highborne Cay about 11:00 a.m. and, after circling around some coral reefs just off the cay, turned the bow northeast towards Eleuthera. 


Our route will take us over fairly shallow banks with numerous coral heads for the first 20 miles or so, a section called the "Middle Ground".  Some of the coral heads are just below the surface, so good light is essential.

I have included a screen shot of my chart to show the general location.  New Providence Island (Nassau) is at the upper left, Highborne Cay at the lower middle, and Eleuthera at the upper right.  Our destination is actually Spanish Wells, a town on St George's Cay just off the northern tip of Eleuthera.

We pass over the Middle Ground, through Fleming Channel and up past Current Island to St George's Cay.  It was a beautiful trip with light winds and gentle waves.

The legend is that Spanish Wells was named due to the Spanish ships that stopped to take advantage of the sweet water available there.  In reality, I can't believe any Spanish captain would risk career and ship to try to get through the intricate channels through the reefs to get in here.  Thank goodness for GPS and good charts.

We rent a golf cart, which seems to be the main mode of transportation here, and check out the town.  The island is only 1.5 miles long and .25 miles wide, so it doesn't take long.  In fact we go around the island one way and then turn around and go around the other way just in case we missed anything.

The island is first and foremost a fishing village and accounts for about 50% of the seafood produced by the Bahamas.  There is a large fleet of first rate fishing and lobstering vessels.

As well as processing facilities.  We were told that most of the lobsters are purchased by Red Lobster in the US.  From August through March, the fishermen stay out for 3-4 weeks at a time.

Of course we must try the local delicacy, so we visit the seafood store...

And get a couple of tails...

Uh Oh, one of them moved on me!!!  Is it still alive???

I wrestle them onto the grill...

The town is very neat and orderly... beautiful houses with manicured lawns and gardens.

The beaches are also beautiful...

And, of course, the obligatory sunset shot over the fishing fleet moored behind us...

Tomorrow is our 25th wedding anniversary and we plan to take the ferry over to Dunmore Town on Harbour Island for the day.

Highborne Cay, Exumas

June 26, 2010

We reluctantly pulled away from the mooring at Wardrick Wells Cay and motored the approximately 30 miles or so to Highborne Cay, the northernmost inhabited cay in the Exuma chain.  Although the cay is privately owned, there is a small, but first class marina that welcomes visitors.  There are no restaurants on the island, but there is a small but well stocked grocery store at the marina.

A view of the small beach on the harbour side of the cay.

 Somehow I had picked up a stomach bug so I spent most of the day sleeping.  Thank goodness for imodium.

We decided to travel to the Abacos by way of Eleuthera, so we left the marina and headed for Spanish Wells on St George's Cay, Eleuthera, about 55 nautical miles to the northeast.

Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park

June 22 - 25, 2010

The Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park, the first land and sea park in the world, covers 176 square miles, begining at Wax Cay Cut in the north and stretching southward some 22 miles to Conch Cut and extending out approximately four nautical miles on either side of the cays.  It is a no-take zone by both land and sea - nothing living or dead can be removed from the park.

The headquarters of the park is located at Warderick Wells Cay, and there are several mooring fields available there as well as other locations within the park.  We chose to take a mooring ball at Warderick Wells.  Here is a view of the beach from the mooring field.  (click on any photo to enlarge)

and a close-up of the whale skeleton on the beach.

They believe the whale died as a result of ingesting some plastic and garbage bags.  How can people be so careless? 

To the right of the beach, the park headquarters, where we register and pay our mooring fees ($20 per day).

There were no water or supplies available in the park... you bring in what you need and you take out your trash. 

While we were on the porch, Katy made some new friends...

The small banana quints loved to eat suger from her hands.

A view of the mooring field from the porch, our boat is in the distance..

The park has a number of excellent snorkeling gardens, one right at the mooring field called the "Ranger's Garden". 

There were also several hiking trails, I took one to the top of "Boo boo Hill", where cruisers had left driftwood momentos of their visit.

The local legend is that a shipload of missionaries once wrecked and eventually perished on the island.  Now, on moonlit nights, a ghostly congregation might be heard singing hymns, followed by voices talking and calling to one another.

In any event, the hill is quite a climb and the view is spectacular from the top.

In the picture above, Island Passage is between my right shoulder and the pile of momentos.  Looking south at the Exuma Sound...

The view north, again at the Exuma Sound side of the cay...

Finally, again a shot of the mooing field and Island Passage from the trail...

 We spent an entire day snorkeling the coral heads surrounding the area, most have mooring balls for the dinghy as well.  Since absolutely no fishing is allowed, the fish life is the most plentiful we have ever seen.  Anywhere.  We saw several lobsters that would easily be 2.5 to 3 feet in body length (not counting the antennae).  Moreover, the fish were not frightened or seemed to be bothered by our presence at all.

Staniel Cay - day 2

June 22, 2010

We have been without internet service for close to a week, trying to catch up with the blog.

There is a fish cleaning station at the marina, and each day several sharks came by to see if there were any goodies...   (click on any picture to enlarge)

A ray also made an occasional appearance...

School was out and several boys were playing on the beach.

These same boys earlier were on the steps two pictures up teasing the sharks. 

We learned that there are 17 children in the small "all-ages" school there.  Each summer they take a field trip to another island to expand their education and, I suspect, to meet other children.  There was a collection box at the marina bar for donations for their field trip so we gave a small donation.

This is one of three small stores on the cay, the other one we saw was similar.

The door was open but here was no one in the store.   A lady came over from next door to help us.  Sadly, the shelves were mostly empty.  But the lady was very gracious, knew some people in North Carolina, and told us how they always look forward to boats bringing books and pencils for their children.  We purchased a six-pack of coke-cola that we would later be very glad that we had.

Back at the marina, a boat was pulling out with a helicopter on it's back deck.  I would have paid to see the guy land it there.

In any event, the stark contrast between the luxuries found by boaters at the marina and the reality of the everyday life of the people who do not have these luxuries is sobering.  We were extra careful to be respectful and generous, whenever possible.

A street scene from the small village...

Most of the islands were covered with thick forests until the 1700's and 1800's when they were completely logged over.  The topsoil blew away shortly thereafter and mostly what is left is rock and some sand.  So any vegetation struggles.

Tomorrow we head back north with stops in the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park.

Staniel Cay

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Today we took the dinghy over to an unnamed cay between Big Majors spot and Staniel Cay to snorkel a cave made famous by being included in some scenes in the James Bond movie, Thunderball.  The cavern is called Thunderball Grotto.

While it doesn't look too impressive on the outside, the cavern inside is spectacular.  At low tide, we could simply duck under some of the rocks and enter the cavern.  It is about 100 feet long, 30-40 feet wide and stretches all the way across the small island to an opening (also under water) on the far side.  There are about 6 openings to the outside, all under water and, about 30 feet over your head, there are several openings at the top of the cay that let sunlight in.  The cavern has about 25 feet of water below you and it is absolutely filled with fish of all sizes and colors.  Unfortunately I do not have an underwater camera.

It was an amazing swim.

Later we pulled anchor and moved on over to Staniel Cay.  In addition to the marina, there is a small village.

There are some small cottages, and the marina is to the left.

Katy treated me to a fabulous Father's Day dinner at the marina restaurant.  In the Bahamian style, we placed our orders at 5:00 and the bell rang for sitting to dinner at 7:30.  We were ON TIME!!!!!  Everyone was served at once.

Tomorrow we will explore the village.