Our path back up the Exuma chain took us through some familiar territory. We also made a point of stopping in places we had bypassed on the way south.
We had perfect sailing conditions on Exuma Sound from Conch Cay Cut to Rat Cay Cut and again the next day from Adderly Cut to Farmers Cut. We had a couple of Cuban yo-yo’s trailing behind us on the second day and caught our first mahi mahi (dolphin fish). It was about 48 inches long and made for excellent eating after being marinated in lemon juice, dredged in flour and cornmeal seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic then fried in butter.
We won the battle with the shark who apparently wanted some mahi mahi too.
A quick stop for lunch at the Farmers Cay Yacht Club turned into a longer stay than we had intended. Roosevelt gave us a friendly welcome to his restaurant where Joyce cooked us a couple of cheeseburgers in paradise and told us that she likes the sailboats better because they come ashore and like to party. We met fellow boaters Paul and Marie (ventriloquist guy and face paint lady at the Black Point Easter celebration) who gave us a guided tour of the village and introduced to a few of the locals.
Marie at work in Black Point
We met tall and lanky Denzil who owns the only goat on the island. He used to have two but one was killed by the wild dogs. Tasha owns the grocery store and bemoaned the fact that the crane on the mail boat was broken causing it to be delayed. Her store shelves were getting pretty empty and she did not know when more supplies would come in.
Don’t let him get too close behind you.
Nearly empty shelves
We watched Island Boy getting new bottom paint at low tide while Bob Marley’s “Buffalo Soldier” was being piped out of a very good sound system somewhere nearby.
Buffalo Soldier, dreadlock Rasta ………………………….
JR, woodcarver in residence, hastily unpacked his artwork for us explaining that this could be our only chance to buy at wholesale prices as he would be leaving shortly to take his carvings to Nassau. After Tom selected a small statue JR gave him a short lesson in carving wild tamarind then quickly repacked the rest into a battered cardboard box for the flight to the big city.
On display
Teacher and student
We had anchored on the sand bar in front of the restaurant in six feet of water. By the time we got back to the boat after our village tour we were in about three and a half feet of water and had to carefully make our way back out to the deeper channel.
Anchored on the sand bar. It seemed like a good idea at the time.
Bitter Guana Cay is one of a few protected habitats in the Exumas for two species of endangered iguanas. It was just a short detour off our route to Staniel Cay. It is obvious that these guys are used to being fed by the tourists although the practice is discouraged. When we beached our dingy they started coming out of the bushes looking for hand outs. We had some celery trimmings with us that they seemed to like. The larger ones are about three and a half feet long and just a little intimidating. They can weigh up to 11 kg. and live as much as 80 years.
Okay. I know you're a herbivore but that’s close enough.
Osprey on guard at Bitter Guana Cay.
We missed our chance to refill the back-up propane tank during the regatta in George Town and due to the problem with the mail boat, the Isles General Store had no propane in stock and did not know when they would have some. Not knowing when our next chance would be we decided to sit and wait. We had enough boat chores to keep us busy while we waited. Rust was building up on the stainless, the front deck had some stains that the heavy rain could not wash away and the vinyl enclosure needed cleaning.
And of course the pigs at Big Majors Spot need to be fed every day.
Saturday morning as we drank our coffee in the cockpit two supply boats appeared on the horizon. One turned and headed in our direction. It would still be Monday before things got unloaded and we could get the tank filled.
Our nieghbours on Oasis lent us their inflatable AERE sailing catamaran to try out. It was fun and sailed quite well. Bob and Alice – this would be a great toy for the cottage. Check them out at www.aere.us.
Thanks, Tricia and Dan for sharing your toys with us. It was fun.
Cinco de Mayo found us back in the Exuma Land and Sea Park where we met up with our friends on Knot in Vein once again. We are headed north and they are on their way south so it will be a short reunion. Maybe we can convince them to return next season and we will meet again.
Besides fixing or cleaning things, reading is one of the most common pastimes on a cruising boat. Books are passed from boat to boat and exchanges can be found in many of the marinas and yacht clubs. In Marsh Harbour, a charity in support of the Abaco Wild horses operates out of a sea container and sells books for a dollar. The library in George Town has an exchange section for cruisers if you purchase a library membership for $3.00. The park office in the Exuma Park has a book exchange in their gift shop in addition to the books by Bahamian authors that they have for sale.The selection in the exchanges is usually pretty eclectic and you might just find yourself enjoying books that you never expected to read.
Relevant Reading – Wind From the Carolinas by Robert Wilder
I’m not usually one for history but this is a good read. It gives the reader a feel for how the Bahamas became what they are today. It is a work of fiction that follows the experiences of several generations of one family of Loyalists who fled the southern US after the American Revolution in the late 1700’s. From trying to establish a cotton plantation on a Bahamian out island to rum running during prohibition their lives were a constant struggle to survive. As a reminder of the past we have seen cotton growing wild on almost every island that we have visited. This book is best read with a chart of the Bahamas nearby and a good cup of coffee or a rum punch.
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