CODA STILL HERE IN THE BAHAMAS 2025 (29)

CODA : exploring the Exuma Islands, Bahamas.

8 February 2025 

Black Point harbor anchorage, Black Point Settlement, Great Guana Cay, Bahamas  

Kathleen's cave exit (Atlantic Ocean side of Great Guana Cay).

Marc-  We started the day off with a fantastic ocean beach tour by our friend Kathleen.  Great exercise.  

She led us out from her cottage and down a small trail to a beach with numerous coral headlands.  Sue and Kathleen spent time looking for shells and coral (they found plenty of both).  Unfortunately there is plastic and other kinds of trash on the beach.  I searched the tidal pools for living creatures.  I found mollusks, small fish and birds.

The first beach headland (Kathleen's cave entrance is to the left of center).

Kathleen and Sue.

A brain coral the size of a basketball.

The last headland.

We walked back across the bay at low tide to our dinghy.  Kathleen's cottage looks out at this AND at the ocean.

After lunch we headed over to Staniel Cay (5 miles away) to refill our diesel and water tanks.  It is an impressive resort town with Thunderbolt Grotto of James Bond fame in its harbor.

We stopped over at a Cay called Big Major's Spot to see the swimming pigs.  Farm raised pigs live in structures just off of the beach and often swim out to be fed by visiting boaters.

Two tides a day keep everything clean here.

A rather fast swimmer.

Visitors feeding the pigs.

German boat here to see the swimming pigs.

Boats returning from the inter-island regatta at Little Farmer's Cay.

We were enjoying dinner at Lorraine's Restaurant while our laundry was being done at Ida's Laundromat next door.

Sue:  We had a nice time with Kathleen.  It was great to see Black Point from her point of view.  She has  been coming here for 15 years.

The restaurant photo posted yesterday is Lorraine's, where we had dinner tonight.

We'll have to return some day to Staniel Cay, as it seems like a fun place to explore.  Marc got a brochure when he paid for the diesel, and it's more like a photo album than just a brochure. The first and last pages are vellum.  Marc said the yacht club was super ritzy (had to go in to pay and I stayed in the boat).  There were a lot of boats in the harbor, including one from Hyannis, MA and one from Germany.  We didn't take the time to look at other boats; we got the diesel and water, saw the pigs (definitely worth the short trip; they were fun), and returned to Black Point.  We are leaving tomorrow because of weather.  There are 2 more good weather days, so we will go to Little Farmer's Cay, or Lee Stocking Island,  tomorrow and then Georgetown, a big place we can be stuck in for a few days.

Traditional Bahamian Class C boats.

Coda out there beyond the mooring balls.

CODA HERE IN THE BAHAMAS 2025 (28)

 CODA : exploring the Exuma Islands, Bahamas.

7 February 2025 

Black Point harbor anchorage, Black Point Settlement, Great Guana Cay, Bahamas  

The anchored boats are careful to stay out of the freighter freeway to the Government Pier.

(Photo taken from Black Point Yacht Club.)

Marc-  We did a morning trip of 25 miles arriving at 12:15 anchored right in front of the beach in 8.9 feet of very clear water.  It is very hard to determine depth in water this clear (without a depth finder).

Sue contacted our friend Kathleen Patton who came to the dock to give us a grand tour of the place.

White sand beach named "Plain Beach" on the south end of Little Bay.

While the roads were a bit bumpy it was fun to get driven around in a cool golf cart.  We even saw a bobcat when driving near the dump (brings back memories of Vermont when small towns had dumps).

We passed many homes in various stages of construction.  Apparently only Bahamians can own real estate here.  Others simply lease the land.  Most homes are made of reinforced concrete block.  Some of the roads are paved but most are not.  The highpoint was going to the Plain Beach.  This beach is breathtaking and has a castle set on a hill nearby.

Wow!

The blue cottage on the right of the yellow one is Kathleen's.  It straddles the Isthmus with both bay and ocean views.

Cottage Bay view.

We enjoyed lunch at the Black Point Yacht Club.  Locally caught fresh seafood.

View from the impeccable laundromat.

What no ice cream?  Kathleen did say there was a good supply of ice cream at Adderley's Friendly Market.  All we had to do was follow the village children headed over for ice cream on their bikes.  

Sue:  I don't think the photo of the lunch spot is where we had lunch.  We need to double check that.  Anyway, we had conch fritters as an appetizer, Kathleen had a conch burger, and we had shrimp tacos.  Very good food.  

It's quiet in the harbor and in town because a lot of people have left for nearby Farmer's Cay, where there is an annual festival called "The First Friday Festival."  It is famous for its sailboat races (the Bahamian class C sailboat), the winner of which one year was Will Patten, et al!

CODA HERE IN THE BAHAMAS 2025 (27)

 CODA : exploring the Exuma Islands, Bahamas.

6 February 2025 

North anchorage at Warderick Wells Cay, Bahamas 

Marc- This is one superb national park of the wonders of nature to be found in these Bahamian islands.  The Bahamas has set aside an area comprising 176 square miles with 25 islands to protect both the land and marine environment.  They have done a great job of providing access without paving over paradise.

We chose to visit the crown jewel of the park at Warderick Wells Cay.  You can only enter if you’ve called a ranger ahead of time.  The usual procedure is to call ahead one day before you plan on arriving.  You check with the ranger in the morning to confirm that you have a mooring and then call again once when you arrive.  Very easy procedure even when you mess up as I did and pick up the wrong mooring (The ranger’s response was "no problem").  The colors in this park are extraordinary… so many shades of blue.  

Green clouds on our way to Warderick Wells (unusual, no storms around).

This is both the entry channel and part of the north mooring field at Warderick Wells Cay.

Sue and I set off on a hike up Boo Boo Hill, the highest point of the island at about 300 feet.  The trails can be exciting.  We headed out on a trail that became very porous fragmented ancient coral rock.  You need really good foot wear to walk these trails.  At one point we came to a creek with no bridge that was about 25 feet wide at our stage of the tide.  We decided to take an alternative trail to the south.  It went well walking along the beach and edges the marsh but became outright dangerous when we started our climb over very sharp coral once again.  There were holes on this trail that I could fall into and disappear.  At one point was saw a ladder allowing access to a cave (not for me).  The trail improved greatly when we reached the ocean side beach areas.  Finally we could just follow the signs up Boo Boo Hill.  

Atlantic Ocean side of the Island (note the deep blue color offshore).

Taking break to work on some driftwood I found on the beach.

Boo Boo Hill offers amazing panoramic views of the harbor and ocean cut.  The top of the Hill is covered with offerings of carved wood signs denoting your boat’s name and origins.  Most of the signs are painted driftwood.  Others are large seashells and even an anchor.  We also sought out blowholes at lower elevation on the stony ocean side.  We found the holes but no water surging up through them (apparently we came on a falling tide).

The top of Boo Boo Hill.

Blow holes.

Pausing for a break and a drink back at the mooring field beach.

Consuming plastic garbage killed this magnificent 52 foot sperm whale.

Back on board Coda.

   

CODA HERE IN THE BAHAMAS 2025 (26)

 CODA : exploring the Exuma Islands, Bahamas.

5 February 2025 

Anchorage behind Highborne's Cay, Bahamas   

We tried Bahamian conch chowder for our first time in Bimini.  It was delicious.

Marc-  We left Atlantis at 08:00 and headed for the fuel dock nearby.  The place was deserted.  We tied up and called the marina who informed us that we only needed to wait 15 minutes.  Several other boats arrived for fuel.  Only the Megayacht didn't wait around.  Although I am sure that we bought the least amount of fuel (20 gallons) of those waiting we were treated very well by the marina staff.  The fuel dock was right across from Potters Cay (a huge commercial pier set out in the middle of Nassau harbor.  It contains the produce exchange as well as a major docking facility for Bahamian island freighters.

We left Nassau Harbor and headed East and then south to the Exuma Island chain.  First we needed to cross the Yellow Banks, an area of shallow corals spread out in a miles wide band.  My friend Charlie Langworthy gave me the best advice:  1- Arrive when the sun is high in the sky; 2- Keep a lookout perched as far above deck as comfortable (I was comfortable sitting on the pilothouse roof); and  most important look out for what appears to be dark ink blotches in the waters that you are approaching.   This plan worked like a charm.  I sat on the pilothouse roof next to an open hatch over where Sue was steering Coda.  Each time that I saw a "dark ink blotch" I asked Sue to take change course.  This went on for about 20 minutes.  

We knew we had arrived in the Exumas and at Highborne Cay by the clearest and bluest water we've ever seen along with white sand beaches.  We anchored in front of the Batelco Cellular transmission tower among a dozen or so boats.  I had initially planned to go into the inner harbor for fuel but changed plans when a standing wave and very light colored water appeared before us in the pass between two coral reefs.  We opted to get some diesel fuel with the dinghy and a portable tank.  We found the harbor quite full of mega yachts (they had arrived by a different passage then the one I attempted).  We did a little exploring about.  Very nice resort island.

Good bye Atlantis.  

Island freighters at Potter's Cay.

Big residential properties on Paradise Island.

Are you sure we are not back in Fort Lauderdale?

Arrival in the Exumas.

Fellow boaters.

A marina inhabitant at Highborne Cay.

Another marina inhabitant.

One of the large boats and its dinghy.

Not a good place to swim (just off of the place that fishermen clean their fish.

The fancy Xuma Restaurant.

We followed this road across the Island.

The ocean side of Highbore Cay and an interesting weather station.

Cool signs left by passing boaters.