Staniel Cay - Chapter 2

4/28/09

We have been a week now in Staniel Cay and are just waiting for the winds to die down just a bit before we take off to a new spot. This really is a wonderful place to just hang out, though. On Sunday we took the dinghy over to Thunderball Cave at slack tide and did some snorkeling. It is truly one of the most beautiful snorkeling spots I have ever seen. The fish were everywhere and every different kind and color you can imagine. I wish that I had had an underwater camera so that I could show you some pictures. The vegetation was absolutely incredible, as well. There was one thing that David kept pointing out to me that looked just like a bland ol’ thing until you got over it just right with the light shining in just the right spot and then it suddenly became this marvelous purple luminescent beautiful site. Unbelievable. The real treat, though, for those of you with rather bizarre senses of humor like mine, would have been watching the two of us, cold and encumbered with our wet suites, trying to get back into the dinghy from a little plastic ladder David had rigged up just for the occasion. I’m sure a video of it would have won prizes on one of those “funniest video” programs. Of course it didn’t help that I couldn’t stop laughing the whole time. What a hoot!

I’ve told you all about meeting and talking with David’s friend Flo that owns the “Pink Pearl” grocery. Well, we had noticed that her sign for the grocery on the main road had fallen to the ground and was looking pretty pitiful, if I do say so myself. So during one of our visits with her I mentioned that I would be happy to get her sign back up to speed if she would like for that to happen. She arranged for us to get some paint from one of her sons who manages the Staniel Cay Yacht Club and David rigged up a small paint brush for me made from a lock of his hair (very much like a fairy tale, isn’t it?) and to work we went on the sign. It’s not the most artistic thing I’ve ever done but we were able to keep the integrity of the original lettering intact and seal it up pretty good with a few coats of paint all the way around. It should be good for a few more years at least and it was fun to have a project. And here is a fun sidebar on visits with Flo – In some of our conversations with her she has talked about her family and friends on the islands and it has been so interesting to hear from her the Bahamian word used to describe lighter-skinned, mixed-race Bahamians – they are “Bright”. I figure if they are “Bright” then David and I must be “Blindingly White-on-White”!!

Yesterday we had a bit of a scare. The catamaran that is anchored next to us has a sweet old (11 years old, we found out) Golden Lab on board. The family had left in their dinghy and I was just watching the sweet baby when he decided to go for a swim. Well, all fine and good, except he couldn’t get back up onto the boat by himself. It totally freaked me out that he was struggling to get back on board and couldn’t do it on the slippery steps. So – David took me over in our dinghy and I was able to get him, with a bit of a struggle, on deck again. Yeah! It felt so good that the doggy-shaking-water-shower I got was a wonderful thing! I won’t go into how upset I was with the owners that they would even let their sweet baby get into that kind of a situation. Some people……. Harrumph.

This afternoon we went fishing for our dinner and actually caught some fish! Now, for me, this is really something seeing as how the last time I went fishing was with a cane pole and I was in elementary school. The real test will be to see if I can actually make a decent dinner out of the little things. I have to tell you though, it kind of freaked me out the way they grunted when David was taking the hooks out of their mouths. But, hey, at least they didn’t scream and cry “Auntie Em, Auntie Em, There’s no place like home….”

Have I told you yet about the sunsets here? Absolutely wonderful! There are days that the sun literally seems like it is mmmeeeelllltttiiinnnggg right into the water. (Say that kind-of like the wicked witch did in The Wizard of Oz – but without the “wicked” connotation! Oz must be the theme today.) And then there are other days in which a small cloud formation will be in front of the sun as it sets and it looks like a picture superimposed on the ball of light. One evening it seemed to me as if a beautiful bird was winging its way up to heaven through the sun the entire time the sun was setting. Stunning!

Do you remember me telling you in a previous post about the swimming pigs? Well, here are some pictures David took of them the last time he was down this way. Very fun!

And from David - - -

Greetings All,

Lisa has asked me to add some comments. I think she is doing such a fine job on this blog that there isn't much to fill in but one thing I'd like to share is,,,,

One of the most fascinating things I have seen on this voyage happened some nights ago while here at anchor in Staniel Cay. I had our HydroGlow fishlight deployed over the side about 9pm and slowly drifting by on the tidal current was what looked to be a piece of seaweed, except this seaweed was swimming against the tide keeping near the light and closing the distance with a group of minnows. The minnows were cavorting around the light's glow as minnows do. As this, "seaweed', drew near it turned around, became a cylindrical shape, lost all the frilly trim, and transformed into a minnow hunting 9 or 10 inch squid. With a quick suction powered lunge it captured a hapless victim in its forward facing tentacles and sank toward the bottom with it prey.

Ten minutes later it was back and up to the same camouflaged tricks, looking all frilly and innocent with tentacles drawn open in a very apt depiction of some drifting sargasso weed. Its coloration was that same greenish brown and only at the last moment did it again pull its tentacles into a tight cone that it sucked in through to give it a burst of speed into the minnow school. As it darted toward the minnows the tentacles also stretched out nearly double their original length to snag their next meal.

I've seen squids feed before but never such a squid as this. Besides the usual squirt that we most know of to avoid an enemy, I've seen the inhale powered forward dart to grab some poor prey. It's enough to make you glad you're not a minnow and that giant squid don't feed at our beaches!!

I'll keep the video camera battery charged and will try to get some footage to share if one comes by tonight.

Be well fellow travelers,

Cap't Davie

And P.S.,,, Lisa is just the greatest shipmate! So helpful in all ways and a such great sport when we have some rough passage to make and the cats are hurling their breakfast because their meds are slow to kick in,,,, Yay!

Staniel Cay

4/22/09

Well, yesterday we got into Staniel Cay and it is wonderful. We will be staying here for a few days and just enjoying the island and breakfasts at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club. David was here three years ago and made some good friends of some of the folks here that he is enjoying seeing again. On the way in we passed close to Big Major’s Spot and were able to look over to the shore and see the “wild pigs” (they really aren’t wild – they belong to some Staniel Cay folks) running around on the beach and swimming out to people in dinghies looking for treats. First iguanas and now pigs! I wonder what other creatures are in store for us as we continue this trip.

But – a few things that I have forgotten to tell you about to date. The first was the “pretty-little-bird-incident”. On our trip from Bimini to Allen’s Cay there was this pretty little bird out in the middle of nowhere just flying around and decided to take a much needed, I am sure, rest on the boat. We were enjoying visiting with the bird when it decided to go below and check out the cabin. We weren’t too worried about the cats being down there since that had been one of their not-better days stomach-wise and in a bit I thought I saw the little bird fly away again across the water. I really thought nothing of it until that night when I stepped in something icky (hate it when that happens!) on the main cabin. And – wouldn’t you know – there in the middle of some kitty upchuck was a bird wing. Poor little thing. I guess the cats weren’t as sick as I thought they were!

The other thing I forgot (I’m sure there are many others – but this is what is coming to mind at the moment) to tell you is that on that same trip we saw three Pilot Whales playing in the surf. (They were some kind of whale anyway – someone else told us there was an official report of Pilot Whales in that area at that time.) What a treat!

Back to Staniel Cay – Today we took a walk through the island over to where David had anchored his other boat, Patience Green, the last time he was here in a shallow creek in the middle of the island. We took a nice swim there and just as I was commenting on the fact that I didn’t see many fish up came a huge stingray right at my feet. I’m not sure who was more scared, me or the stingray. Right up on the beach there was a wonderful, colorful picnic area where we just rested for a while and enjoyed the sound of the wind through the Australian Pines. On our walk back into town we passed a homestead where there was a custom made 4-wheel drive off road vehicle with a Morris Minor body (or so says David) mounted on what appeared to be a Jeep chassis. Take a look at the picture. It was really quite cool. We then took some time to visit David’s friend Flo at the local “Pink” grocery. As we were taking the dinghy back out to the boat we were buzzed really low by three old single engine military trainer planes. They were having a ball just roaring in and out of the harbor as low as they could go. Looked like great fun if you are into that sort of thing.

4/24/09

Today, after taking care of some business we had lunch at Thunderball Café which has a really incredible view of the water, rocks and cliffs all seen through bougainvilleas full of blooms. Then we wandered along a hiking trail that ran along the uppermost cliff overlooking both sides of Staniel Cay. There is really no way to describe how breathtakingly beautiful it all is. The pictures I will post here only do the scenery partial justice. Then back at the dinghy dock some folks were cleaning fish and there where a good number of little sharks and stingrays fighting the seagulls for the leftovers that were thrown in at the edge of the water. The birds were, by far, getting the best pickings.

Warderick Wells Cay/Compass Cay

4/20/09

Last night found us anchored off of Warderick Wells Cay. It was the first spot on our trip that allowed us a wi-fi spot for email which was nice and I was able to get an update on my mom who is in the hospital with some heart difficulties. Warderick Wells Cay is part of The Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park and today we were able to take advantage of some of the marvelous walking trails filled with great information about all of the local flora and fauna and much of the history about how the islands were formed. The rock that makes up much of the surface of the island is really porous and actually sounds hollow when you hit it with a stone. It is fascinating and there were caves to explore, beautiful beaches and magnificent rocky walls on the easternmost shore. We had seen a plant loaded with some kind of fruit on Shroud Cay and I found out that it is something called a Seven Year Apple. The fruit actually takes 7 years to ripen and supposedly the fruit is edible, but it tastes so bad that if you do actually eat one it is said that you won’t eat another one for 7 years. I guess that is enough time to forget how bad it was??!!

I made it up to a place called Boo Boo Hill where visitors leave mementoes of their vessels and from this point on the island you could see for what seemed like forever in all directions. Just a short walk from Boo Boo Hill was a place called the Blow Holes. If you stood still, you could hear the wind rush through holes in the cliff overlooking the ocean and it sounded like people whispering. Legend has it that this is actually the voices of sailors who have died in shipwrecks off this coast. Back along the beach next to the Park Office there was an actual whale skeleton which was fascinating to see up close.

We met up with some folks there that we had seen the day before Shroud Cay and it turns out they are New Jersey transplants that are now living in Cape Canaveral. Such a small world.

It was an easy sail this afternoon to Compass Cay where we will spend the night. The kitties just got catnip treats and are happy campers.

Shroud Cay

4/18/09

Today finds anchored off of Shroud Cay. What a beautiful, unspoiled place. We took the dinghy up into the creeks through the mangrove swamps and walked along the beach – sand like pure flour! – and then up a hill to a place called Camp Driftwood. From on top you could see for miles in all directions and the color of the sea was, once again, exceptional. It was from this vantage point that drug agents once spied on cocaine operations in and out of Norman’s Cay (or so one of our guide books tells us). We saw some beautiful tropicbirds (?). White with very long graceful tail feathers and stunning black markings. What a treat.

Kitties happy today with just a short easy sail and both have been on deck sunning and trying to find out where David hid the Cat Nip plant.

Coconut Grove/Bimini/Allen's Cay

4/17/09

How does one begin the telling of an adventure such as this? I suppose the only way to begin is to just jump in, or jump onboard, as it were, and tell whatever comes to mind. Thus far, almost two weeks into our Bahamas run, we are having a really great time – of course! I think Cocoa would agree that times are good, but Puddinhead is still a bit undetermined. We did find out on our second day out that cats DO get seasick. Poor babies. Fortunately, though, Dramamine works as well for them as it does for people and they at least got a good sleep out of the day. I found out on one of our sailing days down to Miami just what it is to be a “crusty” sailor. I never knew that you could accumulate so much salt on your body at one time and have it actually stay there. Boy was I ready to rinse off that night!

We spent three nights anchored off of Dinner Key Marina in Coconut Grove and had fun seeing friends and getting some chores done. On Saturday before Easter I think we became part of the Coconut Grove tourist entertainment. As we were nearing the time to pick up some laundry from the cleaners the heavens opened up and it began raining like crazy. Since we needed to get back to the boat in time to move it to No Name Harbor that day, we made a break for the cleaners and, once there, asked if they had any extra plastic laundry bags we could use to protect ourselves from the rain on the way back to the dingy dock. Lo and behold – out came two beautiful, very pink, bags. Once we had donned the bags with expertly cut head and arm holes, we proceeded to parade through the downtown Grove looking like two big pink stuffed sausages. What a trip. We stayed dry, though, and made is safely back to the boat and to No Name Harbor early that evening.

The sail over to Bimini was a good one. Dramamine early on for the cats saved us from flying kitty puke! The various color of the water has been absolutely magnificent. Not to mention the incredible sunrises and sunsets. It is all like being in a Technicolor dream. There have also been some amazing sites such as the remains of an old grounded concrete ship from WWI just off the Bimini coast.

I seem to be having the most trouble with my stupid fear-of-falling-thing. As David goes to drop me at docks here and there, as we did in Nassau, I find that the leap from the boat to the dock, (or step, rather) and vice versa, is a bit mind blowing. Somehow in my feeble brain it feels like I am leaping from one tall building to another with nothing but a death drop in between rather than just a simple step. I will definitely need to work on that one if we are ever to get more ice and make a phone call here and there. Perhaps I could train Cocoa to do the ice runs??!!

Today finds us taking a day off anchored off of Allen’s Cay in the northern Exumas. Later today we are hoping to put in some snorkeling time and go to shore to see the Rock Iguanas that I can see many of just on the beach. Yesterday afternoon I watched them chase some girls off the beach and into their dinghy. They’re big and fast! I’ll try to get a picture or two if they don't chase me down as well.