Island Hopping

Some days the decisions we have to make are so hard. Shall we go to the beach and read…..

Or should we build a sand sculpture?

Or maybe it’s a day to put out the spinnaker and make some miles.

During the past few weeks since leaving Cat Island, we have been doing more island hopping.

We returned to Little Farmers Cay in time for the island’s biggest event, the 5 Fs: First Friday of February Farmers Festival.

                                              Rainbow on the morning of the 5 Fs

The 5 Fs brings both cruisers and islanders together for a weekend of events including a regatta with Bahamian wooden boats. When we were here before (Ty’s Sunset Grill of a previous blog) there were no other boats; this time there were probably 100!  Friday began with clouds and rain and then the wind died to almost nothing, but the race went on and we were positioned so that the finish line was directly behind out boat.

       Bahamian C-Class wooden racing boats at the finish line, no doubt wishing for wind!

                                                 Headed for the finish near the beach.

From here we ambled on south stopping again at Lee Stocking Island to collect more coconuts. A couple great snorkeling reefs with beautiful coral and sponges were the next stop. The reefs also gave up lobster, one large enough to serve four of us for dinner and still have leftovers!

We passed another beach that has pigs. One probable reason for the presence of pigs is that the Spanish left them on various islands to be a ready food source in case they might return.

Then we worked our way back to George Town. This is a destination for many who spend the rest of the winter and it reminds me of a big RV park on water. Each morning there is a cruiser’s net broadcast on the radios that includes information on weather, local businesses and a buy, sell and trade segment. Elizabeth Harbour divides George Town on Exuma Island from Stocking Island where many of the cruisers anchor and where many activities take place. I saw water aerobics on Sand Dollar beach; yoga and volleyball at Chat and Chill beach where we also attended a history talk; and there is an extensive network of trails to hike. One of those trails took us to Monument.

“Monument” has no marker on it and appears to be a monument to no one, just a marker of the highest point nearby. The view is marvelous.

After a few days we headed out toward Long Island through some of the clearest, bluest water yet.  

Sometimes it's hard to find the horizon.

Stopping for the day at Hog Cay (no pigs on this one), we found two beaches that were littered with clothes, probably from a Haitian boat that was intercepted. There were also a few artifacts including these wood carvings. 

We collected many of the clothes, mostly child-size, which are in perfect condition (no rusted zippers, elastic still tight) and will launder and give them away later on Eleuthera.

Continuing the dinghy exploration, we spotted what I’ve been hoping to see – absolutely gorgeous white sand in the midst of the exquisite blue water. It was nearing low tide so we got the full effect of the beauty.

Back at the boats, two young Canadian fellows had joined the anchorage. They are aboard a Wharham which is basically a zero frills 21-foot double hull sailing vessel. The tent structure you see is their cover from the elements, they have a small motor, but there are no instruments except a GPS which they said doesn't work. They've used old fashioned dead-reckoning to sail from Florida to the Bahamas and are having a marvelous time. Now that's an adventure!

                                      Are they anchored in the water or floating in the sky?

Coming up: Our next destination, under vastly less primitive conditions, Long Island.