We bid farewell to Spanish Wells this morning following a wonderful week on the island. I hope its been apparent how much we've enjoyed spending time with extended family and walking around this beautiful town. Our exit through the harbor was a great final recap: the palm trees and lush landscape of the Yacht Haven, the large fishing boats along the wharf, the mangrove forests standing proudly in white sand at low tide, and the well-cared-for houses on every block.
On our trip earlier in the week to Harbour Island, we had plotted on our navigation software the course taken by the ferry and followed it this morning. We zigged by the Shipyard restaurant where we enjoyed a couple of meals. Then we zagged by Old Gun Marina where we entered the Devil's Backbone, escorted by a lone dolphin. We commented that this was the first dolphin we had seen in the Bahamas. While reviewing today's photos, a closer look at the dorsal fin shows teeth imprints and a fresh wound. This poor guy would have quite a story to tell. We made great time and had no problems navigating the upper section of the Devil's Backbone coral heads and rocks. We jumped out and set a course to Little Harbour in the Abacos. Flip Flop had left earlier in the morning to pick up fuel, had come around on a different route, and we were converging on the same waypoint.
Our passage through open water was uneventful. The swells were about six feet, but were far apart so we bobbed up and down and only had a few splashes over the bow. We knew we needed to arrive at Little Harbor a couple of hours before low tide in order to make it through the shallow channel entrance. The entrance to Little Harbour Cut was a little sporty with waves breaking around us and a good swell pushing us through. We finally just jumped on a wave and rode it through the opening. Once through the cut, the swells calmed down and I moved forward to prepare the lines to pick up the mooring ball. One obstacle remained -- clearing the sandbar guarding the entrance to the mooring field. It helps to have horsepower and a protected propeller and today we took advantage of both to power our way through the skinny water. Flip Flop, right behind us, benefitted from us plowing a path for them. I picked up the ball without drama and then we got the dinghy down and headed to shore.
We joined Melissa, Jeff, and Scout at Pete's Pub for beverages and a recap of our adventures. The bar is decorated with shirts and mementos from all over the world and I spotted a sticker from Green Top, a locally owned hunting/fishing megastore back home. Small world. We then met a couple and their cute little boy who were from the Montpelier area, also a stone's throw from home. Smaller world. They are now living in Greensboro where he coaches basketball in the same conference that my uncle coached in for many years. If we had kept talking, we may have discovered a common relative. It was, however, getting late so we'll never know. We took a quick walk over the dunes to look at the beach. The boardwalk went alongside a cool statue which we'll learn more about tomorrow. The view from the top was pretty impressive.
A quick beach selfie and some closer examination of the succulents growing on the rocks were all we had time today for before heading back to the dinghy. While we were ashore, the tide had come in a few inches, making the swings an inviting place to hang out. We returned to Crossroads as the sun was setting and casting a warm glow across the mooring field. We look forward to a full day here tomorrow.
On our trip earlier in the week to Harbour Island, we had plotted on our navigation software the course taken by the ferry and followed it this morning. We zigged by the Shipyard restaurant where we enjoyed a couple of meals. Then we zagged by Old Gun Marina where we entered the Devil's Backbone, escorted by a lone dolphin. We commented that this was the first dolphin we had seen in the Bahamas. While reviewing today's photos, a closer look at the dorsal fin shows teeth imprints and a fresh wound. This poor guy would have quite a story to tell. We made great time and had no problems navigating the upper section of the Devil's Backbone coral heads and rocks. We jumped out and set a course to Little Harbour in the Abacos. Flip Flop had left earlier in the morning to pick up fuel, had come around on a different route, and we were converging on the same waypoint.
Our passage through open water was uneventful. The swells were about six feet, but were far apart so we bobbed up and down and only had a few splashes over the bow. We knew we needed to arrive at Little Harbor a couple of hours before low tide in order to make it through the shallow channel entrance. The entrance to Little Harbour Cut was a little sporty with waves breaking around us and a good swell pushing us through. We finally just jumped on a wave and rode it through the opening. Once through the cut, the swells calmed down and I moved forward to prepare the lines to pick up the mooring ball. One obstacle remained -- clearing the sandbar guarding the entrance to the mooring field. It helps to have horsepower and a protected propeller and today we took advantage of both to power our way through the skinny water. Flip Flop, right behind us, benefitted from us plowing a path for them. I picked up the ball without drama and then we got the dinghy down and headed to shore.
We joined Melissa, Jeff, and Scout at Pete's Pub for beverages and a recap of our adventures. The bar is decorated with shirts and mementos from all over the world and I spotted a sticker from Green Top, a locally owned hunting/fishing megastore back home. Small world. We then met a couple and their cute little boy who were from the Montpelier area, also a stone's throw from home. Smaller world. They are now living in Greensboro where he coaches basketball in the same conference that my uncle coached in for many years. If we had kept talking, we may have discovered a common relative. It was, however, getting late so we'll never know. We took a quick walk over the dunes to look at the beach. The boardwalk went alongside a cool statue which we'll learn more about tomorrow. The view from the top was pretty impressive.
A quick beach selfie and some closer examination of the succulents growing on the rocks were all we had time today for before heading back to the dinghy. While we were ashore, the tide had come in a few inches, making the swings an inviting place to hang out. We returned to Crossroads as the sun was setting and casting a warm glow across the mooring field. We look forward to a full day here tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment