Goodbyes and Hellos

Russell Island (East) to Spanish Wells   |  .6 Hours  |  1 Mile  

This morning was occupied by chores we had not done since Valentine's Day. I readied dock lines and fenders to go into a marina. I also brought out a few items from storage for guests that would be arriving as soon as we docked. We tuck a little bit of everything into every nook and cranny. Some, like splints we hope to never use. Others, we stash in hope of bringing them out for special occasions. Glenda, Greg, and The Boyz had already departed in their dinghy when we raised our anchor. We took a long last look at Paradigm Shift which we've shared an anchorage with for the past eight days. Only one mile need to be crossed to reach Spanish Wells Yacht Haven, but it took a little longer than expected. We had to hold station for a while as we waited for traffic to exit the harbor. Once directed in, we made our way to our assigned slip. Familiar faces awaited our arrival as dockmaster Tread was there to help with our lines. Glenda and The Boyz were also waiting for us. Even though she had her hands full, Glenda took some nice shots of our arrival.

I was thrilled to puppy-sit this morning so Glenda could do some grocery shopping. The Boyz came aboard and seemed pleasantly surprised to find their crinkly and squeaky friends from home. Jaxon's excitement soon waned and he settled in for a nap on the settee. Cooper was all about exploring -- in and out, up and down -- right up to the point where he also ran out of energy and laid down for a snooze.

Glenda returned from shopping and we stowed her purchases on Crossroads within minutes of the time Greg arrived by dinghy. All six of us piled into the rental golf cart and went for a quick driving tour which led us first over the bridge to Russell Island and down as far as Sandbar restaurant. The amount of new construction was incredible. We came back the same way, but continued around the looping road of Spanish Wells. At the park we stopped to gaze out over the beautiful beach. Today's wind was light and the flag flapped lazily. Off to Budda's we went for lunch. The food was great as always and it was fun reading all the cute signs placed around the open-air restaurant.

After lunch we went back to the beach. The tide had continued to fall and exposed the massive sandbar. It was an incredible walk in the clean, soft sand. Cooper claimed the sand as a place to run. Jaxon found the shallow tide pools to be a place to lay and soak. We could have stayed for much longer, but knew our time together was fleeting. The walk back to shore was slow as we soaked up every bit of scenery.

Of course Glenda and I took one last selfie before returning to Crossroads. Final hugs were shared and their dinghy was full as they pulled away. It was a special treat to share this bonus time together and I'm thankful for the smiles and memories. Trying to keep my eyes from watering, I had to recite a favorite quote from Dr. Seuss. The Paradigm Shift crew departed later in the afternoon to stage for tomorrow's passage to the Abacos. We'll see them again in about a month, back home in Virginia.

After a little cleanup that I had not done after docking, we changed focus to enjoy the best of Spanish Wells. We went to visit Deidre's (my cousin-in-law) mom, Euleta. It was a fun time catching up with the activities of all the relatives. As a bonus we also got to see Darcie-Grace. With the obligatory photo taken to capture the moment, we said goodbye and then I was momentarily sidetracked by the bananas growing across the street. Barry and I made one stop before returning the golf cart and walking back to the marina. At 7:00 we walked back to the Northside Beach hoping to see the colors of the sunset (the actual setting sun was hidden by the island). The tide was rising, but there was still a good amount of beach. The view to the east was reminiscent of earlier in the day.

To the west there was an orange glow over the still water. It was not coincidental that we had to pass Papa's Scoops on the way back to the marina. We were welcomed back (OK, so was everyone else) and closed our day with a small cup of frozen goodness.