Making New Friends

Shroud Cay to Normans Cay  |  3 Hours  |  18 Miles  

The gray clouds from yesterday were a distant memory. I didn't get to watch the basketball game (in which the Heels fell a bit short), but it was a beautiful day to explore a new area of Shroud Cay. We read that we should visit Sanctuary Creek on a rising tide, so we left Crossroads at 10:00. The entrance was well-marked with Exuma Park signage. A wide channel of crystal-clear water wound through the mangrove forest. 

As we rounded the final turn we noticed two dogs running beside us along the bank and barking. Now, I'm normally the first to jump out and give some ear scratches, but today something seemed "off." The dogs jumped into the water and swam to our dinghy, still barking. It kind of reminded us of the swimming pigs of Big Majors and the pink iguanas of Leaf Cay. We were the only folks at Driftwood Beach and reluctantly backed away and turned around, not wanting to be dog food. Thankfully we met Dan and Julie who were on their way to the beach in their dinghy. After a little chat, we all agreed to go back to the beach and give it another shot. We anchored in a picturesque spot and walked together to the beach. We convinced the dogs to follow at a distance.

Barry and I climbed up a short trail to Camp Driftwood, a spot used by drug agents in the 1980s to spy on aircraft flying from Normans Cay. The dogs followed along and by now we had all become friends. We paused at the top to take in the view of the winding Sanctuary Creek from the top of the hill. 

Like I said, we were now friends and they enjoyed their share of ear scratches and belly rubs. The four humans stood on this beautiful beach and realized what a small world we live in. Dan and Julie have spent a good amount of time in Deltaville and plan to leave their boat there for the summer.

The "waterslide" was in good form. This area at the mouth of the creek is so named because the lapping waves of the rising tide will carry you across the sandbar. I didn't try that, but did take a dip in the water before we made our way back to the dinghy. The dogs stayed behind to greet the next batch of tourists.

It has been a great stay in the Land & Sea Park. We are already talking about the things to do and places to go next year. A longer visit to Driftwood Beach is definitely on the list. We followed behind Dan and Julie out of the creek and back to the anchorage.

As we were putting the dinghy on the upper deck, Asante pulled in beside us. We soon departed, leaving the beautiful Shroud Cay anchorage to our sister ship. It was a quick trip to Normans Cay. Here we have decent internet, allowing me to catch up on all these blog posts. We have also exited the Land & Sea Park which opens us up to a wider variety of experiences. The sea plane taking off in front of us was the highlight of an otherwise uneventful afternoon. Tonight we have done laundry, showered, and made water -- all important things that just have to get done. Tomorrow we will continue our journey north and will stop somewhere between here and Spanish Wells.