A Great Good Friday

Governor's Harbour   

Good Friday arrived with excitement and anticipation for our day ahead. At 9:30 we took the dinghy in, anchored it in knee-deep water, came ashore, and quickly changed into our walking shoes. We found the large trees along the harbor had been wrapped with gold bows. A lone gull boisterously serenaded us on our walk to Da Perk coffee shop where we met our ride at 9:45. Mr. Hal Russell picked us up and drove us half an hour north along Queens Highway toward Gregory Town. We passed the Governor's Harbour airport, James Cistern, Rainbow Bay, Alice Town, and Hatchet Bay. The road ran close to the shore with great views of the blue water and also cut back into inland areas where trees lined both sides of the road. Along the way we saw a cell phone tower that had been dressed up to resemble a palm tree. Hal shared with us stories of Eleuthera's rich history and of his plans for his family-owned farm. We arrived at the sign for Eleuthera Pineapple Farm and turned left into his lush fields.      

Hal, his wife, and grown son have operated this 25-acre farm for four years with a goal of becoming a major producer of Sugarloaf pineapple. They want to continue the rich history of pineapple cultivation in Eleuthera and bring the industry back to its glory days. On our drive he had explained how the island's red dirt is perfect for his pineapple farm, fruit orchard, and vegetable gardens. He went over the crop's growing cycle and cultivation/propagation techniques as we walked through the rows. Each plant produces one pineapple, but also creates up to five slips -- bud-like sprouts that turn into the plantings for the next season. Hal plans to clear a new section of land and plant 5,000 pineapple slips for next year. The pineapples are seasonal, take two years to mature, and will not be ready for harvest for another month or two. 

An annual festival in Gregory town (June 1-3) celebrates the past and future of the pineapple. We asked a bunch of questions and Hal made sure that we had all the answers and all the photos that we wanted.

After the pineapple tour we were treated to an amazing bonus walk through his vegetable garden and orchard. On the way to see the fruit trees, Hal offered us a few of the pretty red peppers hanging from the vine. He also warned us that they were hotter that bird peppers. We spotted a scarlet plum and he beckoned me to give it a try. Oh, my. It was so sweet and so juicy that the syrup ran down my arm. Another variety of plum grew on a tree without leaves. Once the fruit begins to take on color, leaves sprout to shade the fruit from the oppressive sun. In the background towered the historic Hatchet Bay Silos which were built in the 1930s to store food for the milk cows on the Levy Farms (yes, the same namesake Levy of the plant preserve we visited a few days ago). Large okra pods filled the vines. 

Quite unexpected to us, Hal offered us samples of all the produce. I returned to the truck and pulled out my mesh shell bag from my backpack. It was then loaded with broccoli, papaya, tomatoes, red cabbage, rosemary, and green peppers.

A lone pomegranate held fast to its branch. We then moved to the banana and plantain trees. Hal pointed out our plantains have redish leaf stems while those of the banana tree are green. The bananas were ripe and hung in large bunches. Again we were encouraged to pick ourselves a sample. They tasted nothing like store-bought bananas which was good because I've had a life-long aversion to the mushy yellow fruit. Hal had another convert.

He took our photo under a bunch of green bananas (sort of like mistletoe). Shoots appear at the base of the trees and are separated and transplanted for propagation. So much fruit was evident whichever way we turned. We made a final stop by the most mature section of pineapples and passed by large hibiscus trees on the way to the truck.

We look forward to returning and seeing his progress. On the way back to Governor's Harbour we took a detour to check out Sweetings Pond. As a life-long resident of the area, Hal had also never visited the pond. A long, narrow dirt road led to a large inland pond which is part of the Bahamian National Trust. The beautiful clear water is home to rare and threatened seahorses. We looked around the edge, but never saw any. To do the experience properly you have to enter the water and snorkel over the grassy bottom. We've added this adventure to our list for next year.

When we returned to Crossroads, we unloaded the bounty from our farm visit. Barry cleaned and de-seeded one of the peppers to see how hot it was. I watched as his face broke out in a thick sweat. Yep, they were pretty hot.

We spent a few hours onboard before heading back to shore for dinner at the Buccaneer Club. As the sun set we walked back to the waterfront and commented on the number of dinghies anchored on the beach. All the cruisers had come ashore for the famous Friday night Fish Fry. As the evening passed, the music got a bit more lively and the competitions began. We cheered for all the limbo contestants until a clear winner emerged. We then bid adieu to Governor's Harbor and got back onboard in time to join my North Carolina family at our traditional Good Friday service. Wow, what a moving service. I miss not being there, but the livestream brought it to me in the next best manner and put an exclamation point on the events that made this Good Friday great. 

If you are interested, this link will take you to the replay of the powerful service. The message begins at approximately -28:50 and the final four hymns always stir my emotions to tears and make me tremble, tremble, tremble.