Successful Road Trip to See Endangered Wild Bahamian Parrots.

Dark clouds and breaking waves in the harbor due to the front.

Back in Marsh Harbor we were on the boat for two days with gray skies and high winds while one of the fronts came in from the north bringing much cooler air. We have just been hanging out here because it has not been good to head out through “the Whale” which is a narrow cut you have to go out and into the Atlantic and cut back in to head on the sound side to Green Turtle and eventually to Sale Cay where we leave to cross over to Fort Pierce. So we have gotten together with friends and met for drinks or played Mexican Train Dominoes several times.  

One day however, Tom and Meg on Sun Cat and us decided to rent a car and head south from Marsh Harbor. There were two things we really wanted to see and do. One was to see the rare Bahamian Parrots which are only found on Great Abaco and Great Inagua and to find a sea glass beach where it suppose to be quite plentiful. We also were just curious what else was down that way. When we went to rent the car we asked about the National Park where supposedly the parrots nest. However, the gentleman at the car rental said the Tourist Bureau needs to rewrite and inform tourists that isn't really the case. First of all he said you are not allowed in the National Park which seems strange. Secondly, he said we would have a 90% chance of seeing them when we drove down the roads into Bahama Palm Shores which is a small housing community near the shore. So we head for there.  We took binoculars

Photo courtesy of the internet.

with us and when we parked near the beach I saw a gentleman with binoculars pointing to something and talking to two ladies. So I headed over that way and he showed me where two Painted Buntings were in a bush.

 I looked through the binoculars and saw the most gorgeous blue and red and some green little birds. As you see here. This photo is taken off the internet because they were too far away for my little camera. Then I asked if they had seen a parrot and he said they are nearby, and just then three flew into a tree right where we were! How exciting to see them in the wild. 

White heads make them easier to spot.

Their white heads made them easier to spot in the tree with leaves. As we were standing there admiring and taking photos, five more came and they all flew to a tree with lots of berries but not much foliage so we saw them even better.

Bahamian parrot enjoying the berries.

One of the highlights of the day, seeing this endangered species.

Eight of them in one tree! These parrots used to be found on seven different Bahamian Islands but now they are on the endangered species list and are only on these islands previously mentioned so we were glad we got to see them.

Next we head to a settlement called Crossing Rocks and went to the very long beach. We walked onto the beach but did not see much sea glass, but kept heading north and there it was. Loads of glass all over the beach. A lot of it was green in color, but found a variety of brown, white and some greenish blue and one very small piece of the prized royal blue. The amount you see in the picture was collected in about an hour on the beach. 

Sea glass abounds on Crossing Rocks Beach.

 I wished I could have stayed longer, but the others, Al, Tom and Meg, were not into sea glass like I was, and we were getting hungry.

Beautiful Little Harbor where Pete[s Pub and Gallery are.

 Next we headed to Little Harbor where Pete's Pub is and the only restaurant in the south part of the island. We had been in there previously by boat but now by car. We had a great grouper sandwich, coleslaw and beans and rice, a typical Bahamian meal. 

We got into the gallery which houses the bronze castings of Pete and his father. Their castings are various places throughout the world, one being at the Vatican. They are beautiful but very pricey!

The gallery filled with bronze castings by Pete and son.

 After lunch we headed to a small settlement called Cherokee Sound. They don't even let you drive your car through because the streets are so narrow. You are to park your car and walk which is what we did. It is known for having the longest wooden dock in the Bahamas. It was constructed so that supply boats could come in, and they would be unloaded one wheelbarrow at a time! 

Longest wooden dock in the Bahamas.

 

Post office and library at Cherokee Sound.

The community had its library and post office in one building as well as it's own primary school. I have no idea where the older children would go to school because we never saw a secondary school. 

We had never seen them when they are yellow.

The coconut palm trees here were really loaded with more coconuts than we had ever seen on one tree.

That's a lot of coconuts!

There was really not much between the places we stopped except pine forests and scrub bushes. There were two more settlements further south, one being Hole in the Wall. We decided it wasn't worth traveling another hour or more to see those tiny places so we turned around and headed to Treasure Cay which was north of Marsh Harbor. Here there is a huge resort with marina, condos, and homes. We did not stay long because it was close to 6PM and it had been a long day but an enjoyable one.

Treasure Cay marina.

We hope to possibly get through the Whale on Monday and cross over on Thursday, April 3, 2014 if the weather that is predicted holds true.