Friday, December 11, 2015

The Happenings in the Berry Islands

Since our first day in the Berry Islands it has been raining five out of six days. Everyone who cruises regularly said they have never had so much rain and cloudy weather. Thank heaven for the Honda Generator because we are not getting much solar.

Al and Corbett 
The one day it did not rain, we borrowed the bikes from the marina and went into the small village on Great Harbour Cay. Robin, who was a teacher also, likes to check out the schools. 

R.N. Gomez School for All Ages






It was a Saturday so we did not expect for anyone to be there, but we were wrong. 
Secondary students voluntary came to be trained.
There was a program similar to ROTC going on with about 30 secondary students.
Robin talking to the business teacher.



There were also two teachers there. Robin got talking to them and so did the rest of us. 

Al and I with math teacher and former student














We learned from the math teacher and business and computer teacher that there are about 170 students in the school. Their scores rank quite well and the community feel that education is important. The students doing the ROTC -like program are all their voluntarily. They do several days after school and on Saturday. The discipline is good for them and helps keep them out of trouble. We also met the principal who came by and a pastor who works with the community. It was interesting to talk to the local people.
The principal is in yellow, the pastor in blue.  They showed up, I guess word got around that we were there!

The unloading of supplies at public dock.
The school was near the public dock where the supply boat comes in. They were unloading the supplies people had purchased and just put them in the parking lot with their name on it. They were responsible to come and get it. I cannot see that working too well in the US!

After lunch we, Robin and Corbett and two other cruisers decided to take our dinghies and ride into the mangroves where there is a path through the water that a dinghy can go. 
Corbett and Robin following us through the mangroves.

 I felt like Katherine Hepburn in the African Queen going through the close flora. We were looking for turtles and other wild life. We saw one turtle, one shark and a few small fish but that was about it. It was neat when it finally opened up to beautiful turquoise water where there was a pretty white beach with shells.

The shelling beach.

The shells I would have liked to have!
I got all excited about the small conch but they all had a dying creature inside which stunk beyond belief. I was not taking them back to our boat. A picture is good enough.!

That evening the marina had set up a dinner for the cruisers. We placed our order early in the day and at 6PM we went to the little cafe at the end of the dock where they had set the tables for us. The food was quite good and it was a great way to get to know other cruisers. We happened to sit with a couple who had a 59' Hinkley. They invited us for a drink on their boat. It was a beautiful boat and they were a nice couple but their hidden agenda was to try and find crew to help take the boat in May to the Mediterranean. Crossing the Atlantic is not our thing, so we declined and so did Robin and Corbett.

After three days in the marina we wanted a change of scenery so we went outside the harbor to anchor where it was nice and flat. We wanted to go on the other side of Great Harbor Cay to Devil Hoffman but it was too blustery so we stayed put. We tried to do some conking but had no luck. The only thing we saw was a large starfish.
These starfish are about 10-12 inches across.

Corbett and Robin came over for a shared dinner of Shepherd's Pie, Salad and Dessert. Afterward we played Sequence and once again the guys won. I swear they have a deck of jacks hidden under the table!!!

The next day was suitable for going to Devil Hoffman so we left and had to pass Little Stirrup Cay now called Cocoa Cay. This is where some cruise ships, like the Disney Cruise line come in for their passengers to play. 
Little Stirrup Cay renamed Cocoa Cay for the cruise lines.

next cay is Great Stirrup and the Norwegian Get Away was anchored there. 
That is some paint job on the Norwegian Get Away
 Although it was gray and ugly looking, thousands of people were over on the cay pretending to sunbathe and to have fun. You can see the tenders they use to get the people there. It was a shame they had picked the rainiest week in the Bahamas to come.
The tenders along side of the ship.
We were about a half hour from our destination and it began to rain again but the most wind we saw was 21 knots. 
You could see the rain coming!
 I know it would had looked a lot prettier between Hoffman Cay and Devil's Cay in the sunlight but it still was great being the only two boats there. It continued to rain the rest of the evening and night.

Although it was gray and cloudy with drizzle the next day, Al and I put on our swimsuits with our diving tops and headed out to do some exploring .
Al at the blue hole on Hoffman's Cay.
There was a blue hole on Hoffman's Cay so we headed to the beach, found the path and hiked to it. Due to the gray skies, it wasn't very impressive but the shelf of rock around it was interesting. However, the mosquitoes sent us on our way quite quickly. (With all this rain, we know the mosquitoes are going to be bad this year.)
Under the ledge of rock.  If you look closely, the one rock to my right is separated from the rock below.



He is under the water, that is how clear it it!
We explored a few more beaches. We saw this white crab as we came into one. You would think it was dead, but it definitely was alive. This is a perfect example of camouflaging into your surroundings! A ray was also just lazing around in the shallow waters. 
A stingray taking a nap.






We also found a” cruiser's yacht club.” The palm trees with the make shift hammock is just what you picture the Bahamas to have. 
A cruiser's yacht club.  There was a fire pit nearby too.

Although it was a drab gray day, it still was a pretty place.
Gray days in Bahamas are better than gray days up north.

Later we headed over to Cookie Monster for a great stir fry, salad and the apple crisp I baked that afternoon.

The sun came back the next day so we headed over to Flo's on Little Harbor Cay for a late lunch.
My captain taking me to lunch!
Flo's on the hill.
Flo died a few years ago but Chester and Edna now work the restaurant.  They serve a lot of conch as you can see by the piles of conch shells.
Mounds and mounds of shells.
Chester greeted us at the bar area, more than ready to hand us a cold drink.
Chester getting us a cold one.
Edna mixing up conch fritter batter.


















We had conch fritters first for an appetizer and they were delicious!
Yummy conch fritters.!




Then Al and I had the fish dinner with slaw and beans and rice, while Robin and Corbett had cracked conch for their main dish.  All were very good.
Robin and Corbett enjoying Flo's.










After lunch we went outside to enjoy the ambiance of Flo's.  There were ducks all around.  This one looked like he was trying to decide whether or not to eat this caterpillar, but none of them touched it.  It must not had been very tasty!
Should I or shouldn't I, that is the question!
This is what we came to. 
Roosters are a must in the Bahamas!
There were roosters and even peacocks wandering the grounds.  We decided to hike Chester's so called highway, a path through the brush to the other side.  The waves crashing on the rocks was a pretty sights to see.
Blue Heaven enjoying the sun,.
Afterwards we headed back to our boats to later enjoy the beautiful sunset.
A sight to behold, but no green flash!

What a way to end our stay in the Berry Islands!

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