March 2017 - Boat Life Larks

March 14-19th, 2017

We travelled to Warderick Wells in the Exuma Land and Sea Park and picked up a mooring in the Emerald Rock mooring field. The Exuma Land and Sea Park is part of the Bahamas National Trust and extends about 4 miles north of Warderick Wells and 4 miles south. The park is a no-take zone: no fishing, no shelling. It really is a beautiful paradise worth preserving.

Our first two nights at Emerald Rock were really rocky as we were exposed to west winds. We felt a little resentful towards the folks in the north mooring field and the Hog Cay "Pirate's Lair" moorings, who were completely protected. As the weather improved, we grew to really love the Emerald Rock area.

Emerald Rocks Mooring field, Warderick Wells, Exuma Land and Sea Park, Bahamas

Emerald Rock Mooring field vista

We had access to dozens of beaches, and because Emerald Rock seems to be considered the slums, we always had every beach to ourselves! This was really great for Hastings and the lack of current meant we could explore by paddle board.

Loyalist Beach, Warderick Wells, Exuma Land and Sea Park, Bahamas

Tons of beaches for Hastings to enjoy!

Starfish at Loyalist Beach

Sailboat at anchor at sunset, Emerald Rock, Exuma Land and Sea Park

Emerald Rock at sunset

Hog's Cay has 6 moorings and is great in west winds. No one was here on this day as the winds shifted to the north east and caused breaking waves at the entrance to the mooring field. It's a pretty area with plenty of coral for snorkeling. Warderick Wells has a trail system and you can access these trails from any of the beaches and mooring fields.

Hog's Cay Mooring Field, Exuma Land and Sea Park

Hog's Cay Warderick Wells Mooring Field

The north mooring field is the primo spot. You can call Exuma Park on Channel 09 one day ahead to request a mooring. In the busy season, there are more boats requesting moorings than there are slips available. The north field is truly beautiful - just a sliver of dark blue navigable water amongst sand bars. This field does have a crazy current and it is very tight to maneuver in.

Warderick Wells mooring field, Exuma Land and Sea Park

Warderick Wells north mooring field

Warderick Wells North Mooring Field

Exuma Land and Sea Park office dock

Beautiful Underwater Photos
Yes, please! Oh, wait. We had three cameras capable of taking underwater photos. We had a Canon S100 with underwater housing. It died and despite repeated re-builds refuses to live again. We switched to a Sony TX-5 that is waterproof to 10 feet that I used for kayaking in Florida. Well, on a snorkel around Emerald Rock it died it's final death. Sometimes Matt gets a far away look in his eyes and I know he is thinking about Amazon Prime, God's gift to America, but not the Bahamas. He wants us to have some suffering to keep us humble. We still have the GoPro, but it's fish eye makes the sharks all seem very far away.

Check back on Sunday for photos from the trails of Warderick Wells.

Do you have an Amazon Prime addiction? How many back-up cameras do you have?

Matt's Marvelous Mouthwatering Morsels: Bimini Bread and Cafe Aux Parents

Apologies, dear readers, for the extended culinary hiatus. We have been incommunicado in the wild for weeks and weeks. We have returned to civilization to restock the larder and use the internet. It seems like a good time to share our new Bahamian tea time tradition (which we usually opt to make a coffee time, but saying that loses the happy vibes that the words “tea time” present)!

The concept of tea time has always fascinated me. It seems like some sort of Anglo siesta, combined with a workplace smoke break. But, instead of napping and cancer, you get sweet pastries and delicious caffeine! Yum!

Bimini Bread rolls. Yum!

Matt’s Bimini Bread Rolls

Perfect for tea time, makes 6 small rolls

1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees Fahrenheit)

1 1/2 teaspoons yeast

1 teaspoon sugar

1 1/2 cups flour (50/50 All Purpose/Whole Wheat mix preferred, but equally good with 100% of either)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil

1/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Proof yeast in 1/2 cup warm water with 1 teaspoon of sugar. Mix flour, brown sugar, salt, and coconut in a large bowl. Add yeast mixture, oil and vanilla. Mix with a wooden spoon for 5 minutes. Dough will be very sticky but will not cling to sides of bowl. Allow to rise for 30 min-1 hour. Chef’s note: this dough doesn’t really rise, and it makes a very dense roll. I don’t know why. Divide into balls and bake 375 degrees until GBD, approximately 10 minutes.

Supporting the Bahamas National Trust even!

Cafe Aux Parents

Espresso

Evaporated Milk

Brown Sugar

Make the espresso via your preferred method. A stove top percolator would be traditional. On board we love our Aeropress! Add as much evap and sugar to taste. To be very authentic, drink through a glass straw. Yum! Many thanks to Lucy’s Mum and Dad who introduced us to this delicacy.

And there you have it, a civilized, tropical tea time anywhere you may be. Cheers!

March 10th & 11th, 2017

We left the Whale and Bird Cay anchorage and almost immediately were in 9,900 feet of water. That's a lot of water! Matt was really hoping something could break because the 2,700 feet of water he swam in over the Gulf Stream wasn't deep or scary enough.

Imagine our excitement when we caught a HUGE Mahi-Mahi. The fish didn't want to be dinner, and on the fourth jump out of the water our line snapped and we lost the lure. We didn't exactly know how to land and take care of a fish that size; we were almost relieved!

9,900 feet deep! That's like 2 miles straight down!

We arrived at West Bay on New Providence Island and were blown away at how pretty it was! New Providence is the main island, home to Nassau, and I had just assumed the whole island was industrial. The water was divine and there was a National Trust park with beach access for dog walking, right in the anchorage.

West Bay New Providence Island Anchorage

West Bay Anchorage

Sunset with sailboats at anchor in West Bay, New Providence Island

West Bay anchorage at sunset, New Providence Island

We were up early the next morning to travel across the Great Bahama Bank to Highbourne Cay, our landing point in the Exumas. Initially disappointed that there was no wind to sail by, we were soon amazed by the flat calm water. We were literally counting starfish and ripples of sand, for 47 miles!

Starfish in crystal clear Grand Bahama Banks water

Counting Starfish off the bow

Matt flew the drone while we motored to practice landing it while moving at 6 knots. It's pretty tricky, but Matt's a pro.

Matt flying the drone underway

The water was so spectacular we couldn't resist stopping the engines and having a drift swim party in the middle of nowhere.

Jump!

It's shallow, especially compared to the 9,900 feet of water we saw the day before. We had mostly 15 feet, with a few 8 foot depths. At low tide, you really have to look out for large coral heads that could damage the keels. We didn't see anything too big - and those we saw were easy to spot on this crazy clear day.

Coral heads, Grand Bahama Banks

Shadow in the sand

Our route: two completely different bodies of water, one after the other. What larks!

Our Route: Berry Islands to New Providence to Highbourne Cay

Do you like to fish? Any tips on how to actually reel the fish in? (Maybe we should replace Matt's grandfather's 50 year old line made for river fly fishing?)

February 26, 2017: Hastings's Log: Hoffman's Cay, Berry Islands

Are you ready for an adventure? My humans ask. Ugh, No. These adventures are always terrible ideas and involve suffering and stupidity. They never bring snacks, but love to thrust tepid water in my face instead of jerky. Nope, "adventure" is not for me.

After all, they had already gotten me up at 7AM to drive the boat to a new location. I'm still recovering from that ordeal and wondering whether the new place has better smells or not. The boat isn't rolling in the swell anymore, so I can finally get a good nap.

I continue napping, hoping that they will see the errors of their ways and join me for a nap instead of risking elevenses by departing the boat at 10AM for a "quick walk". Sadly, they are determined to go and I reluctantly make my way to the escape shuttle. A leader is needed to make sure we can get back by elevenses. I remind them to pack the jerky for snacks, but they choose to mis-interpret. "Yes, your water is right here, Hastings". Sigh.

I find the trail immediately, due to it's trail-i-ness. It's dark back here, and shady, and there are so many trees, all pressing in on you, so many leaves rustling ahead us as creatures scatter further into the woods. It's actually quite fun, this beginning bit, this leading, this marching off into the unknown. "Slow down, Hastings - you are dragging me into spider's webs", a human says. I speed up.

The Trail

We come to a fork in the trail. "Let's go right", I say. "I think the guidebook says left" the humans say. So left we go. This part of the trail is even more overgrown, and I have to navigate felled branches. At one point, a thorny vine gets caught in my ear! We arrive - at a barren, dead end. Typical. Jerky is needed, but water is offered. I lead back to the correct fork and march on, ignoring concerns about spiders.

We arrived at a clearing and there was a very boring lake thing below. The humans insisted on staring at the lake thing before acquiescing to my forward demands.

The Very Boring Blue Hole

I led us down the path and found a perfect cave to lay in. The good thing about the Bahamas is all the personal caves. They smell glorious and have healing mud. They are dark and cool. They are perfect. It was lovely, until we all became worried about elevenses.

Leading the way

I love a good cave!

"Which way back, Hastings?" Seriously, now you ask my opinion?

"I guess this way - it smells the best".

I led the march - running through the bushes, un-afraid of spiders and lizards and rustles in the distance. The beach! I found the beach! I love the smell of seaweed, so good to roll in and coat yourself in the sweet perfume!

"This is a good beach, Hastings, but our boat is in the other cove!"

They decide to walk around the shore. I'd call it a rocky shore, or a limestone shore, but it was really an ancient, jagged, death spike shore. I was carried. Then it was decided they would wade through the beach.

"You know I'm not swimming to our boat, right?".

"I will carry you". Humiliating, but necessary. Doggy paddling is not for gentlemen.

Being carried to nowhere

Soon, the water was up to their waists, but the end of the cove was near. We rounded the point - into another cove!

We turned around, climbed out of the water and back onto the death spikes and marched back to the wrong beach. I showed them the trail back to the lake, and back to the correct beach. What an ordeal. We made it back to Independence, a full 30 minutes late for elevenses. These adventures are the worst!

Finally made it back to the right cove!

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