With a few weeks until our next visitor arrived at Staniel Cay, we had time to explore the area a bit more. The yacht club has loaner bicycles so we hopped aboard those and explored the southern, less inhabited part of the island. It felt good to explore a bit further and cover distances more than what we would normally walk. With laundry done, water tanks full, and provision lockers stocked, we headed south toward Black Point Settlement.
We met two other boats while at Warderick Wells and caught up with them again in Staniel. John and Lory aboard Sargo and David and Marcy aboard Trebuchet were also anchored near Black Point so we planned a potluck on the beach. Reed put together a small fire and we celebrated Lory’s birthday with a yummy cake that Marcy made. The next day, we walked the mile into town to explore and have lunch at Lorraine’s café, a hallmark stop for all cruisers in the Exumas. Ava discovered two adorable pit bull puppies near the café and spent over an hour just basking in the moment. She is so excited to get her own dog when we return to Seattle.
From Black Point, we sailed north to Bitter Guana Cay, home of the endangered Bahamian Iguana. They are quite large and not at all afraid of people. Their scale colors ranged from deep gray and green to orange, reds, and pinks. Reed would have liked one for a pet but Karrie had no problem using the fact that we would be arrested and kicked out of the country as reason for why we wouldn’t be bringing one aboard. The island also had stunning white cliffs that Reed climbed and explored with a boy he met from another boat.
Another front was expected so we anchored in a remote, protected bay just south of the Staniel Airport. It is quite shallow with large variations in depth over short distances so not many boats attempt it. We were actually aground at one point while at anchor but the rising tide floated us off.
Sargo and Trebuchet were also in the anchorage so it was fun to hang out with them while waiting for it to pass. Reed and Eric went spearfishing and got some lionfish. These fish are an invasive species in the Bahamas, with no natural predators, so hunting them is highly encouraged to prevent the reef devastation that they cause. However, careful handling is required as their spines are highly venomous. Once carefully cleaned (John on Sargo had special gloves just for that purpose), it made a tasty treat!
Our last few days before our next visitor were spent in the beautiful Pipe Creek area. There were only two other boats in the anchorage, both quite far away so for the first time since arriving in the Bahamas, we felt the solitude of the Exumas we had been searching for. The sand was deep so the anchor set well, even in the strong current and we didn’t worry about leaving the boat to explore. There was excellent snorkeling, exploring, and swimming. It was relaxing and remote. Ahhhh…
Thanks for following along and enjoy the post!
We met two other boats while at Warderick Wells and caught up with them again in Staniel. John and Lory aboard Sargo and David and Marcy aboard Trebuchet were also anchored near Black Point so we planned a potluck on the beach. Reed put together a small fire and we celebrated Lory’s birthday with a yummy cake that Marcy made. The next day, we walked the mile into town to explore and have lunch at Lorraine’s café, a hallmark stop for all cruisers in the Exumas. Ava discovered two adorable pit bull puppies near the café and spent over an hour just basking in the moment. She is so excited to get her own dog when we return to Seattle.
From Black Point, we sailed north to Bitter Guana Cay, home of the endangered Bahamian Iguana. They are quite large and not at all afraid of people. Their scale colors ranged from deep gray and green to orange, reds, and pinks. Reed would have liked one for a pet but Karrie had no problem using the fact that we would be arrested and kicked out of the country as reason for why we wouldn’t be bringing one aboard. The island also had stunning white cliffs that Reed climbed and explored with a boy he met from another boat.
Another front was expected so we anchored in a remote, protected bay just south of the Staniel Airport. It is quite shallow with large variations in depth over short distances so not many boats attempt it. We were actually aground at one point while at anchor but the rising tide floated us off.
Sargo and Trebuchet were also in the anchorage so it was fun to hang out with them while waiting for it to pass. Reed and Eric went spearfishing and got some lionfish. These fish are an invasive species in the Bahamas, with no natural predators, so hunting them is highly encouraged to prevent the reef devastation that they cause. However, careful handling is required as their spines are highly venomous. Once carefully cleaned (John on Sargo had special gloves just for that purpose), it made a tasty treat!
Our last few days before our next visitor were spent in the beautiful Pipe Creek area. There were only two other boats in the anchorage, both quite far away so for the first time since arriving in the Bahamas, we felt the solitude of the Exumas we had been searching for. The sand was deep so the anchor set well, even in the strong current and we didn’t worry about leaving the boat to explore. There was excellent snorkeling, exploring, and swimming. It was relaxing and remote. Ahhhh…
Thanks for following along and enjoy the post!