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April 16^th, 2011

Our good friends from Oklahoma, Danny and Marilyn Goss (M/V Holiday) arrived at Staniel Cay to join us for a portion of our cruise.    It was a thrill to see them again.  What a wonderful couple.  That is the airport terminal in the background.  The "Airline" plane was a little twin engine Cessna.  We had parked our dinghy about 2 blocks from the airport so after a short walk we boated about 2 miles to Solitaire and started happy hour while Nancy and Marilyn cooked 1-1/2 pound lobster tails for everyone, plus peas n' rice and coleslaw. Yum.

The next day we fed the swimming pigs    and went on a snorkel trip.    I think that Marilyn really liked to snorkel because she would put her mask and fins on any chance she could.  We found lots of sand dollars, some conch rollers and even a King Helmet.

Next stop was Bitter Guana Cay to look at the Iguanas     and do some beach combing,  Danny was doing quite well finding sea beans.  Marilyn picked up one that day and Danny found 3 (I think).  Along with the sea beans, we went back to the boat with a nice bag of sea glass and shells.

 Next day we went to Black Point  Settlement on Great Guana Cay.  It was a chance for Danny and Marilyn to see and meet people in a typical Bahamian settlement.  We walked down the main street and saw the old original homes and the new ones, met and talked to the locals who are very friendly.  We chatted with the Browns - a husband and wife who both plait palms - and with Lorraine's mother, Miss Pamela who showed us the pigeon peas she grows in her yard and gave us a loaf of her wonderful coconut bread. At the end of the street is Regatta Point where we looked out over the Bahama Banks and the harbor.    After that, it was time for refreshments.    We stopped at Lorraine's Cafe for some soda and made reservations for dinner that evening.  Marilyn and Nancy enjoyed cracked conch, Jim dined on fish, and Danny had a cheeseburger and fries. The following morning, we explored all the beaches north of town and came home with a jar full of sea glass.

The next day we headed to Sampson Cay.  Among Sampson Cay's attractions are fresh groceries, sharks and mega yachts. One boat was so big that even it's tender had thrust reversers and a dinghy.     We strolled on some of the paths and then stopped by the bar for rum punch.

Continuing north, we moved on to the Exuma Land and Sea Park. (You might notice that we've not mentioned the word "sail" for quite some time -  with winds at 5 knots of less, Solitaire the sloop has become Solitaire the Trawler.    After walking the beach and viewing the whale skeleton, we went to the top of Boo Boo Hill and hiked the trails.  Later that day, we snorkeled several of the coral heads in the park and saw an amazing variety of reef fish.

The next day, we motored to Shroud Cay and explored the interior of the little Island by dinghy.  Shroud has a mangrove filled interior that is just fascinating.    We floated east on Sanctuary Creek and were awe-struck.  We ended up on a beautiful ocean beach.     The water was warm and inviting so we all took a swim.

We got up early the next morning for our trip to Nassau where we are at the same marina where we did our repairs nearly three months ago.  With Danny and Marilyn in tow we hopped on a city bus ($1.25) and headed downtown.  Nancy was tracking our travels through town on a map while I watched about 5 accidents almost occur.  Our bus driver was not a timid person.  At some time during our harrowing bus ride Nancy glanced up from her charts and yelled at the driver to "NEXT STOP".  (She was the only one who wasn't a nervous wreck). We got off the bus about 2 blocks west of our destination.  Nancy could not have timed that more perfectly.  We were going to see the Queens Staircase and Fort Fincastle.  The 65-step staircase was carved out of rock by slaves using a hammer and chisel.     The fort was built to protect Nassau and was never fired upon.  It is built in the shape of a paddlewheel boat.      From there we went (down-hill) past the Princess Margaret hospital and to the government buildings of Parliament, Supreme Court, and Police Headquarters. Then it was on to the waterfront and the old straw market.    Good deals could be found everywhere and Marilyn found all sorts of goodies to bring back to her grandchildren.

Instead of taking another death-defying bus ride, we decided to walk back to our marina.  On the way we visited the Slave Museum (fascinating and very sad), stopped at the Green Parrott bar for lunch, and then wandered among the stalls at Potters Cay looking for dinner.  Potters Cay is a small island located between and under one of the two bridges leading to Paradise Island where the Atlantis Hotel complex is located.  The rich and the shameless are on Paradise Island (AKA Hog Cay). The working class go to Potters Cay for the farmers market, conch salad stands, and fresh seafood.    We love it.  We picked up some fresh snapper for dinner that night.  Our friends had a whirl-wind tour of our favorite spots in the Exuma Islands of the  Bahamas. 

Its been a good winter, but its time for us to head home.  We have had a wonderful time gunk holing and exploring new sites. The winter was made even more special thanks to the visit from Danny and Marilyn.  Tomorrow we'll do some laundry and secure everything on board.  Monday, we'll head across the Northwestern Providence Channel.  If the weather forecast is accurate, we'll spend the night in the Berry Islands and continue across the gulf stream Tuesday night. Our estimated arrival time in Vero Beach, Florida is noon on Wednesday. Our next post will be from stateside.  Bye.