It has been a long winter of scheduling our sailing around
the continual frontal passages. It
appears we have a period of settled weather, so we leave Rock Sound and begin
the trek further north. After a pleasant
reach back to Governor’s Harbor, we leave the next morning for Alabaster Bay. This pretty section of crescent
beach is anchored by the upscale Coco deMamas
Resort. We head in for lunch but find
that the resort has gone out of business, a turn of events that isn’t too
unusual here in the Bahamian
Out Islands.
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| The now closed resort at Alabaster Bay |
Instead of lunch, we take a long stroll
through the shallow waters along the beach.
The water is crystal clear and sea life abounds. One family has discovered a cache of sand
dollars while we enjoy watching all the minnows darting through the knee deep
water.
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| Interesting patterns of fish and shadows over the sand bottom |
Our next hop takes us past the picturesque Glass Window
where only a narrow section of rock separates the ocean waters from the banks
were are traversing.
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| The Glass Window from a distance - water levels can differ by up to two feet between the banks and the ocean. A bridge takes traffic over this narrow sliver of rock |
The sail is typically delightful, gliding over turquoise
flat waters in mild trade winds from the east.
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| Glorious sailing in the lee of Eleuthera |
We time our arrival to coincide
with slack tide at Current Cut, a narrow passage between Eleuthera proper and
an outlying cay. If you haven’t figured
correctly you could find yourself bucking currents of up to five knots. We have an easy passage through and drop
anchor off of Meeks Patch, a cay about two miles from the town of Spanish Wells. We have a bumpy and wet ride in the dinghy
into Spanish Wells. We can’t take the boat in at this point of the day as the
water is only passable at high tide for vessels of our draft.
Spanish Wells has been described as very different from the
typical Bahamian settlement. And now we
know why. It is a working town invested
heavily in fishing. The harbor is lined
with well maintained fishing boats, but there is very little other
infrastructure for tourists.
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| The fishing fleet tied up in Spanish Wells |
After tying
up the dinghy we climb up a high wall and walk through the town. The houses are remarkably well kept and large
by typical out island standards. Obviously the residents are very successful. They are mostly white Bahamians descended
from the Eleutheran Adventurers, a group which came from England to avoid religious persecution shortly
after the Pilgrims settled in New England. They struggled to survive in this challenging
environment, and their work ethic is still obvious today.
Once again, weather is dictating our plans. Another strong front is predicted to come
through, so we make the decision to take the boat to Harbor Island,
about ten miles east of Spanish Wells.
The harbor will afford us good protection from the clocking winds, but
getting there is another issue. We hire
Bandit as our pilot for the trip. At the
appointed time he arrives in his fiberglass skiff at our boat which is anchored
on the west side of Spanish Wells. After
tying up behind Exuberant he climbs aboard and takes over the helm. Getting in and out of Spanish Wells requires
high tide, and once we clear the harbor we need to deal with an intricate passage
through dangerous reefs.
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| Leaving Spanish Wells for the beginning of the Devil's Backbone |
Ocean swells break right next to the narrow channels
between reef and rocky shoreline. It is
a daunting trip, but we do have an opportunity to chat with Bandit, otherwise
known as Jock Morgan. He traces his family back to the original Eleutheran
Adventurers and has made a career of piloting and captaining boats. For a period of time, he even captained a
Matthews 52 that summered in Port Clinton, Ohio and wintered in Spanish Wells. We safely arrive at Harbor Island - pilots aren’t cheap but we feel it is money
well spent. Jock speeds back to Spanish
Wells where he will pick up another boat, this time most likely one of the
large luxury yachts that populate the marinas in Harbor Island.
Harbor
Island is quite different
from most of our stops in the out islands.
It is definitely an upscale tourist destination. The marinas are expensive and are filled with
large sport fishing boats and luxury motor yachts.
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| Some of the mega-yachts at Harbor Island - the one to the far left belongs to Denise Rich of the Clinton pardon fame. Sometimes you just can't resent the wealth when it is obtained illegally. She has now given up her US citizenship due to tax issues. |
There are only a few sailboats anchored off
the town in the “cheap seats”. We spend
around a week here, exploring the town and awaiting the bad weather. The bikes finally make it to shore to aid in
exploration and trips to the laundromat and grocery store. Despite the upscale
nature of Harbor Island,
the only coin laundry is in a Haitian refugee neighborhood, and it is probably
the most decrepit laundry we have seen in the Bahamas. Apparently, visitors either have laundries on
board their boats, or they use expensive wash and fold services.
Exploring the town is a delight. Along the harbor side there are century old
cottages and modern vacation villas.
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| Bougainvillea along the road in Harbor Island |
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| Cottages along a narrow road |
Water taxis come and go, and native fishing boats gather around the Fish
Fry area. Biking up and down the hills,
we arrive at the southern tip of the island, affording views down the length of
Eleuthera proper and out into the sapphire waters of the ocean. On the way, we stop at the “Haunted
House”.
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| The remains of the haunted house - it must have been spectacular in its time |
When Burt visited Harbor Island
with his parents years ago, this was a recently deserted mansion with
furnishing still intact and rumors of ghosts in residence. There was no other development nearby. Today, a marina is situated down the hill,
and the mansion is just a ruin with a remarkable view. A three mile pink sand
beach graces the eastern side of the island.
Here there are several large resorts with their rows of lounges and
beach umbrellas. We tuck in between
resorts and enjoy a day on the beach, interrupted by a gourmet lunch at the
well known Sip Sip Restaurant atop the dunes.
Locals say this beach is rated on of the top ten in the world, and they
may have a legitimate claim.
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| View of the beach from the deck of Sip Sip |
The anticipated frontal system arrives, and we are marooned
on our boat for two days with winds gusting into the thirties and several heavy
rain squalls. There is minimal activity in the harbor, skies are steel gray, and
the water is whipped up into a froth. We are living on a bucking bronco of a
boat, something that wouldn’t be recommended for those with a tendency for sea
sickness. It may be spring by the
calendar, but we are still awaiting the more typical settled weather of the
season.
