Sherry's 50th Birthday

Black Point, Exuma, Bahamas  (January 13-17, 2013)

Black Point was probably our favorite stop so far.    The anchorage was quiet and calm.  Everything we needed was in close proximity to the anchorage.  We had great company with David and Pat from s/v Sanctuary.  We would dinghy up to the local dock, tie off and walk a short distance to wherever it was we wanted to be. 

Water is free!  For those of you who have not been to the Bahamas, water is at a premium.  It is not uncommon to pay 40-50 cents per gallon for RO water from a roadside spigot.  Yes, a spigot, just like the one you hook your water hose to in the yard.  Here at Black Point, it is free.

Laundrymats also seem to be a luxury in the Bahamas and the cost can be steep, from $2.75 - $5.00 to wash a load and the same to dry.  Black Point’s Rockside Laundry is rumored to be the best in the Bahamas; we agree.  Not only is it very clean, but Ida Patton serves coffee, carrot cake and conch fritters while you enjoy free WiFi and wait for your laundry.  There is a small store inside for whatever you may have left on the boat.

Black Point’s Rockside Laundry

Lorraine’s Café is located next door to the Rockside Laundry so many just drop in a few loads of laundry and head to Lorraine’s for lunch.  Yes, more free WiFi.

Lorraine’s Café

There are no malls here and most every store, be it a grocery store, bread store, auto parts store, are all part of someone’s home.

Adderly’s Friendly Store

Did I say bread store?  Do not miss a loaf of Corene's coconut bread.  Her bread store is the house next door to DeShaMon’s Restaurant and has the BEST coconut bread.  It actually has a swirl of coconut in the middle of every slice.  Most would say $6.00 a loaf is expensive, but we have come somewhat accustomed to the prices here.

When we finished our daily chores, it was time to relax with fellow cruisers at Scorpio’s Restaurant & Bar, while enjoying more free WiFi.

One night, Jim left his backpack at Scorpio’s bar.  As soon as someone noticed it, they were hailing us on the VHF and even met us at the local dock to return it at 11:00 at night.

Scorpio’s Restaurant & Bar

I celebrated my 50^th birthday with Jim, David and Pat over an outstanding lobster dinner at DeShaMon’s Restaurant.  I prefer a heavier red wine; however, we were served a light sweet red wine, Lamothe’s Parrot Mellow Reserve, which I fell in love with.  Not only is it very pleasing, it is super cheap in the islands.  So cheap, I now have a case stowed on the boat.  A lot of the sailing community are wine drinkers and with all the happy hours, finding a cheap wine most like was a win-win for me and having some to share.  Enough about the wine and back to my birthday…am I really 50?  Hmmm, I don’t feel 50, but that is what the calendar reflects.

 

Dinner was followed by a surprise birthday cake from David & Pat.  It was over the top yummy and topped with a chocolate dipped strawberry. I was in heaven!!!

The local residents at Black Point are very friendly, everyone says “Hello” providing  a warm welcome to the sailing community. 

The town is located near the northern tip of Great Guana Cay and very much has the feel of the mid to late 60s in the United States.  Most of the homes are cinderblock or stucco and are painted in pastel pinks, blues and greens.  The children all play outside on skateboard scooters and bicycles while the ladies stand in the street to talk.  When the sun goes down, everyone goes home.

Brings back happy memories of my childhood...a long time ago.

Staniel Cay/Big Majors

Our arrival at Staniel Cay Yacht Marina met us with quite a docking challenge of parallel parking between two closely positioned sailboats.  Jim pulled a really cool maneuver to get us to the dock, followed by our friends on s/v Sanctuary being ready to grab the dock lines.  Then, it was time for a few drinks with the locals.  Although hailed as a yacht club, it is not what we, in the states, would call a yacht club.  There was room for no more than 6 boats (3 of which turned out to be mega yachts) along with a fuel dock.  The bar was quaint with good eats and, after a few Kalik’s, we decided to explore the town.

Staniel Cay Marina Dinghy Dock

 Marina Restaurant & Bar

 Six Friends enjoying Happy Hour

We understood we would be able to provision in town and that laundry facilities were available.  We had also heard it was the place to get some great Bahamian bread.  Well, at least the bread part panned out.  The cinnamon and coconut breads were outstanding!  Upon exploring the local grocery store, we found we would have to wait 3 days for the mail boat, which also carries groceries to the island, to arrive.  The grocery store is actually the back portion of someone’s home and the local bakery is in the kitchen of the “little yellow house on the hill.”  This all made for some interesting moments.  Upon our arrival at the bakery, the lady’s children were all seated at the kitchen table busy doing their homework.  The laundry facilities did not pan out as the charge was $10 per load to wash and dry.  The dryer was a clothes line so getting your laundry returned depended on how many days it took them to dry on the line.  But, I do love the smell of clothes dried in the fresh air.

We slept with a large school of sharks under the boat, but as they were nurse sharks, there was no need for concern.  The underwater lighting provided a great view of our visitors.

Nurse Shark under our Boat

A closer look

Day two, we opted to forgo the high end dock fees and moved to the anchorage located at Big Majors, which provided some of the best anchoring we have experienced so far in the Bahamas and was located just off the beach where the swimming pigs live.

Sightseeing Tour coming to feed the Swimming Pigs

Pigs and Roosters...Oh My! 

Not a Swimming Pig, but he was there looking for a handout too

Pat and David, watch out for hitchhikers!!!

Three Little Pigs (okay, maybe not so little)

We checked out the swimming pigs, but had to be careful as they wanted to join us in the dinghy.  Having a soft sided dinghy, we waited further back and let other overly eager spectators have the front row opportunity.   After watching the pigs for a few minutes, we made our way to Thunderball Grotto for some snorkeling adventure.  Adventure it was!  So grand, we grabbed the GoPro and made another skin dive the next day.  Snorkeling the Grotto was fabulous and snorkeling the backside of the Grotto was even better.  An unforgettable experience!  The Grotto remains a great tourist attraction as the James Bond movies, "Thunderball" and "Never Say Never Again," were filmed there.  As few venture to the backside of the Grotto, the undisturbed and abundant coral and sea life made for an incredible dive for those adventurous enough to take the dive through the swim through.  And, we are glad we did!

It's a seal!  No, it's Sherry surfacing from a swim through

Swimming with the Fishes

If we hadn't had enough excitement, we went to a bonfire on the beach with approximately 40-50 other boaters.  The night was complete with tiki torches, rum punch, wine, a blazing fire and lots of fun hanging out with people who share our love of sailing.

Not expecting to see our friends, Max and Tracey on m/v SandiBeach, until we reached Georgetown, we were pleasantly surprised when they unexpectedly returned to Big Major one evening.  This was followed by a few more fun nights of dinners and drinks with them and our friends from s/v Sanctuary, David and Pat aboard the beautiful m/v SandiBeach.  We were then off to Black Point Settlement, as Max and Tracey had just returned from there and highly recommended it as our next “don’t miss” anchorage.

Tracey and Max Arrive

 These two are always smiling, let the fun begin!