Post #63:The Exumas!

Monday, February 8 to Wednesday, February 10, 2021

In answer to his sons’ repeated query, “Are we there yet?” our friend Bill used to always reply, “We’re never there. We’re always here.”

We are here!! The Exumas are a string of 365 small islands that extend 130+ miles south from Nassau to Little Exuma Cay. Most of the islands and cays are uninhabited but some are privately owned, some the site of exclusive resorts and upscale marinas, and some are part of the the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park (ECLSP), the first land and marine preserve in the world.  Founded in 1958, the Bahamians take the responsibility of preserving their national resources very seriously. The Park is a “no-take” zone, meaning nothing —alive or dead—may be taken from the sea or land within the Park’s boundaries.  We plan to travel there in a few days.

But our first stop was Highbourne Cay, a privately-owned cay with rental “cottages,” a marina filled with large motor yachts, a notoriously pricey small grocery store, spa, and a renowned, very expensive, restaurant.

What mattered most to us, though, was access to fresh water, fuel, and a calm anchorage.  We lowered our dinghy and headed into the marina to check it out and to purchase some fresh vegetables. We had to show our Bahamian Health Visas to the dockhand before we were allowed to disembark and masks were mandatory. But if we wanted to explore the island, we’d have to pay a “resort fee” of $25 per person. Here’s the view from the porch outside the store. David just offered to “just wait outside here for a bit” rather than go shopping.

Prices at the ship store confirmed Highbourne’s reputation for being twice as expensive as Whole Foods: $5.85 for a pint of cherry tomatoes, $8.50 for a dozen eggs and $11.68 for a head of cauliflower.  (It better be delicious!) But some items were surprisingly reasonable: 76 cents for a green pepper and $4.39 for three large fresh tomatoes.  It sure beat heading into Nassau, though. When Lesley and Gary joined up with us again they said that every store they went into in Nassau (even grocery stores) had security guards and many required that you be buzzed in and out.  Gary said it was like NYC in the ‘70s.  Without the cruise ships and resort tourists, Nassau’s economy is in tatters.

On Tuesday afternoon the dinghy fleet headed north to Allens Cay to meet the endangered Bahamian Rock Iguanas on Iguana Beach.  Actually, they came right down to meet us since they have become so accustomed to being fed by visitors.  We didn’t bring any food for them as we don’t think it a good practice for wild animals to become dependent on humans.  I struggled with whether to say anything to the other families but decided to keep my counsel.

That evening when we gathered on the beach we met Hugo and Alicia who had sailed down from Quebec. Hugo worked for Cirque du Soleil and was unemployed for the foreseeable future so they decided to “live their lives” and take off for warmer climes.  He performed a back flip from a standing still position to much applause from our crowd and then Alicia climbed up him in two steps and stood on top of his shoulders in what seemed about 3 seconds!  Again we clapped and cheered and Hugo boasted, “It’s easy!  I can teach any one of you how to do this in just 5 minutes.  C’mon try it!”  Rebecca, mother of 3 teenagers and the youngest (44), fittest of our group, was game.  With just a bit of coaching, she rose to new heights and is now threatening to leave her family and join the circus!

On the way back to our boats, there was a fireball in the sky, rising off into the heavens! The next day we learned (thank you, Google) that it was the launch of a ballistic missile from a Trident submarine! It seems that the phenomenally deep water of the Tongue of the Ocean not only attracts vast numbers of fish, but also the U.S. Navy and the Royal Navy, who jointly test undersea warfare systems in the area.  Based on the east side of Andros, the Atlantic Underwater Test and Evaluation Center (AUTEC), according to our Crusing Guide, “manifests itself in an array of buoys, strange towers, forbidden harbors and communications masts.  Other than using AUTEC facilities as landmarks, street them as top-secret and stay away.”

On Wednesday we left early to motorsail the 10 miles of thin water to Norman’s Cay, often on the lookout for coral heads and shifting sandbars. Norman’s has quite a reputation as it was the private island of Carlos Lehder, a kingpin in the Medellin drug cartel.  Working for Pablo Escobar, Lehder and his crew (modern pirates?) lived the high life until the DEA began cracking down in the early 1980s and Lehder was extradited to the U.S.  We snorkeled around the wreckage of a C-46 WWII vintage drug-running plane that had problems landing on the nearby 4700’ runway. Fish swam in and out of the fuselage and coral is growing on the propellers and broken wings.  (Later I’ll try to post some photos taken by one of our sailing buddies.)

We ended the day on a deserted beach as the sun slowly set in the west.