Post #76: Conception Island National Park

Thursday, March 18 to Sunday, March 21, 2021

We had time to visit one more island before needing to get back to Georgetown so we chose Conception, which the cruising guides call “the quintessential Bahamian wilderness. It offers idyllic pink sand beaches, clear turquoise waters, diving or snorkeling, and creek exploration by dinghy or kayak. You will probably see sharks and rays cruising through the anchorage.”  It was all true.  The whole uninhabited island is protected by the Bahamas National Trust and is, just like the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park, a no-take zone.

As we approached the bay, we radioed to the others behind us that there seemed to be a set of light blue-hulled boats all anchored.  We wondered if they were part of some club or tourist group affiliated with a large resort.  As we ventured closer, we realized they were all white-hulled boats (some of them familiar to us from previous anchorages) but the water was so clear and sun so bright that they reflected a lovely turquoise! I wish I could have captured the effect on camera.  Same with the clouds—at times the reflection off the water makes even puffy white clouds seem a shade of aquamarine.

Sarah and I each took out the inflatable paddle board for a bit of exercise, visiting the other boats near us. At one point I was in the water near the boat and Sarah calmly called out, “Mom, I think you should get back on the board.”  I had no idea what she was pointing to but it was big and dark and I did what she suggested—immediately.

Those with better fish identification skills than me said it was a very large barracuda.  Barracuda are gorgeous, famously fearsome, and usually they do no more than stare at you....menacingly.  Probably would have left me alone but I wasn’t sticking around to find out! 

We spent some time snorkeling the reefs but the highlight of our time on Conception was a dinghy trip up the creek. We saw many rays and conch along the sandy bottom.  I think if, left to our own devices, we would probably have just motored slowly along but since we were with the family on Pleiades, we joined them as they jumped right into the shallow water and surface-snorkeled while pulling along the dinghy, taking advantage of the current to simply drift along the creek bed.  And, wow, were we glad we jumped in, too! The water was as clear as a swimming pool so we witnessed lots of fish swimming around the roots of the mangroves,  swam through a blue hole, and kept an eye on the barracuda which kept staring at us, in turn. Further into the center of the island, the creek water deepened and turned a darker green.  This we had come to recognize as turtle habitat.  There were scores of them!  But we dubbed them “Turbo Turtles” cause they swam away like a shot as soon as we approached, even if only using oars.  We all agreed that they deserved their privacy and quietly returned back down the creek to the ocean, appreciating the spontaneous call to adventure that comes from traveling with teenagers.  Sometimes you just have to dive right in!

Our passage back to George Town on Sunday was quite the sail—over 40 miles with winds of 15-20 knots on the beam but it was the large swells from the north that lifted Onward some 6-8 feet every 12 seconds that truly gave us pause.  Up, up, up we would rise and then gently back down again, akin to the sensation of swinging back and forth on the playground swing set.  We passed by the white cliffs we had climbed to see the Christopher Columbus monument a few days ago.  And we were humbled by the crashing waves (seen in the video below) as those same rollers met the rocks and reefs that protect Great Exuma from the Atlantic.  It felt good to be back in the protected bays of Stocking Island.