Over the past several weeks we’ve witnessed gorgeous sunsets, many green flashes, walked on pristine beaches, enjoyed incredible meals and spent quality time with friends old and new. We almost always go out to watch the sun setting each evening.
There have been several west-facing days during mild cold fronts, which makes it fun to watch the colors of the sky as I’m starting to cook dinner.
There was also a super moon that was so bright, I even got up at 6:30 AM to get a photo, and then (going back to bed!) enjoyed it watching set outside our stateroom hatch. Living so close to nature is the best part of cruising and I’m relieved that it’s still something we do not take for granted after 11 years floating around.
Every chance we got over the past few weeks, we’ve hung out with Amanda, Cameron & the kids… no special agenda, just hanging at the house or beach, catching up, doing chores (yay for laundry!), and making memories. We also got in a fun boat day with their family visiting from the States.
A bonus in being anchored here for a while is that I’ve been able to revisit Susan’s yoga class twice a week in a lovely setting. I had gotten off of my daily yoga practice in the past year and had lost motivation practicing by myself as I’d done for the last several years. I went to a few make-shift classes in Brunswick marina last Fall, but it has been so refreshing to attend with an instructor and very friendly class. At last, I finally tested out the new cockpit with a yoga session and the space is perfect. No excuses!
On a calm weekend we took a little detour to Conception Island… along with a dozen other boats who had the same idea. The waters there are pristine that you really need to see to believe, crystal clear as the island rises up from thousands of feet to the surface.
We took in the views and checked out the mangrove river that runs through the middle of the island (best attempted at high tide).
We were looking forward to some water time! There were old reefs on the north of the island and plenty of structure under the clear waters, but we were pretty disappointed in finding minimal reef life ~ coral, plus the fish and critters that live around it. It wasn’t terribly different from our experience snorkeling in Conception and Rum Cays a few years ago.
I did come across a friendly Nassau grouper who was not very shy. Without shallow banks or any other extended aquatic platform, this isolated island lacks intricate reef life and likely supports more of a pelagic environment at the drop-off.
Back on Reach, we had a few visits from a nurse and lemon shark underneath the shade of our boat.
We again shared an anchorage with Tom & Anita (Lone Star), former Connecticut boat-neighbors from our w*rking days, in Conception Island, and later back in Long Island.
They had never toured the southern end of the island, so off we went!
We first went to check out the old Spanish era church and "shrimp hole”, a hidden, fresh water grotto.
I got a thrill in an unexpected encounter with an amazing underwater photographer from Nassau doing a photo shoot, who’s work I’ve long admired on-line. We left André and his crew to do their thing and I can’t wait to see the photos that come out of his shoot!!
Heading to the southernmost part of the island, Gordon's beach was flashing brilliant blues on this sunny day. I call this color “Long Island blue”, the milky turquoise blue that results from the super fine sand floating in the shallows on the bank side of the island. I pulled an amateur move and forgot to apply sunscreen, which I instantly regretted.
No Long Island tour would be complete without a stop at Dean’s Blue Hole (there’s Tom for perspective) and Max’s Conch shack for a rum punch/Bahama mamma. Easy to see why we love this island!
