The Pure Life: JUNKANOO!!

Junkanoo in Georgetown

Raken n Scrape in Georgetown

After departing ways with our friends on Livin’ Life we sailed over to Cat Island from Conception Island about 40 miles to the north. This Island is home of Father Jerome’s final resting place. He is a long story but he built all the beautiful churches on the “Far” islands in the Bahamas. We have tried to visit most of them during our travels. With the fresh south winds we made anchorage at Old Bight. It is very protected from the south winds but does have much of a settlement. The following day we made a crazy run (blowing 20 knots and choppy seas) to New Bight. Hoofing our way up to Comer Hill or the place they call Mount Alvernia where Father Jerome a.k.a. John Hawes built his hermitage. It was a very spiritual experience for us hiking up to the top going by each Station of the Cross carved out of stone and ending up at the highest point in the Bahamas where his chapel and his one room home is. We hope the pictures can do it justice or just go visit it someday. We were given a car ride to the bottom of the hill by a couple there on their honeymoon. We are always surprised how people just give each other a ride here and there with no problems. Real PUBLIC transportation.

Mount Alvernia

Hiking up Station of Cross to Mount Alvernia

Cat Island beach to ourselves

After a few days there we finally made our way in to Georgetown. We heard the Cruising Regatta was over and were hoping some of the 300 plus boats had left but because of the high winds they had delayed the race to Long Island so the armada of boats were still in the harbor. But we still found room to anchor and joined in the fun.

We played volleyball, drank lots of rum, played rummy cue, listen to rake and scrape and most of all went to the Bahamian music festival to experience the famous Bahamian Junkanoo. You can get almost anything in Georgetown by just getting on the cruisers net. We found a dingy ladder and a snubber hook. The cruisers just ask to buy or trade things they need with someone else and someone responds. We even met up with a couple that had a house on the Lake of Ozarks (small world).

Red Shanks in Georgetown

Volleyball Beach Georgetown

Boat repairs on the beach

Music outside Chat n Chill

Turtles in Red Shanks Georgetown

We also met up with our friends from last year Ron & Dee on Ursa Minor. We stayed around Georgetown for a while before we left with Ursa Minor to Lee’s Stocking Island. This place has some fabulous snorkeling and we found lots of conch to make conch salad. I have to say is a great a meal but we both have to work hard to get it on the table. Besides finding the conch then diving for it we have to crack it open to get the Conch. Michael is excellent at cracking open the shell and Cherie is great at cleaning the Conch plus preparing the salad with the secret recipe. Of coarse our friends all enjoyed eating it with us.

After snorkeling on the famous sunken piano with the mermaid resting on the bench we sailed back up to Little Farmers. The last time in Farmers we left with the ship wrecked on the rocks and now found it had been towed to Compass Island. There wasn’t another boat in sight when we arrived except our friends Ron & Dee’s. We had the entire island to our selves and it was some great weather to be there. We moved up to Oven Rock to enjoy hiking to the cave as well as more snorkeling but as always Mother Nature decided the winds must blow from the west again and we need a new anchorage for some protection.

We thought we’d make our way up to Black Point but that would be no relief from the wind so to Cambridge Cay then Warderick Wells we went. We stayed many days in the Exuma Land and Sea Park that we love so much and reunited with many old friends we have met during our travels. Lost Puppy showed up with Ian and Jennifer, Jim & Ellie on Last Tango showed up with their son, daughter-in-law and grandkids as well as Cornell and his daughter Sabrina on Sans Souci. We had happy hours on each other’s boats, a beach party and snorkeling of coarse before you always have to say goodbye to someone moving on.

This year we said we were going to sail to Norman’s Cay that we’ve passed several times and didn’t stop. Norman’s was once under the control of drug lord Carlos Lehder and you can still see the crashed airplane in the harbor. It would not disappoint on the snorkeling as well as the fishing. While sitting in Norman’s Cay we were hailed by Ian and Jennifer on Lost Puppy and they made their way there to play and have more stories over drinks on Pura Vida.

We want to be in Florida by May so that Ted Largo and his wife Deb can come down and visit us on Pura Vida so we are heading back up the Exuma chain and then on to the Berry Islands before we finally sail back to Florida. When we were making our way to Rose Island near Nassau we thought we heard a familiar hail of September Song (Stephanie and Bob). We hailed them with no response but when we texted them on the Bahamas phone we found that they would be in the Nassau when we arrived. What a great surprise since they are one of our favorite Exuma cruising couples. We had a wonderful dinner with them at the Atlantis resort.

We made it to Easter mass at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in Nassau. It was a beautiful Bahamian Easter mass celebration and they pass out Easter candy after mass to all the children. It was a special treat but the Easter dinner feast aboard September Song was the best. Very traditional with a glazed ham, scalloped potatoes, and a mix of dessert cakes with lots of wine and rum of course. The next day we sailed off to the Berry Islands where we will swim, snorkel, dive for Conch, hike the islands and enjoy some of the most beautiful beaches in the Bahamas for a few weeks. We hope you all had a fabulous Easter. We’ll keep you in our thoughts until our next blog.