Hill and I are in Marsh Harbor, the third largest town in the Bahamas (yet the worst internet connection I've had so far). This last week has been a vast improvement over the previous one, with beautiful sunny weather and sailing that has actually been fun!
Before we left Spanish Cay, we had drinks with a couple aboard their 52 foot sailboat, Nautilus. (Hill was hesitant to let me aboard as he was afraid that once I saw their luxurious surroundings -- microwave, shower, washer and dryer... -- that I wouldn't get back on Arcas.) Randy and Michelle suggested that we make Manjack Cay our next destination instead of Green Turtle Cay, and we are so happy that we followed their advice. Manjack is a beautiful island with 3 or 4 private homes on it. One of the families cut nature trails all through the island, so Hill and I spent two days exploring the island's mangrove swamps, beaches, and harbors. On the second day, we came across Bill and Lesley, the owners, putting together a bonfire on the beach, and they told us they were having a Full Moon party to watch the moon rise over the ocean, and that everyone anchored near the island was invited. So we spent the evening with about 15 other people around the bonfire watching the moon.
On Monday, we had to leave Manjack and sail the two miles to Green Turtle Cay in order to reprovision and do laundry. We spent two days in Green Turtle exploring our first Bahamaian town, New Plymouth, which was originally founded by American colonists loyal to King George during the American revolution. At first the town was a bit of a letdown after the natural beauty of Manjack, but then we started talking to people in town, and they were all so nice. After living in big cities for so long, it's a different experience to be in a place where everyone knows everyone.
Yesterday we decided to sail straight from Green Turtle Cay to Marsh Harbor. In order to do so, one must briefly cut outside of the Sea of Abaco into the ocean through a passage the locals call "The Whale." Depending on the weather, it can be an uncomfortable passage, but the weather yesterday was beautiful (sunny, light winds from the south), so we decided to go for it. We had a gorgeous sail through the Whale. Once we got on the other side, the wind died and we had to motor the rest of the way into Marsh Harbor. However, our surroundings were so stunningly beautiful that we didn't mind. On one side was Great Guana Cay, with long stretches of beach that almost enticed us to stop and go swimming. We were moving through about 10 feet of water, and with the wind almost gone, the water was like rippling turquoise glass - completely transparent. It was incredible - as we passed the tiny Fish Cays, they looked like they were floating. I took some pictures, but they don't even begin to convey what it was like.
We wanted to stop and snorkel back at Great Guana Cay, but we had to get to Marsh Harbor to investigate the possibility of flying down to Long Island in the Exumas to meet Hill's family. Originally we had planned to sail there by now but obviously didn't make it. So we are flying out tomorrow - taking a vacation from our vacation, if you will. Yeah, our lives are so hard.
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