After spending three nights at Little Harbor we ventured back to Marsh Harbor Thursday afternoon. We had planned to leave on Wednesday, but friends talked us into staying one more night.
Al & Collette (Euphoria) and we joined the group on the beach for their Monday night get-together and had a great time. We met many more people, many of whom are winter residents of the area. One of the residents, Brian, invited us to join him for a road trip on Tuesday so he could show us some of the highlights we hadn't seen.
The four of us piled into his little road trek and bounced along the very rutty roads to various places. Our first stop was a blue hole - a mysterious phenomenon which is a hole in the ground that leads to underground caves and tunnels and eventually leads to the ocean. Apparently some divers commonly dive in these blue holes and because it's very dangerous, some have lost their lives. We were mesmerized by the blue hole, saw many beautiful fish swimming in the hole, and tempted them to the surface by throwing bread crumbs as a treat. Brian took us to the very small community of Cherokee, many beautiful lookout spots, beaches, and a surprisingly pristine golf course right on the ocean by Winding Bay.
When we returned from our tour, Bill & Lori (Perfect Day) and friends from California had come to the harbor where we were anchored so we toasted their arrival with a beer at Pete's Pub, then we took them on a walk to show them the blue hole. It was great to reconnect with them and, as always, we had many laughs and enjoyed two fun, relaxing evening with them.
Thursday morning weather proved to be very windy so although Al & Collette and Bill & Lori ventured out for their next destination, we stayed at our anchorage until about 3:00 when the winds finally calmed down. Consequently, we had a very calm ride back to Marsh Harbor...except for the "cut" areas, where Jim crisscrossed (sailors call it tacking) to hit the rough spots on the bow or stern, rather than the beam seas that we detest. This proved to be a much better way to maneuver our way through the very rough seas in the cut areas.
Yesterday (Friday), friends Wayne & Andrea (Sea Cove) went fishing and returned late afternoon with two very large maui maui and one strawberry grouper which they promptly cleaned and shared with everyone in the marina. Needless to say, we enjoyed a very tasty dinner of fresh mahi, cooked according to a recipe given to me by one of the other boaters in the marina. Delicious!!! Today one of the locals is scheduled to come to the marina with fresh conch and fresh lobster. We plan to load up on that, as we will soon be gone and unable to enjoy those fresh catches.
Well, this is the news that our loyal followers are waiting for: We have decided we will definitely finish the loop this year instead of leaving the boat in Florida for the summer. Therefore, here is our schedule - leave Marsh Harbor early next week and make a few stops along the way to Great Guana where we will enjoy a huge party/concert by The Barefoot Man. As soon as weather permits, we will travel to the spot where we will cross to Florida. On April 11 we will leave Stuart and continue up the East coast of Florida where we will connect with our "original" looper friends and will travel until just before Memorial Day. We will go home from Memorial Day to the middle of July and then will go back to the boat and resume traveling until we arrive back home in Ludington in late September. This has been a hard decision, as we have SO enjoyed being in the Bahamas on our boat. Now that the decision has been made, we are both relieved to have a solid plan.
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