Road Trip

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A couple of cold fronts were predicted to hit the Bahamas and we needed to find shelter to weather the storms. Eleuthera is a very long and narrow island (100 miles long and only 2 miles wide at most), with no natural protected harbors. So we decided to make the long run down to Cape Eleuthera, the marina at Powell Pointe, which is at the very southern tip of the island. Cape Eleuthera Marina has just been re-built and has great new facilities and condos. Everything there is so modern and pristine. And the marina is in a man-made cove with a narrow entrance, which would provide adequate protection from the wind and waves. So it was a great choice for our next stop.

Unfortunately there is not much to do in Powell Pointe during a cold front and we were getting restless after a couple of days. So we decided to rent a car and explore Eleuthera by land. We were so excited for our road trip. We packed up the car with Kona, snacks, tunes, and beach gear and were off- ready to see what we could see. Ready for anything. The road was a bit bumpy at first as we went thru the bush towards Green Castle, but we saw many small settlements along the way and every so often a glimpse of the water. And then the road turns north at Green Castle and becomes the Queen’s Highway, which runs up the coastline and is very scenic. So we zoomed along- enjoying the open road.

Our first stop was Ocean Hole in Rock Sound Settlement. Ocean Hole is a blue hole that is filled with tame fish that the local fishermen donate. It has been turned into a park in the center of town where you can picnic, swim, and feed the fish. It was too cold to swim that day, but we stopped for lunch and to feed the many snappers and groupers that reside there. When we worked our way down to water’s edge we were greeted by a plethora of fish, who swam right up to the surface asking for a bite to eat. So we obliged and shared our lunch and enjoyed watching them in there feeding frenzy- very cool.

After lunch we loaded back into the car and continued on our road trip adventure. The next town we hit was Tarpum Bay, which was quite an eclectic settlement. There were tons of nice houses and quaint cottages just next to old loyalist ruins. The contrast was stunning. It is also an artist settlement of sorts and has a couple of galleries there, but unfortunately they were closed that day- bummer. Still it was a fascinating town to visit and one we would like to re-visit sometime.

Seeing that we have always heard how beautiful the beaches are on the Atlantic side of Eleuthera we decided to take advantage of having a car and go see one for ourselves. So we took off on a quest for Winding Bay, which some locals had told us about. It was difficult to find, no signs leading the way and we had to try several off the beaten path roads before we could find it. But the hard work was rewarded. Winding Bay is a beautiful, a half-moon beach with soft pink sand lined with palm trees and giant mansions. Yes, the rich and famous live here. Out in the distance we could see the reef and imagined there must be good snorkeling and fishing there. But it was getting late in the day, so we just decided just to take a nice stroll on the beach instead. As it was getting dark, we chose to head back home.

On our way home, we stumbled upon a huge Banyon Tree just off the Queen’s Highway. How we didn’t see it when we first passed by this way is a mystery to us. So we turned the car around, parked, and got out to admire this massive tree which is an amalgamation of limbs and vines which go every which way for about 200 feet. There is a small plaque there explaining that this Banyon Tree was planted 87 years ago and is the National Tree of India. But that was about all the info we got. In any case, it was very fascinating and an excellent surprise ending of our road trip across Eleuthera.

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Photos

Cape E
Cape Eleuthera, the new marina at Powell Pointe.

Road Trip
Jen, Jay, and Kona all loaded up in the car, ready for the road trip accorss Eleuthera- yohoo!

Ocean Hole
Jay at the Ocean Hole in Rock Sound, a blue hole filled with tons of tame snappers and groupers.

Ruins
Loyalist Ruins in Tarpum Bay- very cool!

Pink Sand Beach
Jen and Kona at the pink sand beach in Winding Bay.

Banyon Tree
Jay admiring this enormous Banyon Tree.

Sunset
Enjoying another gorgeous sunset in the Bahamas, it never gets old.