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Published: January 17th 2008
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Spanish Wells
A view of the southern end of Spanish Wells, with Eluthera in the background. We returned to Spanish Wells, a small island north of Eluthera, where we have close friends and fond memories. As soon as we pull into the marina we feel like we have never left and one day easily blends into another. We arrive just in time for New Years Eve and go over to a friends house for a party, where we barbeque lobster and shish-kabobs, eat dips and casseroles, and drink many libations. We enjoy catching up with our friends who we haven’t seen since last May and watch the fireworks, which are ignited from a barge just off the island. And sitting on our friends’ porch we have the best view on the island, it is so beautiful to watch the fireworks which reflect their bright colors in the water. Around 2 a.m. we go down to the beach to join up with more of our friends at a giant party and stay out all night, celebrating the New Year. It is certainly great to be back.
We have spent at least a couple of weeks here in Spanish Wells now, both working on boat projects and hanging out with our friends. We are happy to report that
Christmas Decorations
Spanish Wells was still all decorated for Christmas when we arrived. we got all the damage repaired from the crossing and the Rum Runner looks as good as new (what a relief). And for all of you cruisers out there who follow this blog, keep in mind that Spanish Wells is the best place in the Bahamas to get your boat fixed. There are 3 different well-stocked marine hardware stores (the Service Center, the Marina, and R&B Boat Yard) and the people on this island are very skilled and helpful. Spanish Wells has one of the biggest and best fishing fleets in the islands after all. So we were able to get all the materials needed to patch the gel coat and have also been busy doing much needed maintenance (polishing the stainless, waxing the hull, and re-doing the teak). Jay has also had to trouble shoot some small problems which have come up with the boat. I guess we are still in the break-in period of the new boat, where the boat breaks and we have to fix it. Just working out all the kinks I guess- we just hope there are no more surprises.
But it hasn’t been all work and no play. One of our highlights of
The Land
The private beach at the Land- goergous. Watch for rental cottages here in the future. this visit is going over to the land. Our good friends on this island just acquired land in North Eluthera, a beautiful piece of property with a private beach, a hill overlooking Harbor Island, and an orchard of grapefruit as well as sweet and sour oranges. He is a descendant of the Elutheran Adventurers who came to the Bahamas in 1646 from England and originally founded Spanish Wells. And as a descendant you can make a claim on the land in North Eluthera and it will remain yours as long as you take care of the property. If it is neglected for 2 or more years though, then it becomes up for grabs for another descendent. Our friends just obtained this land in November and have worked very hard clearing out all the brush which had overgrown the property. He and his wife are talking about building cottages there, to rent out and use when friends visit the island. So we went over to the land to check it out. The first time we went there we hiked around the property and discovered all the grapefruit and orange trees, which were ripe and ready for harvest. So we made plans
Artisitic
A snail hanging on to the bottom of a palm tree. to go back another day with machetes to clear the bush, bins to collect the fruit, and a wheel barrel to haul the fruit back to the truck. It was hard work, but very rewarding. After 2 hours we had picked 7 bushels of fruit; 4 of grapefruit and 3 of sweet and sour oranges. But we were exhausted after the day’s end, so much work hauling all the fruit from the truck to the boat, from the boat to the car back in Spanish Wells, and finally back to the house. But since then we have been busy eating, squeezing, and drinking all the fresh fruit we collected- yum. It has been well worth the effort and was a lot of fun.
We have also taken the ferry over to Harbor Island a couple of times while we were here, a hip and trendy town in Eluthera which is all the rage for the rich and famous (many rock stars have homes on the island as well as super models and movie stars). There are beautiful resorts there, great restaurants and bars, as well as a very happening night-life. The first time we went over there was to
Orchard
Fruit trees in the orchard, both grapefruit as well as sweet and sour oranges. eat dinner with our friends and to party like rock stars (when in Rome- eh?). We went to several different bars, but our favorite was Gussy’s which is up on the hill overlooking the bay and has a beach sand floor. We danced the night away on the sand dance floor and had a blast. It was a great night. Later in our stay we took the Bohengy, a fast cat ferry, over to Harbor Island for the day to explore the town, the galleries and straw market, as well as the famous pink sand beach. The first thing we did was to hike across the island to the pink sand beach and take a stroll at water’s edge- it was lovely. We then stopped at the famous and very posh Pink Sand Resort for a drink and a bite to eat. The view from the restaurant was gorgeous, looking down thru the palm trees to the beach and ocean below. We could have sat there for hours, and we did indeed. After our respite we were off again to explore the many great shops and galleries, as well as the straw market where you can buy hand-made Bahamian baskets
Harvest Time
The 7 barrels we harvested in the land in only 2 hours. Still alot of work. and hats. We collected many treasures throughout the day, a book on Bahamian Sloops by a famous artist here in the islands, a new straw basket to add to our collection, and a cd of the local band The Brilanders (whose music we have always enjoyed). It was a full and very fun day.
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Gran
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Great Life!!!
Enjoyed your pics and your stories about these islands. I do hope that you will write about all your adventures in a book some day. Your story warmed a very cold Colorado day!!!!