We motorsailed about three hours yesterday from Hawksbill Cay to Warderick Wells. This is the main island of Exuma Park, or at least where there are offices for the park warden and other officials. There are mooring balls here but we are anchored outside them. Yesterday we walked on the beaches for awhile and in the late afternoon went to Avalon (Joanne and Mark) for sundowners with Bill and JoAnne (Ultra).
Today we went ashore with JoAnne and Bill and walked on trails up to Boo Boo Hill and out to Boo Hoo Beach as well as other trails. Boo Boo Hill is a spot where cruisers leave a piece of driftwood with their names on it. We have some driftwood to make our own. The board in the photo at the left was left here by our friends Gavin and Alice from Salty Dawg. Below is a photo of Mark and Bill with our pieces of driftwood which we will paint and leave on the hill before we leave. It is named Boo Boo because there is a legend that a boat sunk here and the “ghosts” are going “boo! boo!”
A highlight of today was a cave we found with a ladder leading to the bottom. We let Bill climb down first and then JoAnne, Mark and I followed. It was a roomy cave and on the side was a sign naming it “Murphy’s.” Several other people had left carvings telling that they had been in the cave also.
We were on the opposite side of the cay from where we are anchored. This side is Exuma Sound, which is actually the ocean. The shades of blue were incredible as the water is deeper than on the side where we are anchored.
Tonight we went to a cruiser’s bonfire. Everyone brought their own drinks and a snack to share. We met a number of other cruisers and as always, shared stories and listened to other people’s adventures. We ran into other cruisers we had met in Ft. Lauderdale and Miami.
At the bonfire we were talking with Chris, a young Bahamian who works at the park. He mentioned that he is taking some people to the Staniel Cay airport tomorrow morning and offered to take Mark along for the boat ride. There is a small hardware store in Staniel Cay, so Mark should be able to find a part he needs for the watermaker. While turning it on today, a part broke, but he thinks he can get it in Staniel Cay. This is just one of many examples of how kind and helpful the Bahamians are. Chris is a young man who is from Nassau and working here at the park.
Tomorrow we’ll be moving on to a mooring ball, which will hopefully be less rocky than our current anchorage. Click here for more photos of Warderick Wells.
