Stats for January 17, 2019

Origin: Little Harbour Cay

Destination: Hoffman’s Cay

Distance: 5.2 miles

Speed: 7.2 mph

Time on the Move:1 hour and 6 minutes

We woke up the next day to a 5th birthday on board!! Birthdays on board are a bit bittersweet for the kids, I think, because they miss their friends and all the hooplah they are used to surrounding their birthdays at home–parties, cake, presents, and all the rest. We do our best to make the day extra special, but it doesn’t seem to quite measure up from a kid’s point of view.

Once everyone was awake, the kids were excited to give Tobin their birthday presents. They made him a ton of cards and wrapped up some of their toys that they thought he would like. He was thrilled to get a yo-yo from Hayley (though to me it sounds like a weapon) and his favorite Pokemon card from Colin.

The birthday boy wanted to get started baking his birthday cake. When cake is involved, of course Hayley will want to help!!

We had a beautiful day to travel to a new spot!! We stayed on the inside, which is shallower and calmer, but there were some areas that were pretty skinny. We held our breath for a minute while we passed over a sand bar, but we crossed it no problem. Whew!

We were looking forward to the anchorage at Hoffman’s and it did not disappoint!! We found a cove all to ourselves since we have such a shallow draft, leaving the mega yacht and sailboats around the corner. (Side note on drafts: we only draft (stick down in the water) about 3’7″ where sailboats and true trawlers stick down much further (maybe 4 to 8 feet). A shallower draft means we can anchor in shallower spots, but it also means we don’t have quite as much stabilization in waves as they do.)

Right after dropping the anchor I started working on scavenger hunt clues for a birthday surprise on the beach. I paddled over to the beach so I could hide the clues and the loot while Mike “got the kids ready.” By “got the kids ready” I mean he did not sunscreen anyone or actually make anyone put on a bathing suit, so apparently there wasn’t much readying that took place, but he offered.

One of our first clues took us on a completely different adventure down a path to a blue hole.

The blue hole was beautiful and a complete surprise to the kids. Mike and I learned about it from some of the cruiser guides and even saw videos of people jumping off the cliff into the water. Of course Mike can’t let adventure like that pass him by!!

After we had enough time to let anyone jump in the blue hole that was going to, we headed back to the beach to finish the scavenger hunt before dark. There were about 10 clues that lead to one big pile of treasure at the end (given away by an X in the sand, of course), including birthday cards from family, sticky mustaches, oatmeal cream pies and more.

Since we got back to the boat so close to sunset, we decided to skip right to the cake and call that dinner. When there’s a birthday on board, you can do things like this.

The next day we woke up to a beautiful, sunny day ready for adventure. The boys couldn’t wait to get off the boat so they paddled over to the beach much earlier than the rest of us. It was great watching them run up and down the beach with buckets and shovels, exploring, collecting, and building.

We enjoyed the day with lots of paddleboarding, kayaking, skim boarding, and exploring. What an absolutely beautiful and magical place!!

Hayley helped Mike secure the solar panels on the hard roof over the sundeck. After the work on the boat and all the exploring on land, we were ready for a longer paddle. There was a big basin nearby that reminded me of a salt water swamp at low tide, which is when we happened to get there. It was so cool because it was protected and there were lots of creatures. However, it was creepy because we didn’t know what creatures we were going to come across next.

We also saw lots of turtles in the basin as well as a triggerfish, something the boys called a pufferfish though that is unconfirmed, and conch. About 3 bigger nurse sharks were headed into the basin as we were paddling out–they were probably 5 foot long. At that point, the boys were distracted looking for conch, and Hayley and I were paddling after sea turtles. I was glad I was on my board when those big guys passed by underneath.

After all that paddling, we needed a little sun break. The kids watched a show and I relaxed with my book. Mike was probably working on a project somewhere.

Later we went on a dinghy ride around some of the closest islands. There was so much to explore in this area!! One of the islands had 2 adirondack chairs and a bon fire pit tucked in at the top of the beach right by the trees. It had a perfect view through the cut into the ocean. I’m sure it’s someone’s secret spot!

When we got back to the boat Mike was ready to harvest some conch. Let me just say that youtube videos and asking for advice from friends is apparently not enough good information to help you get the conch out of the shell. It was much more difficult and time consuming than we imagined.

At this point, Colin and Hayley were paddling back to the boat from playing at the beach a bit longer before sunset. I was on the swim platform giving moral support to Mike (who was still fighting with the conch) when I glanced over at them and saw a fin following behind the paddleboard. We didn’t see sharks close to our boat here, but it sure freaked me out. What do you say to your kids to express the fact that you want them on the boat NOW but you certainly don’t want to panic them and have them fall off the board?!? I probably announced the fin before I even put 2 and 2 together. Then, I told them to stay steady but paddle over quickly without lots of splashing. They did a great job getting to the boat and getting off the board before becoming some shark’s dinner. I’m sure they weren’t in any real danger, but I am 99% certain there was a shark behind them for a moment. Mike was working on that conch, so he was probably unknowingly chumming them in.

Thank you so much for following along on our adventure!!