Stats for January 19, 2019

Origin: Hoffman’s Cay Anchorage

Destination: Great Harbour Cay Marina

Distance: 31.6 miles

Speed: 8.1 mph

Time on the Move: 3 hours and 52 minutes

**Warning: this is a looong post because it was an amazing spot and we stayed forever!!**

We were sad to leave our beautiful spot at Hoffman’s, but very excited to move up to Great Harbour to visit with friends and family. A family friend of Kelly’s, Diane, has been coming to Great Harbour for years with her family. When Diane heard that INNTW was headed to the Bahamas, she offered to fly down to visit with them and even got Kelly’s mom, Kathy, on board to fly in for a visit (not that that takes very much convincing!!).

Underway headed for Great Harbour, the kids were studying their school year books (and you can see Hayley even got Tobin and ALL her stuffed animals interested!!). It amazes me how much these kids miss their school, but it does not surprise me. Schools have such an amazing supportive network and our kids really thrive on that kind of stability and interaction with others. I am proud that they love school so much, but I know they love this adventure, as well. I’m sure it will be a case of “the grass is greener on the other side” someday when they’re back in the daily grind.

We had some pretty good waves on our beam heading up towards Great Harbour, but no better weather window was waiting in the future, so we just bounced around and practiced catching things as they slid off counters. Once we could turn a bit north around the islands, the waves settled down a bit, and we came across two cruise ships anchored out at their private islands. I have to say, it was amazing seeing those huge ships, and once again I realized how lucky we are to be doing our trip completely independently and under our own power. I LOVED our private island stop on our cruise a few years ago, and I truly wished I could stay there forever. On this trip, I can’t stay forever (probably), but I can stay another few days and then skip right down the islands to another amazing spot. It is a dream come true.

Arriving in Great Harbour, you realize it literally is a “Great Harbor” when you see how protected this spot is! It is at the northern tip of the Berries and you have to wrap all the way around on the sound side and circle the tip of the island chain to reach the marina. The area to the west is very shallow and not suitable for navigating with a larger boat (smaller fishing boats are okay, but our boat is not). It is about 30 miles to go all the way from the Atlantic side of the island around the north to the Banks side, where the marina entrance is. When you finally get to the entrance, you have to navigate through a bay (The Bay of the Five Pirates to be exact!) with several twists and turns before you get to the actual marina. This makes it a great spot for bad weather, but not the most convenient to get in to with all that going around and twisting and turning.

We were actually arriving at a perfect time, though, because there was a big front coming through that was expected to bring squalls and high winds to the area for a week or so. We would probably be running to the marina for protection, anyway, even if we weren’t already scheduled to be meeting people there.

And can we just talk about the SCHEDULING by the way?! Do you know how hard it is to read some boating forums and look at a map and a calendar and then tell your mom you’ll be in a certain spot in the Bahamas on January 20th when it is still September in Michigan?! Especially when your method of transportation is a boat?! I figured 1/20 was the middle of the two week window of when we would be in the area, so we could either kill some time if we had it or push a little harder to get there depending on how the timing ended up. In the end, we had plenty of time to get where we needed to be and I was THRILLED it worked out because the #1 rule in boating is to not have a schedule, yet time and time again we find ourselves with a schedule. In general, it has always worked out for us. WHEW!!

We were excited to get tied up at the dock and check out the place, and sure enough it didn’t take long before Diane and Gayle came over to greet us. And they brought us a CAR!! Do you know how long it has been since I have driven a car?! I think it was in early December when we had my mom’s car to go to Disney world! That is almost 2 months people!! AND we had to drive on the left side here. Looking back, it was amazing that Diane trusted us to use her car, but we are so thankful she did, and we had access to it for our whole stay!! We are not used to such luxuries!!

Now, Diane had told us that she could arrange access to a townhouse for us to use while we were at the marina. I guess I didn’t quite realize that there would be a huge townhouse directly overlooking our boat in the marina where we could stay for our whole trip and sleep in REAL BEDS and do ALL THE LAUNDRY and watch ALL THE DISNEY JUNIOR. But wow. When I realized what this meant, I was thrilled!!

Diane had more great news (crazy I know!!): we would all be meeting up for dinner that night at a restaurant overlooking the water, with her whole family (or at least those that were in town!!). We went to one of their favorite spots on the island, Cooliemae’s, for dinner, and we got to meet her brother, Jim, his wife Lori, and Diane’s mom, Kit. Right away we were welcomed with open arms, asked a million questions about our trip, and offered all kinds of helpful insights about who could attempt to fix our battery charging problem or where to go for the best fishing, etc. These people were SO NICE even though we were strangers to most of them, it was like walking into Thanksgiving dinner when your whole family is thrilled to see you. They didn’t even seem to care that Tobin played drums with his silverware the whole time, and Colin didn’t touch the chicken he ordered.

The next morning, we woke up to a beautiful sunrise, but we knew that nice weather wouldn’t be lasting very long. But it was gorgeous long enough to enjoy coffee and coconut bread on the deck overlooking the marina.

Sure enough the weather started to get blustery early in the afternoon and a nasty squall passed through the area. I was glad INNTW was tied up tight and relieved I could keep an eye on her. Mike and Colin spent some time at the boat working on the solar panels, and we all enjoyed having an actual building to relax in. Lots of laundry and lazing on the huge couch, watching Paw Patrol.

Later that afternoon, my mom flew in to join us. The kids were so excited to see her and everyone we knew on the island ended up being at the airport to greet her. It’s not too often that you arrive to the airport with 10 people to greet you!!

Grandma brought goodies for everyone but overall, I think this was the biggest hit. What a perfect grandma gift!!

After a fun sleepover and some more coconut bread for breakfast, we headed out to explore Great Harbour a little more (of course driving on the left side of the street the whole time). The waves were rolling in at Diane’s house, but the view of the ocean was mesmerizing. As a boater, I have become in tune with the fact that the weather can seem BEAUTIFUL on land, like the best day ever, yet on the water, the waves are rolling like crazy and the wind is howling. Many of our days at Great Harbour were like that–gorgeous to enjoy on land, but not good days to be at sea, so we were extra thankful to be safely secured.

From Diane’s we headed to Lori and Jim’s house where some ladies were gathering to make homemade lobster ravioli for a special dinner that night (along with delicious homemade sauce!!). Now I would never think of making homemade lobster ravioli because to me it would be much easier to just boil some frozen ravioli (probably just with cheese inside), open a jar of Ragu, and toast some garlic bread from a box (of course, Lori made homemade bread, too!). But making it all from scratch sounded like just the kind of adventure Hayley would enjoy and she loved every second of it!

First of all, she got to meet a teenager from Great Harbour, CC, so that was very interesting. We had lots of questions for CC about growing up in the Bahamas, attending school, and working there, but of course all of that is very “normal” to CC so she was probably wondering why we were so interested. Lori and CC were a great team cooking together and they were so helpful and patient with Hayley, it was a wonderful experience.

After a few hours of helping (for Hayley) and walking on the beach and chatting (for my mom, Tobin, and myself), we headed back to the townhouse for some quiet time. Later in the evening, we were hosting a big group for this delicious ravioli dinner, so we needed our beauty rest!

It was so much fun to have everyone together for an amazing homemade meal. It was wonderful to talk with so many new people and hear about their lives. I have to say, I don’t have many occasions to have dinner with large groups of people these days, and it was even better because my mom and my children were all seated at the same table, along with friends, old and new. Extra special thanks to Lori for the delicious meal!!

The next day was once again blustery, but we decided when you’re in the Bahamas, you just have to roll with it sometimes, and we headed out exploring. We ended up at a great place called “The Beach Club” for lunch despite it being super windy outside. We had some yummy drinks and tried to focus on the sun and not on the stiff breeze coming off the ocean.

After a delicious lunch (best hamburger in the Berries? Bahamas?) we walked on the beach for a while.

Diane’s mom, Miss Kit, organized a “Ladies Lunch” one day at Carriearl’s and invited us to join in. Hayley was thrilled to put some lipstick on and head out for a special lunch with the ladies. It was the cutest boutique hotel with a funky little bar and dining room overlooking the pool deck with the beach and ocean beyond. Again, the day was windy, but the sun was shining and it was a beautiful day on land.

While the ladies were out lunching, the boys went out with Jim and Junior fishing at “the hole.” It turned out to be a bit windier than they had anticipated, but they still came home with a mutton snapper (caught by Colin!) that Mike cooked up for dinner. The boys loved their time fishing, but of course Tobin was begging for more fishing immediately after getting back to the dock. (Must be hungry for more fish eyeballs?!)

The next day Diane arranged for us to visit her friend, Frenchie, to chat and also to meet her cockatoo, Fruit Loop. (I think he is a cockatoo, but I can’t promise.) Right away the kids were enamored with Fruit Loop and they wanted to touch him. Frenchie gave us some background that Fruit Loop had been mistreated on a nearby island as part of a tourist attraction, and, smart bird that he is, he flew right away from that bad situation. After finding himself in another similar situation, Frenchie came to Fruit Loop’s rescue and has been working hard (along with her little doggie) to rebuild his trust in others. So the kids couldn’t touch him, and they practiced using quiet voices around him, but Fruit Loop really liked talking with them. He called for his dog several times when he thought the kids were getting too wild (I think he thought the dog would help save him from their craziness). He said “Hello” a lot and even tried to say “Kelly” (probably because I kept saying my name overandoverandover to him).

We were all surprised to find out that Fruit Loop loves dancing, so the kids did lots of modeling to get him dancing along. Then we learned he especially likes dancing to to Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” which cracked us up. Frenchie turned on the tunes and Fruit Loop showed us his moves.

We loved meeting Fruit Loop and Frenchie. It is amazing how everyone we met on Great Harbour went out of their way to show us how much they love this island and to introduce us to their amazing life. Between the kindness and hospitality of the islanders and the beauty surrounding us, this place feels like a magical storybook, with a new surprise on every page.

We headed out to an area with a cool cave, tide pools to explore, and huge rocks to climb. Again, the waves were rolling in, but we loved exploring on land (and just up to our ankles or so in the ocean).

Today’s adventures weren’t over quite yet. We heard so much about the sand flats at the end of the island, and we finally hit low tide at a perfect time to walk out there and explore. There are about 16 acres that go almost dry at low tide right off shore. It is a perfect time to explore the sea floor and nature that is usually hidden well underwater. What a magical place.

The next day we did some adventuring around the island. There were some trails and out of the way beaches we heard about that we wanted to check out. But first, a little bit about the roads:

Traveling around the island is sometimes rough with giant pot holes in the middle of the road. There are tight turns and a few hills to contend with around the island, as well. Most areas are a full 2 lanes wide, but the sides of the road are quite often crumbling away, leaving more like a lane and a half of traversable roadway. There are no sidewalks anywhere, though quite often you see people walking and riding bikes along the edge (or down the middle?) of the road.

There are also new street signs to get used to, particularly the one with the giant exclamation point! Like PAY ATTENTION OR YOU ARE DOOMED!! And a good reminder to keep left. That part wasn’t very hard for me, probably because I haven’t driven in forever, but Mike seemed to struggle with it a bit more. I found myself always telling him “left left left” in what I’m sure was a very helpful and appreciated reminder.

Eventually we made our way to a hidden beach that the map called “Ship Builder’s Beach” but Jim called “Bardot Beach” because apparently Bridgette Bardot would frequent this beach often back in the island’s heyday.

The path opened up to this small stretch of beach. Colin found a tire and a log that he entertained himself with for an hour or so. Hayley found a MATCHING PAIR of sandals on the beach that almost fit her–amazing! Tobin played in the tide pools at the end of the beach and Mike and I explored. It was a fun, out of the way place on a sunny day.

Next up, Jim and Junior took us out in the bonefishing boat to explore the super shallow flats along the south end of the island and the Ambergris Bank. We saw turtles, sea urchins, starfish, rays, and a barracuda in the shallow water. The colors were amazing. It was awesome to get a behind the scenes view in such a shallow draft boat with guides who know every twist and turn of these mangrove channels. What a cool boat ride!!

The next day was “mail boat” day which means the supply ship was set to arrive on the island bringing packages and groceries and I’m sure much more that I don’t even realize. Due to the front bringing high wind and waves, the mail boat had been delayed several days and there were rumors about all the things that the island was “out” of (including bread). This can be a little challenging, but I’m sure the islanders are used to delayed groceries and packages. For us, we were just excited at the prospect of fresh food whenever the mail boat arrived.

There was an amazing display of teamwork as it seemed people from all over the island came to help unload the boat and distribute items to where they belonged. Even the grocery stores were filled with people unpacking boxes and restocking shelves. This is the kind of cooperative teamwork that we have seen and been impressed with time and time again in the Bahamas. Life is not as “easy” in the islands, so everyone pitches in to help when they can.

After our stop at the grocery store, we headed to the very north end of the island to hike on a trail out to the rocks. It was an overcast, blustery day, and the waves were in agreement, crashing on the sharp rocks.

When we got home (uhhh…back to the townhouse…see how fast that happens?!) Tobin finally got his wish to do some more fishing off the dock while the older kids did some schoolwork in their rooms. Mike and I thought we would have a chance to relax and drink a pina colada, but no way, Jose!! Always an adventure for this crew!!

Tobin suddenly announced that he saw a shark down there in the water. We jumped up to go look, and sure enough, there was a little nurse shark swimming around. We had Tobin pull up his bait and we watched the nurse shark swim away. Whew. That would have been crazy!!

Not 5 minutes later, Tobin yelled that there was a manatee swimming by!! We have seen a few manatees from afar, but this was the best look we’ve had and it was awesome!!

Again, just a few minutes of peace and Tobin announces there is another shark. This time, I told him to leave the bait because I didn’t think the nurse shark would be interested in it, but that was apparently BAD advice!!

Tobin fished for a bit longer uneventfully, but I’m not sure many days fishing will be near as exciting as this one!!

There were so many amazing adventures at this stop, it seems like we were on the go all the time, but I assure you we had plenty of down time enjoying the townhouse, as well. We played games, read books, watched tv, did laundry, and relaxed with that beautiful view of the marina. A little time off the boat was a nice break for this crew! This is the longest we have been off the boat since June 2018 and also the longest we’ve stayed in one place on our loop so far.

On our last night in town, the we went out to dinner with all the Langs and some of their other friends who live on the island again at Cooliemae’s. It was so nice to meet some of their other island friends and feel the kinship of this group once again. I have to admit that at the end of dinner when we were saying our thanks and giving goodbye hugs, I broke into tears. I was overwhelmed by their kindness to us during our stay. We were truly welcomed with open arms.

We are so thankful to Diane and Gayle and the whole Lang family for their kindness and hospitality while we were in Great Harbour. It is an amazing place in the Bahamas, that’s for sure. However, what made it so special for us was the people we met, the personal stories and places they shared with us, and the obvious love that they have for this beautiful island. There are no words that can adequately express our gratitude, but I think the Langs could see how much we enjoyed our time here and how much it added to our trip. Thank you for all the fun!!

Thanks for following along on our adventures!! INNTW is moving south!!