Cracked Conch and Hats

Well, we finally made it to the Bahamas! While we always enjoy going somewhere new, the Biminis were unlike anything we've seen so far. When you enter the channel between North and South Bimini, there are a couple of marinas to the left. One of them, Weech's where we docked, has been in business for many, many years and the son is now running it. You must clear customs at your first stop in the Bahamas, and the Customs and Immigration office is a half block from Weech's. Foreign boats must fly the yellow quarantine flag while the captain goes ashore with everyone's passports (or in our case, mine and Morgan's passports and Nyla and Koki's permits). Well, Hank (I think he's the son that runs the place) came out to help tie up and proceeded to tell Morgan all about how to tie up his boat. You can imagine how well that went over. The docks receive tremendous wake from passing boaters and the ferry that runs 24/7 between North and South. (I don't think "no wake zones" exist on North Bimini.) We had pulled into a double slip, so Morgan tied an additional line across the slip to keep us off the dock. Hank had a serious issue with it saying that it would create a hazard for other boats. That would make sense if there WERE any other boats. We were the ONLY boat in the entire place. In fact, all of North Bimini was incredibly bare of cruisers. Hank got over his snit and brought the required paperwork for clearing us in. Morgan went to Customs/Immigration and returned a short time later. Apparently, just as the official was beginning to review our paperwork, a bunch of kids came in running around and she had to get them under control. The paperwork stamping occurred without further review and she shuttled Morgan off to the next official. That part went fast as well because the official was watching CSI and didn't like being interrupted.

With Morgan back on the boat still in awe of the process, we got cleaned up and decided to take Nyla for a walk. Before we got too far, we realized we hadn't replaced the quarantine flag with the Bahamian courtesy flag (which is hoisted on the flag halyard. As well as being expected and showing respect, it also indicates we've cleared customs). Back to the boat. Morgan held Nyla on the leash on the dock (or so I thought) while I attached the flag. While I was wrestling with the flag rings in the dark, Morgan apparently attached Nyla's leash to a piling and was having a look around. I heard Nyla jump for the boat but didn't hear her land and didn't hear a splash. As we both rushed to the leash, there was Nyla - hanging from her harness patiently waiting to be pulled up. All that got wet was her feet and Morgan got a demerit for dog handling.

As it was 9 PM on Sunday night there was not much open except the Anchorage Restaurant. We returned Nyla to the boat and went to have some dinner. The staff were very friendly, though the wine was HORRIBLE. I had a seafood platter and my first taste of cracked conch, which was incredible. I had tried conch fritters before and didn't really care for them. Apparently, the conch must be pounded and tenderized first. They were cooked in a light batter, similar to shrimp, though they are sweeter than shrimp. Conch is a staple of the Bahamian diet and there are mounds of shells all over the island, all with the tell-tale hole where the conch was pulled out.

After a rather bouncy night in the slip, we left Nyla standing watch and walked around the island. North Bimini is only a few blocks wide and a few miles long, so you can walk the entire place in an afternoon. Because it was not the busy season, many of the restaurants and shops were not open. Those that were had highly irregular hours. Additionally, many of the places recommended in the guides were out of business. Even the Compleat Angler Hotel that was a favorite haunt of Ernest Hemingway had burned down, along with quite a collection of Hemingway pictures and keepsakes. We did find the "End of the World Bar," but it was locked, so we don't know if it's still open or not. There is a huge resort under development on the north end of the island that caters to the mega rich and is quite out of the price range of most cruisers, Bimini Bay Resort. In addition to numerous celebrities and other rich folks, another public figure that spent time in the Bimini's was Gary Hart - on "Monkey Business!" The picture that doomed his presidential bid!

The next day, having seen North Bimini, we took the dinghy into the entrance of South Bimini. There was a huge marina at some time, right inside Buccaneer Point on South Bimini, but it burned down at some point and the docks are in rotting into the canal. On a side canal we saw more casualties of the storms, including a fiberglass sailboat whose hulls were being held together with plywood. Believe it or not, it appeared someone was actually living on the boat, plywood patches and all. We went up the second (the only other) canal and came upon what appeared to be a former dive club under renovations. However, the bar was open and Morgan found out they would make frozen drinks. Enough said! We tied up and entered The Thirsty Turtle Yacht Club, setting off a chain of events that kept us on South Bimini for reasons other than weather.

The Thirsty Turtle is owned by Brent and Joni (Americans and fellow sailors) and managed by Marlene. Marlene's husband, Elvis, showed us where we could dock the boat at a price we couldn't resist and offered the use of his golf cart. Elvis, or "Mr. Bimini" as Morgan refers to him, is originally from Abaco and has been in Bimini for 26 years. Elvis is in construction - understatement of the year. If a dock or seawall is built or pilings sunk for new construction, Elvis probably did it. He took us sightseeing around the island and we found out he also dredges channels. I can't think of anything he doesn't do on Bimini! Marlene is originally from Nassau and used to be, in addition to regular occupations, a singer in a band. She and Elvis practically adopted us and made it very difficult to leave. They are the type of people you meet and know that you would be welcome 5 years in the future. Their son, Aaron, just received his private pilot's license and hopes to return to Ft. Pierce to get his commercial license. Brent was also incredibly accomodating (after being bumped from the dock by the early arrival of friends of the owner of the lot, Brent allowed to use his docks for the remainder of our stay) and works non-stop. He is in the process of renovating the building and already has some rooms available. The prices are incredible and you cannot beat the hospitality. We have the contact information if you are thinking of heading that way. We highly recommend it.

In addition to Denise (our good natured bartender), Wendy (who makes a monster cheeseburger) and Archie (we're not sure exactly what he does for Brent but he's very funny after a few beers), we also met Owen, a lobster fisherman from the Exumas. He and Morgan hit it off and he gave Morgan his brand new (purhcased that day) Kalik hat. Kalik is the Bahamian beer and drink of choice for most patrons. Owen bent over backward to make sure we were having a good time and has invited us to visit him in the Exumas. Owen also just became a father for the second time. Congratulations to you and your family, Owen!

Though we didn't come this far to stop at just seeing Bimini, it was hard to say goodbye. We will definitely be back.

We left Bimini on Sunday, the 22nd, to make the long crossing to
Chub Cay across the Great Bahama Bank. It was longer than the Gulf Stream, but not as long as crossing the Big Bend. We had read about the Chub Cay Marina, with its "well stocked" island shoppe (6 bottle of liquour, total). The reality is, the Marina's docks are all privately owned and you have to be Bill Gates to afford it. Come to think of it, if you're not Bill Gates, they don't want you there anyway. They quoted $2.85/ft compared to Beech's $.85. Needless to say, we anchored out. However, we did want to do laundry and maybe rent a golf cart to see the rest of the island. Sure, we could rent a golf cart for $40, not bad, after we paid $100 landing fee to tie up our 10' dinghy! We ended up tying up to some rocks on a small "beach" in front of the Island Shop and did our laundry anyway. The lady at the store was very nice, though two separate security guards told us we had to move our dinghy. Always better to beg forgiveness than ask permission! After a few days of chores, we left the morning of the 25th after refueling and filling our water tank. (Turns out our watermaker leaks and has about 1,000 o-rings to replace when Morgan rebuilds it.) The only other friendly person we found on Chub Cay was the gentleman at the fuel dock. Long story short - anchor out, rest up and leave. There is nothing to see on Chub Cay. All residents work for the marina.

From Chub Cay, we started toward Nassau when Morgan, who had already lost two hats during previous dinghy rides, lost another hat! This time, we circled around and were able to snag it with a boat hook. May be time for epoxy. It was a long, rough sail to Nassau, and we pulled in just before sunset. Nassau is night and day different from Bimini, but we're getting our bearings. We've been picking up some things we needed like a Hawaiin sling to spear lobster, some Yamaha parts, and , oh yeah - a marriage license!

Getting the license was quite an adventure. First of all, no one seemed to know where to get one. We finally found a guy who thought maybe, just maybe, it was at the Registrar General's office, which may be, might be on Frederick's St. - if it hasn't moved. Turns out he was right. The receptionist was surprised that we weren't "accompanied." We assured her it was just us. After being led to an upstairs office to the clerk who handles marriage licenses, we were again asked if we were "accompanied" No, still just the two of us. "What, no wedding planner?" She took care of our paperwork and, since we were "unaccompanied" and hadn't filled out the application previously, she had to escort us to her boss who could finalize the paperwork. While in her office, she asked a series of questions including whether we were related. We chatted about the process and Morgan stated that, in Alaska you could get married by phone. She said, "Oh no. Not here. We need to see both of you. We need make sure you're not drunk and that you don't look like each other." Apparently the family trees here have limited branches. On our way out she reminded us, "Remember, this doesn't mean you're married yet." Kind of made me feel like a teenager being lectured about the do's and dont's with boys.

We haven't finalized wedding plans yet, but are kicking around getting married on South Bimini sometime in May, then continuing on to the Abacos for a summer honeymoon. We'll keep you posted!

As I sat here typing this entry, I realized that the pics I had hoped to post were not on the thumb drive I brought with me, so they will have to wait until tomorrow. So far, everything we've done has taken longer and has involved more logistics than we counted on, so it doesn't help when I do things like leave the pictures on the boat (a dinghy ride is required to reach good wifi). It's a good thing that the marriage license is good for 3 months. At the rate we do things, the wedding will probably happen on day 90! Oh well, guess I'll post this, order some cracked conch and a Kalik and enjoy the sunset.