Compass Cay/Staniel Cay
Wednesday, March 11
Pulled anchor around 9:00 am and headed South. We are going to swim with the sharks today and "we're going to have fun" Kim says. I'm going to "Love It" Kim says. Hmmm!
Our route to Compass Cay. Those red dots are bommies (Coral Head). We cannot go over them or we will damage our boat.
Got to Compass Cay, anchored and took the dingy over to the marina where the sharks are. It cost $15 to land the dingy to go into the water with nurse sharks.
Swim with sharks, one and done. Check!
Staniel Cay
After the sharks we pulled anchor and headed two more hours to Staniel Cay. We saw huge yachts along the way. So many huge yachts! Some with slides. Got to Staniel Cay Harbor, grabbed a mooring ball and went to dinner at the famous Staniel Cay Yacht Club. Took a little walk as the sun set. Fisherman getting ready for tomorrow's fishing trip while sharks swam around their boat.
Day 2 Staniel Cay
Thursday, March 12
The guys went to get dingy fuel and take the trash to the trash cans. Then we loaded up and were off to hike the island. 4.25 miles up cliffs and into a cave. Found a bar and stopped for beers. Found cases of diet coke at the store. Then relaxed on the boat until dinner. Kim grilled steaks off the back of the boat and we ended the evening sitting on the front of the boat checking out all the amazing stars.
Staniel Cay Day 3Friday, March 13
We went to the Grotto today at low tide to get inside this cave. There entrance is a small opening at low tide that you can get through. Yes, I was terrified. Yes, I went! Check! One and Done!
"Thunderball Grotto, located just west of Staniel Cay in the Exumas, is a famous underwater cave system renowned for snorkeling, diving, and its appearance in the 1965 James Bond film Thunderball. Featuring vibrant marine life, coral reefs, and sunlight streaming through roof holes, it is best accessed by boat at low tide." (AI)
We took a selfie afterwards to show that we all made it!
After the looking at the pigs, we sent to the boat to grab some lunch then it was off to dive on a plane crash. I selfishly said I would stay with the dingy and watch our stuff so they could go snorkeling around the wreck. LOL! You can kindof see the outline of the plane in the picture below.
Final event was to dingy to the store. Still trying to find eggs and was not successful. Maybe tomorrow.
Well, our evening was interesting. We got back on the boat and something felt off. We looked out and our boat was facing the wrong direction compared to other boats. The mooring ball was stuck under our boat. Meanwhile I was prepping for dinner and had thawed chicken wings. I poured the ice down the drain. There was just enough chicken juice to attract two sharks. So Kim and John are trying to figure out the mooring ball situation, two sharks were circling our boat. The guys got the mooring ball loose and eventually the sharks left. Never a dull moment! And it was Friday the 13th. LOL
After the Grotto, we took the dingy to the "swimming pool". It was a shallow inlet that you could stand, swim, relax in. The guys climbed rocks while Jackie and I relaxed.
Pig Beach was not very far away so off we sent to find the pigs.
Day 4
Saturday, March 14
Did wash, made water, hiked, got eggs!!! Checked out the airport where Wellers will fly out of. Missed the beach party last night but they are doing the same thing next Friday night on Pig Beach. I did wonder what happen to all the pigs on Pib Beach.
Taking naps before dinner. John and Jackie leave tomorrow so we are going out to celebrate a great week.
Dingy dock was pretty full. We had to wait for the dinner bell to ring before we could be seated. 5 course meal. Excellent! What a nice ending to an amazing week of fun.
On the left are police badges left at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club.
Sunday, March 15
Wellers last day. So sad to see them leave. We did so much in a week. Great time!
New crew has come in. Jason and Kate Briggs. They have already had quite the adventure. Flew into Nassau after being delayed. Bomb threat when trying to fly from Nassau to Staniel Cay. Finally got here by noon. Looking forward to the week!
