Long Island Agricultural Expo and Mutton Fest

“Mutton or Nuttin” Festival, Clarence Town

This agricultural expo was much like a north American fall festival or local fare. The aim was to show case local agriculture and fishing, accomplishments and encourage Bahamians to become more self sufficient and less dependent on imported goods.

Due to a last minute change of venue, from Regatta Park in Salt Pond, to the Community Center in Clarence Town, the Department of Agriculture arranged bus transportation for Salt Pond attendees. The majority of the passengers were grateful cruisers anchored in Thompson Bay, Salt Pond. The bus arrived in Clarence Town about noon, to find a few booths with vendors of produce, arts and crafts some livestock and almost no visitors.

It appeared that this would be a very long 8 hours, until the bus departed back to Salt Pond. We were wrong! The crowd remained thin until mid- afternoon. The cruisers enjoyed a very informative presentation about the invasive lionfish and its impact on Bahamian waters. 

This was followed by a demonstration on how to remove the venomous spines, rendering the fish safe to handle, and delicious to eat. Students from the islands two high schools competed in a local cuisine competition. Their fare far exceeded our expectations, both in presentation and taste. These kids have a bright future in the restaurant industry.

In between competitions and demonstrations, we enjoyed some local cuisine, fresh conch salad and conch fritters, washed down with what else, but an ice cold Kalik.     

                                               

Grouper skinning and conch cleaning competitions later drew a large local audience.

 The crowd was later treated to some “rake and scrape music from “The Originals, followed by a great Bahamian singer/ entertainer “Anita”. She certainly  was a crowd pleaser. This was an enlightening and fun experience, and certainly one we would repat again.

George Town to Rudder Cut Cay & Kaos Cave

Next morning, bright and early, we bade farewell to Georgetown, heading slowly north towards Staniel Cay.  Unfortunately for our guests, it was a bumpy ride out in the Sound. Due to these less than desirable conditions, we deviated from our original plan, and re-entered the Exuma Bank at Soldier Cay, the first cut, allowing us back inside. The ride calmed almost instantly and everyone was able to enjoy a coffee and the myriad shades of blues and turquoise displayed by the ever changing water depths. Alison and John both marveled at the crystal clear waters and its magnificent hues, which photographs fail to capture.

Our route took us through the shallows around Goat Cay (Faith Hill’s island) and Darby Island, and out towards Rudder Cut Cay, where we dropped anchor to view the caves at low tide. The wind was up and the waters choppy, making for a wet dinghy ride. Due to the rough waters, Alan remained in the dinghy, letting Alison, John and myself off for the photo op.

Another "Kaos" Moment!
It was the return trip back to” Kaos”, where the chaos began! The lumpy seas made exiting the dinghy and boarding Kaos a challenge. Poor John, weebled, when he should have wobbled, and ended up falling backwards into the water. Other than being soaked, he was fine, and after recovering his sunglasses and hat, he climbed safely aboard. Once all were aboard, it was time for Susann to hoist the anchor.

Just as the neck of the anchor was coming aboard, and about to settle securly into its cradle on the bow, it disappeared, crashing down into the water below. This was an “aw shit” moment! The 66 pound anchor had separated from the chain, which is not good. Confusion and chaos reigned for some time, as we deployed an alternate anchor. In order to get this anchor to hold, we had to move the boat in closer to shore, taking us away from where the first anchor fell, once again…..not good.  John and Alan donned their swim gear and headed off in the dinghy to try and find, then retrieve the lost anchor. Susann and Alison were left aboard to tend the ship and start the engines if the alternate anchor failed to hold. Miraculously, they located the anchor within minutes, but retrieving the sixty six pound weight was another issue. Thankfully, help arrived when two men from a sail boat anchored nearby witnessed our distress and came to our rescue. Without their assistance, Alan and John would have been unable to get the heavy anchor off the bottom and into the dinghy. As it was, it was too rough for Alan to hoist himself back into the dinghy, so john drove the dinghy with the anchor, and Alan had to swim back to the boat. Here the anchor was re-attached and pulled aboard. Apparently a bolt on the anchor swivel mechanism failed. All’s well that ends well, and we weren’t out a boat unit ($1,000) for a new anchor.

The cave at Rudder Cut Cay is now referred to by us as “Kaos Cave".
Note: This photo was not taken on that fateful morning.

George Town, Great Exuma

Shortly after noon, we arrived in Elizabeth Harbour, Georgetown. Once again, it was another early departure to capitalize on tides and wind. The ride south was pretty benign with a moderate swell from the east and wind on our stern from the north east. Our original plan was to stop at Emerald Bay Marina for breakfast and update facility for Waterway Guide. Once we made the turn into their channel, we had wind broad side and rage with wind against tide, making for an unpleasant ride into the marina basin. Upon arrival, we learned that the only restaurant was a healthy walk to the resort. The dock assigned to tie up for a couple of hours was untenable, so we aborted the visit and headed toward Georgetown. It was the start of Regatta week and we expected a very busy harbor, but learned that there were somewhere between 250 – 300 boats at anchor, a far cry from 600 boats just a few years prior.

After anchoring just west of Monument and Hamburger Beach, we launched the dink and headed to “Chat-N-Chill for a burger and beer. Following lunch, we went across to Lake Victoria and Exuma Market for some supplies. The produce supply boat comes into port on Thursday and the dairy/grocery ship arrives from Nassau on Monday.

Next day, we checked out “Club Peace and Plenty”, a charming historic landmark and hotel, where we had lunch and met a couple of Canadian sailors from Manitoba. They were aboard the catamaran “Midori” and had recently retired from Winnipeg to a small southern rural community, close to the US border. Lunch was delicious and the view from the pool patio, out across the harbor to the Monument and our anchorage picturesque.

We decided that we would meet John and Alison here for lunch when they arrived from Canada.

After our trip to town, we decided a walk and some exercise was in order and headed to the beach to try the trail up to the monument. It was a lovely easy climb with a brisk east wind to keep us cool as we ascended. The last segment was a little more challenging as we climbed the last few steps, cut out of the rock, but still well within our capabilities.

The view from the top was exhilarating.

We could see all the anchorages around the harbor.

Alison and John arrived the following blustery afternoon, and were blown away, (no pun intended) by the stunning turquoise waters. We enjoyed a poolside lunch, before making the wet trek across the harbor, back to the boat.

Regatta was in full swing now, and today was the “in harbour race”. It was warm and sunny, with plenty of sail boat fuel. There were about 30 boats competing in various classes, and we would have a good vantage point as the course took them through the harbor and anchorages. The dinghy and kayak were both in the water, leaving the deck empty enough for four lawn chairs and a patio table.

Listening to the commentary on the VHF radio, we enjoyed lunch up on the roof, watching the races. It was a fun afternoon and certainly something different for us. Later in the afternoon, we joined the revelers for the “sundowner” reception at St. Francis Resort, where we met many racers and spectators. All in all, a great day!