"And spend thousands of dollars of my own money too?" I added.
"Absolutely!" I replied without hesitation.
It was early in 2018 and The Boy had been in the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) for almost the past two years. One of the reasons he had joined his troop was their focus on going to high adventure bases. The BSA has four of these. The most well-known is Philmont, a backpacking hike in New Mexico. There is also Northern Tier, a canoeing journey through the Boundary Waters at the US-Canada border, and Seabase, a sailing voyage in the Caribbean. The newest and least popular one is The Summit Bechtel Reserve where scouts can do a potpourri of outdoor activities in West Virginia. Although I was an Eagle Scout 30 years prior, my troop had not participated in theses activities. It was my job to make sure The Boy had a chance. His troop usually rotated through the first three high adventure bases each year.
In the summer of 2018, his troop would be going to Northern Tier. The Boy would miss the age cutoff to go by a year. However, he would be eligible to attend Seabase in 2019, which was next in the rotation. Big Blue, one of the other fathers and assistant scoutmasters, took charge of the trip and inquired if The Boy and I were interested in going. Not only did I sign us both up, but I also volunteered to help Big Blue with making the arrangements.
We only had a few weeks to get our preferences in before the Seabase 2019 lottery. We mulled over the options including an island-based trip in the Florida Keys or sailing adventures in Florida, the Bahamas, or the British Virgin Islands. We quickly nixed the island-based activity as our troop had hated it when they went several years ago. We decided that we would try to focus on a sailing trip in the Bahamas. It wouldn't be cheap, but as one of our other assistant scoutmasters often says, "Go big, or go home."
We had 20 people from my son's troop sign up to go. Our first preference was a tall ships option that could fit up to 24 people. Our second choice was two smaller ships that could hold 8-12 people each. We picked several more preferences, with the very last one being a STEM-based cruise out of Florida. We really didn't want to ruin any of the scout's summers with schoolwork.
In March of 2018, the lottery results came back and we were overjoyed that we got our second choice of two 10-12 person sailboats. Our troop would be charged a little over $10,000 for a week's trip on each. The trip would leave out of Marsh Harbour in the Abacos Islands of Bahamas in June of 2019.
Over the next several months, we pored over different strategies on how we could try and cut the airline costs to get to the Bahamas. We decided that for everybody to go together, we would have to go through the group ticket purchasing. Unfortunately, that would mean that there would be no super deals. There was no way around it, the airplane tickets would cost about $1,200 per person. Altogether, we estimated that the total cost for each person would be around $2,500.
Over the next year, we had people dropping out like flies. Some realized that they had conflicts with summer camps or family vacations and others for cost reasons. One parent even forbade her son to go because the BSA wouldn't require him to wear a life preserver 24/7 while on the boat. How does one sleep or poop while wearing a PFD?!? By spring of 2019, we found ourselves down to only 14 people who were attending--way less than the recommended number for the two boats. We had the minimum number of adults allowed, Big Blue, The Accountant, The Last Boyscout, and I. We had paid our deposits for the two boats. Those that were going were faced with a hefty cost.
Less than two months before the adventure would began, Towelie, one of the scout's dads, signed on. He figured that this would be a good chance for him to spend time with his youngest son without having to hike up a mountain or spend time in a tent. Then we got an email from Too Sexy For My Shirt, an assistant scoutmaster for a troop 45 minutes north of us. He and two of his older scouts were interested in joining our crew. Neither Big Blue nor I knew him. He could have been one of the 12,000 pedophiles on the BSA's perversion files, or he could have been a serial killer who murders hobos. Some folks we know vouched for him, so we welcomed him and his scouts to our plucky band of landlubbers. We eventually found out that Too Sexy For My Shirt was such a generous guy that he paid for not only himself, but also for one of his scouts to attend.
We held two training and planning meetings in the weeks before our trip. The scouts were given a crash course of sailing terminology, theory, and etiquette. They were also given specific packing instructions on clothing and gear. Space is limited and precious on sailboats. Plus, we wanted everybody to have all their gear in a carry-on bag. If their luggage were lost en-route, then they would be up the creek for the remainder of the trip.
Big Blue and I divided our adults and scouts into two different crews, one for each sailboat. We didn't really know the boys from the other troop very well, so Big Blue and I thought it would be best if we put ourselves on the boat with Too Sexy For My Shirt and his two scouts--Coverboy and Personal Jesus. We were the two adults in charge, and we felt it was our responsibility to handle any personal conflicts that may arise. In addition, we had four of our scouts including The Boy, The Baptizer, Sugarcrash, and Nikola (Big Blue's son).
*****
We all rendezvoused at the airport at 4 AM for our 6 AM flight. My worst fears were for naught as all the boys and accompanying parents arrived on time with all of their documents. Our American Airlines itinerary took us to Miami with a quick connection to Marsh Harbour. On the approach to Marsh Harbour Airport, we were given quite a scare as our pilot turned too sharply and stalled the plane. We dropped like a rock before he was able to recover airspeed and land safely. For some of the scouts, this was their first flight ever. They were a bit shaken up by the experience.
After going through customs without any smart-ass kids being detained, we were met by the manager of the Pelican Beach Villas, our hotel for the night. She had arranged for three vans to transport the 18 of us to our accommodations. On the ride there, she also dropped a bomb on us. It was the Labor Day Holiday in the Bahamas. Pretty much nothing would be open despite it being a Friday. The people in the Bahamas are not known for their hard working ethic. But at least they do some work. Today, most would be doing none. This would put a huge damper on my plans to purchase a local sims card for my phone.
We were concerned because we had brought no food for lunch or dinner. We didn't even have any drinks and were uncertain whether the Bahamian tap water is safe to drink (it is but tastes soft). Luckily, there were some eateries open on the island. Unfortunately, they were at least a 20-30 minute walk from our hotel. Taxis would be easy, but we had not budgeted for multiple trips for 18 people. Therefore, we sent one of the adults, The Last Boy Scout, to the restaurant to bring back food for everybody. In the meantime, everybody else would get settled into their villas. I shared a villa with Big Blue, another dad--The Accountant, and our kids.
Five minutes after we arrived, the power for the whole place went out. Power outages are not uncommon in the Bahamas, but we had no idea when it would be restored. We had no air conditioning and it was 92 degrees Fahrenheit outside. So far, the trip had not started off well.
Everybody decided to get in the ocean and cool off. The glaring sun was soon replaced by overcast skies. Nobody was too worried about applying sunscreen.
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| Too Sexy For My Shirt basks in the refreshing waters of the Caribbean. |
The scouts were having fun jumping from the rocks into the deep channel that led into the boat harbor. Some of the boys tried their luck at snagging coconuts. Using rocks, they were able to knock a few down from one of the trees. Without the proper tools, it seemed like a lot of work just to get a little coconut water.
We were a little concerned as we noticed that Coverboy and Personal Jesus kept to themselves. We had been hopeful that this free afternoon of fun would help them become integrated with the boys from our troop. So far it wasn't happening.
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| Nikola pounds a coconut in vain. |
Eventually, The Last Boy Scout returned with burgers and fries from Snappas Bar and Grill. He had also managed to secure some bottled water and ice from a nearby convenience store that was still open. Curiously, he also came back with three large watermelons. When he told me that they were about $18 a piece, I had flashbacks that I was back in Tokyo again.
Later that afternoon, we let a resounding huzzah when the power came back on. The adults were happy that they got air conditioning. The boys were happy that they got WiFi. In the comfort of the nice cool villas, each crew of boys met and elected a leader. For our boat, Coverboy would eagerly fulfill that role. The Boy was relieved that he wouldn't have to bear that responsibility. As the troop's senior patrol leader for the past six months, he had been getting weary of the tedious tasks of making sure people did their jobs. He looked forward to not having to deal with that stress.
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| Despite being in paradise, The Accountant and I were glued to our television, watching endless episodes of mind-numbing "Live PD" |
Our attempts at scouting the general area revealed no open restaurants. We decided that we would all make the 30 minute walk to go to an open restaurant Colours By the Sea. The actual terrain isn't bad--it's mainly flat. The roads have no sidewalks, but thankfully, people don't drive very fast. The worst part was having to leave the comfort of the air-conditioned villas. The heat and humidity meant that I was dripping with sweat when we arrived at the restaurant.
It was great that the restaurant could accommodate our large group of 18 people. The food was fine albeit a little pricey (everything in the Bahamas is!). The service was very slow. I had a tasty fried snapper and shared a plate of conch fritters with The Last Boy Scout. The dish really should have been called fried dough with conch flavoring.
It was already dark outside and the roads in Marsh Harbour are unlit. We deemed it prudent not to walk back, so we hired taxis to ferry us back to the Pelican Beach Villas. It had been a very long day, and everybody was tired. A lot of people got a good night's sleep that evening.
*****
Saturday, June 8, 2019
*****
I was awake very early like I always do. My shoulders were red and burning. I must have gotten sunburned while wading in the ocean the day before. From there on out, I vowed to use sunscreen religiously for the remainder of the trip.
I killed time quietly as nobody else was stirring. However, by the time the sun was high in the sky, most of our group was still holed up in their villas. Big Blue lamented the fact that Pelican Beach Villas had no snorkeling equipment that we could rent as he wanted to check out the mangroves behind our hotel. That prompted me to pull out the scuba mask and snorkel set for both The Boy and I. Big Blue and I donned the equipment and headed out for some snorkeling.
We swam around the mangroves, but the water was too murky to see very much. We headed out of the harbor and swam along the rocks. There were some small, colorless fish, but nothing really to get excited about.
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| Mangrove trees behind the Pelican Beach Villas |
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| Checkered puffer fish |
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| Sea anemone |
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| Tiny underwater tree |
By the time that we were finished, the rest of our crew was finally awake. We got everybody together and made the 15 minute walk to Jamie's Place Restaurant. The restaurant was not very big so our group took up half of the restaurant. I ate a breakfast sandwich and quaffed a much needed mug of coffee.
We returned to the Pelican Beach Villas and packed up all of our gear. We were supposed to be checked out of the hotel by 11 AM, and it was already closer to noon. We hired taxis to take us to the Conch Inn and Marina, where we would meet up with the people in charge of Seabase. We did make sure that we brought our three uneaten watermelons too.
At the dock, we had a couple of hours to kill before we could board our boats. By then, the town was being engulfed in a torrential downpour, a common occurrence for the island. While some folks went off to eat, I took the opportunity to take a cab to the Aliv store to purchase a sim card and two sequential 7 day cellular and data plans. The total cost was high at around $30. Plus there was another $18 for the taxi driver. On the way back, I did take the opportunity to buy a container of conch salad that was made fresh at a small stall on the dock. The proprietor, named George, has been selling conch salad from that spot for over twenty years. As I watched him hammer the conch shell and retrieve the animal, George explained that he goes through more than 30 conch a day. He charges $12 for the salad which contains the meat of one whole conch. It was interesting to see that, in addition to peppers, onions, limes, and tomatoes, he added an orange-flavored soda for extra flavoring. George's conch salad was amazing. It's spicy and tart like a ceviche.
Eventually, the Seabase representatives arrived, and she checked that all our paperwork was in good order. She gave us a general briefing on behaving ourselves while at sea and in the ports. Apparently, some previous scout crews were involved with shoplifting and vandalism, marring the reputation of the BSA in the eyes of the locals. Once the scouts were dismissed, the adult advisers were all told that no liquor would be tolerated during our journey. The Accountant tried to clarify whether alcohol would be allowed if we were not in the presence of the scouts and off the boat. She shot his inquiries down quickly. At that point, it ultimately dawned on the The Accountant that it was going to be a very long week.
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| The scouts learned that the drinking age in the Bahamas is 18, so none of them should be tempted. |
We then proceeded to divide our folks up into their prospective boat. The other crew was first taken to their vessel, the Observation. It was a mono-hull sailboat--a 53 foot Gulfstar Ketch. Moored right next to it was a beat-up 30-something foot sailboat with peeling paint. Our hearts sank as we laid eyes on the derelict dinghy where we would be spending the next 5 nights. A few curse words were muttered under my breath. We were told to gather all of our gear and we started walking down the docks towards our watery grave. However, our spirits were lifted when the Seabase administrator walked right past that boat. She stopped in front of a large 50 foot catamaran called the Viento Azul. She was a beauty.
We heard some gripping and complaining from the boys in Boat B when they saw us boarding the catamaran, Those grumblings were fleeting once they realized how nice their sailboat was too. Their captain, Lord Nelson, quickly got all their gear aboard, including two of the $18 watermelons. Since they had a pretty good head start on us, they motored off out of the harbor just as we were getting acquainted with our boat. Both of our captains knew that we had requested for both our boats to try and stick as close together as possible. After all, our friends were in the other boat. We would find out that this would not be a feasible request.
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| The Observation on the move |
We were introduced to the ship's crew, El Capitán and his first mate Momoa. El Capitán grew up in Florida to a sailing family. He had raced sailboats much of his life. During our journey, he would regale us with stories about those days. Who knew that the garbage pile is the most comfortable spot to sleep at during a multi-day competition! His wife was his usual first mate (or vice versa), but she was back in Florida working on her graduate degree.
Momoa turned out to be a former Eagle Scout. In his short time on the planet, he has traveled to over 35 countries in the world doing missionary work. He had grown up land-locked but was always in awe of the ocean. Without any prior sailing experience, he had made inquiries to the BSA about being a first mate on a sailboat. He was working construction in Arkansas when he got the call to join the fleet. Over a year later, he is studying to get his charter captain's license. He has anticipated that he will have had enough time on the water to qualify to take the exam by the end of the summer. Try as I might, I can't recall meeting anybody else who had a more positive, can-do attitude than Momoa.
El Capitán told us about the Viento Azul. It is a 2015 Voyager 48 that was built in South Africa and sailed across the Atlantic to the Caribbean. After only a year or so of use, it was sunk in a hurricane. It was eventually raised, but was full of barnacles--inside and out--having been underwater for so long. El Capitan and his friends purchased the boat as well as another Voyager 48 that had also been destroyed by the hurricane at deep discounts. Between the two boats, they were able to scrap together enough parts to make one awesome boat. They did most of the repair work themselves which saved money. There was still more work to be done as some of the lights were still non-functional. But overall it was ship-shape.
Once all of our gear was stowed away, Momoa had the scouts remove the fenders. El Capitán carefully backed the boat away from the dock while our virgin deckhands kept it from bumping the pier. A few minutes later, we were out of the harbor and cruising along in open water.
We motored eastwards and passed the Observation which was anchored not too far from the shores of the Pelican Beach Villas. We arrived at a nearby island called Matt Lowe's Cay and dropped anchor. Who is Matt Lowe? Who knows? But 200 years ago, the location was known as a base for pirate operations. Currently, there are plans to develop it into a 4 or 5 star boutique resort. In essence, nothing has changed.
We anchored several hundred feet off of shore. It was time for us to do our mandatory BSA swim test. The ability to swim is a reasonable prerequisite for Seabase. We had all supposedly performed the test back home and been signed off on it. But the powers that be required that everybody demonstrate their prowess to their ship captains. Anyone who failed would be returned to Marsh Harbour and their adventure would be over. We hopped in the water and did two laps around the boat. As expected, everybody passed easily.
Back on the boat, El Capitán and Momoa demonstrated to the scouts how to properly use a mask, snorkel, and fins. We would have some free time to do some snorkeling. It would be the first time for The Baptizer, Coverboy, and Personal Jesus, so they were excited. El Capitán also explained that the BSA regulations require us to put on a snorkeling vest every time we get in the water. And people always have to swim with a buddy. We let out a collective groan, but safety was important.
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| Getting into and out of the ocean is easy in catamaran via the aft transoms. |
We kept a closer eye on the first-time snorkelers but they did just fine.
Back in the water, we could see that the cove was only about 10 feet deep. The ocean floor was covered in sea grass and not much else at all. There were only a couple of small, mono-colored fish. We saw the occasional conch shell, but most had been harvested and were empty.
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| This fish played hide-and-go-seek with this empty conch shell. |
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| This concentration of empty mussel shells was a likely anchor site for a previous boat. |
Overall, this was not an impressive dive site. It was mainly just grass. But it accomplished the main goal which was to test our swimming abilities in a safe secluded cove, and give the first-timers an introduction to snorkeling equipment.
The sun was starting to dip down in the sky. It was time for us to cook dinner. The Viento Azul had been stocked with enough food to last us the rest of the week. The majority of the rations are shipped weekly from Florida. Our crew leader divided the scouts into a cooking team and a "kitchen patrol" (cleaning) team. They would swap roles daily. Momoa gave the scouts a tour of the kitchen and showed them how to use the gas mini grill.
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| The ship's well-stocked kitchen |
Burgers were on the menu for that night. Coverboy boasted that he makes the best burgers, so he was given that task. The rest of the cooks sliced some tomatoes and heated up some canned baked beans. To try and liven it up, we added a large helping of Mrs. Butterworth's "maple" syrup to the beans. Unfortunately, it didn't improve the taste significantly. Nevertheless, the burgers were still delicious.
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| Coverboy cooks burgers on the mini grill while The Boy pretends to act busy. |
Momoa demonstrated to the scouts how to do KP duty. The Viento Azul could hold about 300 gallons of fresh water. We could refill that tank, but we would have to go back to port, which was a hassle. We would have to use our freshwater sparingly. (Later we learned that he also had a fresh water generator that could supplement the fresh water supply). Two large bins were first filled with ocean water. Soap was placed into one bin. From there, the dirty plates and dishes were scrubbed thoroughly. Once the plate was detritus free, it was dunked in the bin containing ocean water only and then set aside. Once all the kitchenware had gone through that initial scrubbing and rinsing, the two bins were emptied. One was filled with fresh water, and each item went through another rinse. The dishes and cutlery were then towel-dried and stowed away.
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| KP duty was harder than using a machine dishwater, but it got the kitchenware relatively clean. |
Despite the sun setting, I was still feeling hot, sticky, and dirty. Although the catamaran had showers in each bathroom, they were not in use. El Capitán showed us how "real sailors" cleaned themselves--the Joy bath. The person jumps in the ocean to get himself soaked. When he comes out of the water, he lathers his whole body from head to toe with lemon-fresh Joy. He then jumps back in the ocean and rinses himself off. After climbing back up, he rinses himself off with a small amount of fresh water. Basically, we would be cleaning ourselves off like a dirty dish. I did a Joy bath and it felt wonderful. There was also an added bonus as my swim trunks were now also "clean." Any wet clothing or towels were attached to the wire lifelines with clothespins.
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| When the sun was out, our clothes usually dried within a few hours. |
As the sun set, it was time for everybody to figure out where they would be sleeping. El Capitán had his own room and bed. Momoa had a small, single berth in a cubbyhole that was attached to the bedroom shared by the adults. We deemed its en-suite bathroom to be off-limits to the boys.
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| The first mate's cabin |
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| Three adults sharing this bed? Nope. |
The remaining two cabins and one remaining bathroom would be shared by the six scouts.
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| Stairs lead down to this stateroom shared by the scouts |
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| The crew leader claimed this bunk. He always kept the hatch closed making it unbearably hot. |
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| The scouts also had access to a queen-sized bed. |
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| The boys could also use a full-sized bed in the aft section. |
There would be no air conditioning running, but small fans would help keep people cool.
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| Open hatches also helped with air circulation. But they also allow rain to soak your bed. |
Although we limited ourselves to one duffel bag's worth of clothing and gear, finding space to put our belongings was tough. Sharing a bed would be even tougher. I eyed the queen-sized mattress and decided that I would not be sharing that with two other men, especially in the hot, humid air. Too Sexy For My Shirt didn't care. He remarked that he had been in the Navy. He had slept in a cramped and noisy bunk below the catapult when he was stationed on a carrier.
I decided to sleep on the deck of the catamaran--specifically the trampoline at the bow of the boat. This area would get the strongest breeze. Half of the boys decided to sleep below deck. Others also wanted to sleep on the trampoline, others in the aft cockpit of the boat.
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| There was very little cold wind on the aft deck. All one really needed to sleep was a mattress pad and pillow. |
We had anticipated that people would want to sleep on the ship's deck. We had instructed people to bring an inflatable sleeping pad, a thin sleeping bag liner, and an inflatable pillow. Those items made a very effective, portable bed. The only problem is they had a tendency to fly off when there's a decent breeze. Luckily, nobody lost any bedding overboard.
That first night, four other people and I slept out on the trampoline. It was initially hot, so I slept on top of my sleeping bag liner. As the night progressed, it got colder and colder. At 2 AM, I found myself curled up in a fetal position inside my bag just to keep warm. I did have the presence to look up at the night sky. With no other ambient light, the stars were shining brilliantly. That view was worth the shivering.
*****
Sunday, June 9, 2019
******
Eventually, I woke up at 5 AM like I always do. I looked around and noticed that there was only one other person left remaining on the trampoline. Everybody else had found it too cold and went below deck.
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| Nikola rode out that first night, but relocated to a stateroom below deck from then on. |
As I walked back to the transom to take a leak off the back of the boat, I noticed that Sugarcrash was fast asleep in the pilot's chair. Since we were not in harbor, the scouts were instructed to keep somebody on watch throughout the night. They would each rotate two-hour shifts. With nothing really to do to entertain their short-attention spans, the boys on watch inevitably would doze off.
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| Personal Jesus was able to find the perfect spot under the table in the aft deck. None of the food scraps or trashed that we dropped down there bothered him. |
There is one unspoken rule in our troop. The first thing an adult does when he gets up is make a large pot of coffee. I enjoyed a cup of Folgers while watching the peaceful sunrise. No doubt, that's the best part of waking up.
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| If The Boy had only opened his eyes, he would have seen an amazing sunrise. |
Eventually, the entire boat was finally awake. Today's cooking team put together a breakfast of sausage and eggs.
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| We didn't have to worry about the food getting cold in the Bahamian heat. |
After KP was finished, El Capitán asked everybody if we were ready to do some sailing. Before the boys could answer, the dads all gave an affirmative "yes."
First, the boys were taught how to raise the anchor. El Capitán explained to the boys how the ocean depth factors in to how much anchor line is needed.
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| The Baptizer directs the raising of the ship's anchor. |
Next, Momoa prepared the main sail while El Capitán showed the scouts (and dads) how to raise and tighten it. The boat started moving across the Sea of Abacos. The boys then raise the jig and we started picking up more speed.
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| The scouts pull on the sheets to raise the main sail. |
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| El Capitán instructs The Boy on how to know how taut to pull the rigging for the sails. |
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| Keeping the ship clean and organized is important in sailing. Coverboy stows the excess line. |
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| The Viento Azul traveling at about 7.5 knots/hr. |
El Capitán radioed Lord Nelson to find their location so that we could join up with them. We tacked northwards until our sister crew's boat came into sight. We were heading in opposite directions from each other, so we turned around after blowing past each other.
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| The Observation could have sailed much faster if they weren't trying to reenact Titanic. |
The other boat was heading to Fowl's Cay where there are protected reefs offshore. We slipped in behind them and followed. Since catamarans tend to be faster than mono-hulls, we had to let out our sails a bit lest we overtake them.
As soon as the Observation arrived at the dive site and anchored, their scouts were jumping in the water in their snorkeling gear. They were quite efficient. We anchored a few hundred feet away. Our crew still needed to change to swimsuits and apply sunscreen (or don rash-guards) before we were ready to get in the water.
The first thing we saw in the water not far from our boat was a sea turtle. It was about 15 feet below the surface, so it was not alarmed by our presence. It was preoccupied with munching on the sea grass on the ocean floor.
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| The scouts marvel at the sea turtle below. |
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| Green sea turtle |
We had to swim about 30 yards against the light current before we reached the reef. It was teeming with colorful fish and corals.
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| The reef was shallow making it a challenge to snorkel above it. Most people swam around the perimeter. |
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| Common sea fan and brain coral |
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| Trumpet fish |
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| El Capitán followed our group of snorkelers in his dinghy in case anybody had problems. |
As we swam around the edges of the reef, my eyes were drawn to a vibrant orange color tucked between some rocks. Was this a nudibranch?!? As I swam closer to it, it dawned on me that this was no colorful creature. It was a brightly-colored float strapped to a camera. This device was supposed to allow a camera to float on top of the waves. However, this one was sitting on the bottom of the ocean floor. That'll get one star on Amazon.
I dived down and picked up the camera. I yelled aloud to everybody in the general vicinity about my find. The Last Boy Scout, who was at the tail end of his boat's snorkelers responded that he had lost his camera. It was a fortuitous discovery, and disaster was averted.
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| The Last Boy Scout is happily reunited with his camera. |
Although the smaller, colorful fish were exciting to observe, the adults were also hoping to find some bigger fish. We repeatedly dove down 10-20 feet to get a better look at the rocky crevices and shelves.
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| Big Blue finds a barracuda under the rocks. |
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| From a fisherman's perspective, it was at least 30 feet long. |
I'll be the first to admit that I was not in the best shape. My lung capacity was pitiful. After making several dives towards the ocean floor, it was getting harder and harder to catch my breath. My head started pounding and I was starting to feel nauseous. Luckily I was able to make it back to the Viento Azul without throwing up on that sea turtle who was still beside our boat munching on sea grass.
Even back on deck, I was still feeling very dizzy and sick. I slapped on a scopolamine patch in case my problem was merely sea sickness. I had to lay down on the aft deck where I promptly feel asleep.
I woke up and saw that the crew had broken out cold cuts and bread for lunch. I was feeling much better, so I helped myself to a few sandwiches. I noticed that the Observation was nowhere to be seen. While I was incapacitated, they had gathered up all their snorkelers and sailed away without communicating with our boat. So much for sticking together.
There looked to be a storm brewing far in the distance, El Capitán felt like we cold go one more snorkeling session in another nearby reef before it would arrive. Most of the scouts including The Boy were tired and declined to go back in the water. Although I wasn't feeling 100%, I was adamant not to turn down any opportunities to get in the water. Sugarcrash must have dipped into his stash of candy, as he was the only scout with the energy to go back out again. Therefore, I grabbed my snorkeling gear and paired up with him.
We swam to several adjacent reefs seeing similar healthy reefs full of fish and corals. There was a multitude of stingrays gliding along the ocean bottom deep below us. Although I was trying to take it easy, I started to feel sick again after 30 minutes of snorkeling. Once again, the feeling subsided after getting a long rest back on the boat.
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| The Bahamas in general do not have a great reputation for vibrant reef life. There was nothing wrong with Fowl's Cay. |
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| Sugarcrash dives down to the reef, searching for some unsuspecting fish that he could catch. |
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| A stingray with his remora buddy |
The storm that was brewing dissipated before it made it to us. Since the Observation had declined to tell us their destination, we decided to go on our own. We headed west towards the large island of Great Guana Cay.
El Capitán docked the boat at Fisher's Bay, and we took the dinghy towards shore. Since we couldn't all fit, we divided into two groups. I was dropped off in the first wave at the dock of Grabbers Bed, Bar, and Grill. In the age of Harvey Weinstein and the #MeToo movement, I could think of thousands of much better names. That is, unless you want your patrons to be sexually harassed.
Apparently Sunday is party day in Great Guana Cay. The bar was packed with people of all ages dancing to music that was blasting at high decibels. Most of the women were more on the larger side, but that didn't stop them from showing a lot of bare buttocks. Most of the men were shirtless with beet-red chests. They will feel that in the morning, but for now, they were all having a good time. Too Sexy For My Shirt and I escorted our group of underage boys out of the bar area and to a shaded hammock by the street. We decided that the boys should wait here for the rest of our group to come to shore.
I walked back over to the dock to make sure the incoming group knew where we were. I couldn't help but notice that there was a twerking contest taking place by the Grabbers pool area. The next thing I knew, there was a lady trying to twerk while doing a headstand. Thankfully, she had two of her friends supporting her legs, otherwise she would have toppled over. Midway through the twerking song, the DJ stopped the music and called off the contest. Apparently the bar wanted to keep things more PG-13. As I glanced back at the dock, I noticed that Too Sexy For My Shirt had materialized next to me. He was now bare-chested and had a wide grin on his face. Apparently, he was flattered that a random lady had pinched his butt. I guess the name Grabbers really is apropos.
After the rest of our crew arrived, we left the Grabbers area and headed across the narrow island to Nipper's Beach Bar and Grill. Some people are drawn there for their partying or their Sunday pig roast. Others like us head there to visit one of the best beaches in the Abacos. Just like Grabbers, Nipper's was having a pretty happening party, albeit not as raucous as the former. We passed through the restaurant and went down a set a stairs to the white sandy beach. We waded into the waters in front of several power boats with massive motors that were anchored right off the beach.
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| Perhaps all those motors are compensating for something... |
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| The partying and drinking at Nipper's extends out to the ocean. |
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| During our visit, the sea was as calm as a pond. El Capitán mentioned that in the previous week, it was rough enough for people to boogie board. |
The boys were having a good time just hanging out and talking. Unfortunately, there were too many drunks all around them who were acting like fools. One tried in vain to recruit Coverboy into helping him steal the catch from an unattended fishing boat. Another guy was on his hands and knees in the surf, throwing up. That was our cue to get out of the water.
With a group of boy scouts and a no alcohol rule, Grabbers and Nipper's really wasn't our scene. (Our sister crew in the Observation visited those places the following day and said that they were like ghost towns). We took the dinghy back to the boat. By then, it was already late afternoon so we got started with dinner. On the menu was grilled chicken breast, salad, and rice. Coverboy boasted that he makes the best grilled chicken, so we gave him the job of cooking them. To spruce up our salad, we grilled the romaine lettuce and added some oranges and grilled $18 watermelon slices. It took forever to grill everything so the food tasted really good to me since I was ravenously hungry.
After a refreshing Joy bath, I was ready to turn in for the night. Unfortunately, we had rain so I had to sleep in the covered aft deck. In the middle of the night, I awoke. The only noise was the light waves lapping against the side of the boat. The scout who was supposed to be on watch was fast asleep. The cloud cover had yielded to a bright array of stars that dotted the night sky. As I fell back to sleep, I thought to myself that the cruising life is not too bad at all.
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