Ten days at Morgan’s Bluff is time enough to see the routine
and get the feel of the place. Mail boat
on Wednesday unless its Thursday, ESSO closes on the weekend, Unca Harvey’s
Water Loop bar closes on Monday, the usuals at the bar never stop.
It’s been a great visit.
Our last visit, we arrived one day, toured the island the next day, and
left on the third day. That’s the
difference in sailing on a timeframe versus sailing open ended. So much more
rewarding. We actually were able to wait for favorable winds! Not just go.
Unca Harvey's Water Loop bar, office, check-in
We met many new people and got to see our old friend
Lavarette Woodside, who turned 36 years old on September 9th. Unfortunately, Shonaray moved to Nassau, so
we missed her and her daughters, Abigail and Esther.
D and Lavarrette enjoy watermelon and talk in the Regatta village disco
Solomon Roberts, our local guide, took us to Red Bays to the
Black Seminole settlement, the Mennonite farm for fresh produce, and the grocery
store for other provisions.
Red Bays was interesting, a step back in time to a simpler
way of life. D toured it in 2011 on his
way back from the Bahamas with Harry after I flew back from Nassau to go to
work. He met Preacher Teacher Bertram A. Newton, who showed them all around and
gave them his book written in 1965 – The History of Red Bays. Basically, enslaved in the US, they escaped
to Florida before it because a state and made friends and lived in harmony with
the Seminole Indians. They even incorporated their dress and culture. In the 1820’s they lived in Angola where
Sarasota is now. When Florida became a
state the slave hunters went to get their property, so the Black Seminoles left
in canoes down the west coast of Florida to Cape Sable and headed to west coast
Andros, an isolated, uninhabited area where they hoped to live free and in
peace. They were discovered 7 years later
by a Bahamian official who took them to Nassau and pled their case. They then became free men and women. A sad
story for America.
Red Bays entrance
We watched them weaving baskets from thatch palms, saw the dining
hut where anyone can stop and eat, there is always something cooking and no one
goes hungry, three large #3 wash tubs of laundry, and very open and friend
people. We found Preacher Newton’s
widow, Rose Marshall Newton, and were able to pay our respects as her husband
had died in 2013 and her influential mother, Omelia Marshall, died in
2012.
Red Bays Settlement - Thatch bunch, Chicken, and Hut
Nickolas Ber is a weaver who learned from Mother Omelia
His son and daughter also weave.
Solomon took us to the sponge docks, another major industry for
Red Bays. All the boats that could were
out, including Pete the Greek, whom D met in 2011. Pete was from Greece and
lived in Tarpon Springs, Florida, before moving to Red Bays. The dock was decrepit and there were several
sunk boats in the bay. We saw carapace
of lobster in the clear water where someone cleaned lobster tails. We saw small sponges drying in the sun. Sponging seems to be in decline.
The sponge docks and a sunk boat
Next we went to the Mennonite farm for fresh produce, but
they had no harvest this time of the year, the next harvest was citrus in
November. They had a sign on the door, “We
expect our customers to be fully clothed.” I had on long sleeves and long
shorts.
So we went to the Supermarket on Queens Highway and they had
a good selection of produce and we picked up other provisions. Good day.
The supermarket on Queen's Highway
One day we took the dinghy to the small islands north of the
harbor to explore. So small they are not named on our charts! We dinghied around
the larger. It had 20 foot cliffs of coral and no beach access. The second island
had a small sandy beach access so we anchored the dinghy about 50 feet out and swam
in and walked the perimeter. It was hard coral all around with broken
shells and a low island brush interior.
It was about ¼ mile around. Then we snorkeled the reeks around it – just
lovely, so clear and the healthy with fish, and soft and hard, colorful
coral. There was a purple coral I’d
never seen before. Like a finger plume.
We saw 2 large trigger fish and lots of tropicals. No lobster!
Daryl swims to no name island and its reefs
We saw a panga boat, a long narrow skiff, 3 guys fishing. We
headed to them. They were diving and
catching lobster. It was Christopher and
Bob in the boat, and Mike in the water. We agreed to buy 2 lobsters after seeing
the size and asked that they bring them to our boat later. When they came they sold us 4 for $30 – good deal!
We grilled 2 and steamed 2. Delicious.
The most frequent question – Is Maine lobster or Caribbean crawfish
better? The main difference is claws,
Maine lobster has the tender tasty claws, so we’ll debate tail meat. There’s no debate, they are both fabulous. D says crawfish is not as lobstery, for what
that’s worth! To me they are both sweet meat.
To my surprise I found I preferred them steamed. They were juicier and
more tender.
Chris shows us their lobster, we buy 4.
One of the special people was Monroe, AKA Captain Hardass. He lives on his boat with his 2 skiffs. He is 70+ years old. He fishes, dives lobsters and conch and one
time on his way to Chub Cay his motor failed so he swam his boat the rest of
the way! He is also the conch chef. He makes the best conch salad! He shops for lime, peppers, onions and hot
peppers. He chops the salad, pounds the conch and mixes it in juices in his
little hut in the bar. For me he added
lobster which was a real treat. He also
serves me burnt conch salad – to this day I am unsure what that is, but he
assures me it’s not cooked and not spicy.
I think it’s the edge meat that is burnt orange in color. I think … to be determined. It’s not in
google. He is leaving for Chub Cay and
the Berries on Wednesday so we hope to see him again on this trip. Did I mention
he is also a dapper dresser?
Monroe AKA Captain Hardass, Conch Chef
Monroe's conch salad and Kalik
One last story before we leave Andros. We awoke one morning
to a black splash stain on the transom and bottom of the boat. It was very dark,
almost black, and about the size of a basketball. It didn’t smell and it was
smooth to the touch, like a stain on the gelcoat. As I dive in the water, I try
to wash it with a scrungy sponge. No
effect. I use tide, it cleans
everything. No effect. D says it may be organic, try bleach. I dab chlorox and
rub it again, voile! It disappears. We
conclude that an octopus must have been caught between the boat and dinghy and defensively
squirted its ink. That’s our story!
We enjoyed Andros and look forward to sailing to the next island,
New Providence (Nassau), where we hope to see Shonaray. We will not miss the mosquitoes and the
doctor flies!!
Favorable weather for crossing to Nassau
The harbor and beautiful water off Nassau
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