Staniel Cay, part 2

Date:  Jan 30 – Feb 2, 2020                          

the Pink Store

Comments:  We spent the last few days at Staniel Cay exploring the beaten path.  I have noticed Staniel Cay to be a very clean island.  They obviously make a strong effort to keep it tidy as we see workers landscaping and collecting garbage.  Many of the islands seem to have debris throughout; not necessarily the fault of the locals or visitors but wash up from the sea. 

The Blue Store

The mail boat is more than just the Pony Express.  Besides mail they are the supply boat for the island and arrive weekly.  The mail boat landed Wednesday evening and everyone on the island was aware; due to fresh veggie withdrawals.  Ruth and I went to the local stores on Thursday and scored enough food to last at least a week.  There are two grocery stores, the pink store and the blue store.  Between the two stores is a pink house and a blue house, where the owners live.  They are actually cousins.  The stores are smaller than a convenient store at home but seem to have everything.  The prices are about twice the price as in the US. 

Pig Beach

Pig Beach is well known and well visited.  It is one of the places, it is said, “you must see” while in the Bahamas.  So we did a drive-by Thursday morning without interaction.  Fortunately, there was one dinghy which arrived before us and had the complete attention of the pigs.  The visitors were holding the baby pigs for pictures and feeding the big ones.  We stayed 4 feet (of water under the boat) away.  

Thunderball Groto is where the James Bond movie Thunderball was filmed, as well as Never Say Never Again, Splash starring Tom Hanks and Into the Blue with Jessica Alba and Paul Walker.  It looked like we were going to miss the opportunity to snorkel into the grotto as it is only safe to enter without scuba gear at low, slack tide and the low tides were near 0500 and 1700; sleeping and eating times.  However, we made a run for it Friday around 1630 and found the tide and currents adequate for the adventure.  So we snorkeled through the entrance into the dome shaped structure. It was worth the effort!

We were invited aboard Don and Carol’s Island Packet 42’, Isle of Grace, for sundowners on Friday.  We met them during the big blow at Norman’s Cay, then ran into them a time or two at Black Point Settlement and again at Staniel Cay.  What a beautiful boat and such nice people.  

We are currently waiting out another norther, on this Super Bowl Sunday, which blew in last night.  We

Beautiful 150' vintage in our anchorage

plan to pull up anchor tomorrow morning and check out the iguanas, on Bitter Guana Cay, on our way back to Black Point Settlement, to pick up some water and refresh our clothes at the best laundromat in the Exumas.  From there, we are off to Farmer's Cay.