Sadly we left Staniel Cay on the 15th (sad because it’s my favorite place so far), and moved down the island chain a bit to Cave Cay for an overnight anchorage. Next day we arrived at The Marina at Emerald Bay just south of Georgetown on Great Iguana Cay. We tucked in to the marina because south of here all you will find is the “out islands” before crossing to Turks and Caicos. There was a storm forecast with high winds and we decided we wanted to be somewhere protected and here we are. And here we stay as now the seas are rather more challenging than we would like. We’re looking for a weather window that will allow us to get to T&C which is about a four day adventure, anchoring each night. Maybe later in the week or even next week.
When we arrived at the marina we couldn’t figure out why there were almost no boats here. In a marina that can handle 133 boats there were perhaps 6. Our info had correctly stated that although this was at one time a top marina it had fallen quite far. Although the marina boasted electric and pump out facilities at each slip we found that most of the marina didn’t have electric and the pump out doesn’t work. But hey, we have a generator and pumpout in the Bahamas is more of an advertisement than a reality most anywhere. The staff more than makes up for the lack of upkeep tho with their helpful and friendly attitudes.
After a day or two here we noticed the marina started filling up. At this point it is mostly full with boats waiting for the seas to calm just like we are. It’s become a community and everyone is socializing and having drinks and making the best of being here.
There’s a top notch golf course next door. In fact, there was a PGA tournament happening the day we arrived. Gary decided to check out the action on the 17th hole on the last day and our granddaughter caught him on tv!
There’s also a Sandals Resort next door and for a price we can spend the day at the pool and eat to our hearts content. We’re not that bored yet. There’s also Grand Isle Resort a 10 minute walk away that has beaches and a nice restaurant that is available. The menu is big enough and varied enough that we haven’t run out of things to eat even tho we’re there at least every other day for a meal.
We’re 30 minutes from Georgetown so rented a car one day and made a run to the grocery store, hardware store and boat store. Seems like we make these same stops at any large town.
The lunar eclipse last night was spectacular! With a storm earlier in the evening we were worried that visibility would be nonexistent but the sky cleared and it was impressive.
If you’re not a golfer skip this paragraph- There doesn’t seem to be much demand for the golf course so I’m not sure how they keep it so pristine. Maybe it’s because the tournament just occurred. The front nine is between palm trees and mangrove clusters. The back nine for the most part is along the coast with all the challenges that brings. I managed to only lose 3 balls the first day. They don’t need to worry about marking any out of bounds areas. If you go too far off the course there is no retrieving the ball even if you do happen to see it. We managed to play twice. Once before the big winds and once as they were calming down. In between we took 4 clubs each and a handful of golf balls and played the 17th hole-downwind- over and over. I call it groundhog golf becuse of the movie. We got really long drives but the walk back up the hole against the wind was challenging.
We have noticed a lot of sharks on this passage. Nothing to worry about but can be a bit intimidating. The gentleman next to us was cleaning the bottom of his boat the other day and looked over to see a “buddy” watching him. The buddy was bigger than he was but just wanted to see what was going on. And that seems to be the extent of interest. They just want to know what is happening or are waiting for food to be thrown overboard.
