After all the fun we’d been having in Staniel Cay what else could there be? Turns out there are SHARKS!! Well, just nurse sharks but they were fun to watch. Patrick, Greg and Kara pet, fed and even swam with the sharks!
We also had a nice dinner out at the Staniel Cay yacht club. We enjoyed the calm evening and the good company.
Finally though it was time for them to leave. Bye guys….we had a blast!!
On a very hot day we decided to go hike around Staniel Cay. I love these islands where you can hike around pretty much the whole thing in a few hours. The views of the water were stunning as usual. The only thing about going on a really hot day was that with no shade Stanley quickly got overheated. Poor doggie. Good thing he found a rock to dig under to make his own little shady spot!
We heard there was a sunken plane off of Staniel Cay that you could go and snorkel. So we all hopped in the dinghy and headed over to check it out. It got shallow in spots so Greg helped out by checking the depth.
We had a nice dinghy ride checking out the other side of the island.
Finally we found it. It was just a small island commuter plane but pretty cool.
Then an epidemic of underwater selfies occurred. 🙂
One of the other attractions near Staniel Cay is the swimming pigs at Big Major Spot. They swim out to your boat looking for food and then retreat back to land when they’ve eaten all your food. Of course we had to go see them! They look so adorable in the water as they are coming out to greet you, but when you get to land you realize how big they are! We brought a bunch of scraps to feed them plus a few extra treats. Patrick saved a piece of his bacon from breakfast to feed them and Ryan brought a beer. HAHA. They definitely enjoyed both! And when we ran out of food they tried to nibble on Patrick’s leg!
Swimming pigs = cute
On land pigs = not as cute!
Getting fed scraps and bacon
Getting some beer
One of the attractions of Staniel Cay is the Thunderball Grotto. You swim into this cave which has a shaft of sunlight coming through a hole in the ceiling and snorkel with the fish. And, if you’re brave/crazy you can jump from that hole about 30ft down into the water below. Thunderball Grotto was made famous by the James Bond movie Thunderball filmed around Staniel Cay in 1964.
And here is our crazy friend Greg jumping from the ceiling!
The jump
The hole.
The splash
Hitting the water
We had a nice day for our sail up to Staniel Cay. We were on the bank so that meant the deepest water we saw in miles was about 20ft. Everyone relaxed and enjoyed the views. While of course keeping an eye out for coral heads!
Views of Staniel Cay.
Thanks to the crew we got some pictures of us in action anchoring the boat.
Attaching the bridle.
Watching the anchor go down.
Greg checking the anchor.
It was time to say goodbye to George Town. We stayed a little longer than we’d planned so that we could pick up our friends Patrick, Greg and Kara. Once they arrived we gave them a day to enjoy the sites of George Town (i.e. swimming in the gorgeous water and Chat n Chill) and then headed out.
After our morning chores were done it was time to test the water. Lots of jumping off the boat and swimming ensued.
Patrick in the air.
Greg and Patrick in the water.
After getting tired out from swimming it was time to hit the Chat n Chill for a cold one. We relaxed on the benches outside, then played some volleyball and had one last CnC cold one with our friends Bill and Laurie.
Beer boy
Starting to relax.
Patrick, Greg and Kara
Patrick checking out the stingray.
Chilling….. and Chatting
The next day we headed north for Little Farmers. It was a nice day to be out on the water. The cut was a little hairy but with Ryan at the helm we made it with no problems. We anchored off a secluded beach for the night and everybody but Stanley and I swam to shore for some afternoon entertainment. Stanley and I took the dinghy and hung out on the beach until the others arrived.
A nice sunset topped off the evening.
The sand bar on Stocking Island is a cool place that you can go explore at low tide. You can beach your dinghy on the sand bar and walk around through about a foot of water. We had fun walking around looking at all the sand dollars and a few starfish. And of course watching Stanley play!
Beaching the dinghy
Views of the sand bar
Stanley running around
Stanley swimming!! Stanley is not much of a swimmer. That’s why he has that Oh No look on his face. Ryan had to carry him out some because he kept trying to head back toward shore!!
The wild life of the sand bar
We spent most of our time in George Town anchored off of Sand Dollar Beach on Stocking Island. There are a few distinct areas where people anchor. Kidd’s Cove is right by town so you go there if you need grocerys, water or have some business in town. Volleyball beach is right in front of the Chat N Chill so that’s where all the party people go. Monument is supposed to be nice but more buggy. And then Sand Dollar where we stayed is nice and quiet and protected. And it had the added benefit of being right next to our friends Kirk and Donna on Ainulindale!
We took a walk with them one day to the beach on the Atlantic side and enjoyed the views over there.
Getting to the beach
Gorgeous photos of the beach
Gorgeous (ha ha) photo of us
Some funny little birds
More pictures of Stanley playing on a beach
We made it to George Town Exumas. This is an interesting place as it is the winter home of a number of cruising boats. People come down here and stay for months anchored in the harbor. They plan social outings and congregate daily for beers, volleyball, dominoes and some chatting and chilling at the Chat n Chill Bar and Restaurant.
Ryan and I found out that they call it the Chat n Chill because you have plenty of time to do that while you’re waiting in line to get a beer. And just try and get something to eat! They have embraced the slow food movement. 😉 That aside the staff are really friendly and the crowd of cruisers is fun to hang out with.
Inside the restaurant
Outside at the benches and on the beach
The friendly wild life
