Captain's Choice blog: Still in the Berry Islands

In keeping with our exercise routine we decided a long walk on the beach was in order Saturday morning. Walking on the sand really gave us a workout because this sand doesn't pack down, it's like walking in a mixture of flour and sugar, you just sink in. By the time we got back to the boat we had walked 6 miles and again had been delighted with the views and the color of the water.
When we got back, Melissa from Unforgettable (queue Nat King Cole singing) was inquiring if anyone wanted to go to dinner at Cooli Mae's along the water. She had their menu and you had to preorder, (which is common on many of the islands) bring your own drinks, and she was having the marina arrange transportation. There ended up being 5 couples; Unforgettable, Freedom, Parker Blue, Orca and ourselves that went and we had a lovely evening.
The restaurant is on the hill overlooking the anchorage and a perfect location to watch the sunset. As the sun was setting Brian from Freedom got everyone's attention and said make sure you watch for the "green flash". Most people commented that they had never seen the "green flash" but right on cue as if Brian had planned it the sun went down and everyone saw the "green flash". It only lasts a fraction of a second and is caused by light refracting in the atmosphere and is rarely seen. After the sunset we moved into the restaurant where our group were the only patrons for the evening. I have to keep reminding myself this is a very small island with a total population in 2010 of 353. Tourism is the main income in the Bahamian economy and the Bahamian people are some of the friendliest and happiest people you will meet.

On Sunday morning we decided to do some laundry by hand. The marina has laundry but at $5 a load to wash and $5 to dry we wanted to lighten the amount of wash so that I only had one load to do. It worked out well as we filled 2 5 gallon buckets with water and got to work. Sunday seemed to be laundry day for the majority of the boaters as laundry was hanging out to dry on a bunch of the boats. The marina also has loaner bikes and we thought that would be a great way to see the village of Bullocks Harbor. That must have been what everyone was thinking Sunday afternoon as there were only 2 bikes left and they didn't look reliable, so we walked. We had at least 6 cars stop and ask if we needed a ride but we told them we really wanted and needed the exercise. When we got back from the village we walked by Herbie who was making conch salad on the dock. After talking to Herbie about the different choices of salad we decided to try the traditional with peppers, onions, tomatoes, raw conch and not spicy. They use goat pepper, which I had never heard of, to make it spicy and Herbie only added a little...a little goes a long way...it gave it a gentle kick but I wouldn't have wanted anymore than what he put in. I looked up goat pepper when I got back to the boat and it comes from the Bahama Islands, is light orange/peach colored and has a fruity taste once you get past the burn. It is the hottest pepper from the islands! After he mixed all the ingredients he added fresh lime, lemon and orange juice. It was delicious and so far is my favorite way to eat conch. Mark liked it but liked the conch bites we tried the other day better. We hung around for awhile watching Herbie take the conch out of the shells, he had a back up of at least 4 people waiting for salads to be made.

The rest of the days have been filled with walking the beach, dinghy rides, exploring the village a little more, potluck dinner on the dock, happy hour on Unforgettable and soaking in the sun.

The weather is the talk around here with the boaters now. Most of us have been here for more than a week and the winds had not let up. Not that you mind being stuck on an island in the Bahamas, and if not for the breeze, the sun would be unbearable, but most of the boaters are ready to move on to other destinations. The big weather watch is on...looks like it could be Friday, it's a day to day thing.
This weather pattern will certainly change how many islands we will be able to see while we are here. We thought giving ourselves 2 months to be here would be enough, we were wrong, which only means we will have to come back. The sun and temperatures continue to be great, (so long as there's a breeze) we have had some spotty rain, some sprinkles, and rain that maybe lasted 10 minutes until today, Wednesday, when it down poured. That made the captain happy, FREE boat wash. Remember, the water here in the Bahamian islands is mostly RO, reverse osmosis, and costs vary, but 50 cents/gal seems to be the going rate.