Bananaquits and Boo Boo Hill

Our next stop south was Norman’s Cay which was famous for its cocaine smuggling operation in the 70s and early 80s. In the main harbor there is a half submerged plane left by a few of the smugglers that didn’t quite make their get-a-way. We dingyed over to see the wreck and were disappointed since most of it has now corroded away. We saw another Nordhavn (South by West) anchored nearby and were invited to late afternoon cocktails on their boat. It was 11 feet longer than Emily Grace and a decade newer with loads more storage and freezer space. I guess everything is a trade-off. If I had needed to save enough to buy their boat, I would still be working today!

After Norman’s we moved further south and entered a 22 mile area known as the Exuma Land and Sea Park. There are no commercial developments and the taking of any fish, lobsters and conch is prohibited. Our first stop was in Warderick Wells which was so named since it has a precious fresh water well that was prized by early sailors. We piloted in near Emerald Rock and took one of the many moorings placed there to protect the fragile reefs.

Once ashore, we were captivated by small Bananaquit birds that were tame enough to eat sugar, seeds and orange slices right from our hands. This was mesmerizing for Emily and brought back memories of her Great Uncle Joe feeding birds and chipmunks at their Cape Cod home. We enjoyed some of their 4 miles of trails and climbed Boo Boo Hill and saw some blow holes on the windward coast. At the top of Boo Boo Hill we were rewarded with sweeping views of the island and cruisers leave mementos there with their boat names. We did not add to this particular scrap heap but recorded our time there in the guest log at the ranger’s station.

We did have one scary moment after our arrival. We launched the dingy with our electric winches and after the boat was in the water, proceeded to clip the harness onto the boat before unplugging the handheld control units. The winches began to operate by themselves pulling the lifting lines taught. The captain raced to unplug the units but not before the winches bent a ¼” stainless bracket and began ripping it out of the fiberglass. With my multimeter and the little bit of investigative work, I found some corrosion and some electrical tape covering up some shoddy work done by a previous owner. Luckily, I had plenty of parts to fix the electric problems (correctly this time). I bent the bracket back into shape with a vice at the rangers station and repaired the minor fiberglass damage and before nightfall, the boat was better than new!

Cruising is truly just doing boat repairs in exotic locations.

Tom