Sailing Ohana

Staniel was the first island we visited since checking in that has a marina, a community, and a couple of tiny markets. This was the also first anchorage where we were among a relativity large number of boats, so we assumed we’d start to see more kid boats. There are rarely any charter sailboats in this area, because it tends to be too long of a sail from the Nassau base, although there are plenty of power boats because they can go far and fast. We anchored near the famous Pig Beach where tourists feed the swimming pigs. It is also close to the Cruisers’ Beach and Dog Beach, where I reminisced about taking Morris several times last year. As much as he was a handful on the boat, I sure do miss him a lot.

We needed fresh produce and wanted to get fuel for the boat and the dinghy. We took the dinghy to the marina, which is the historic Staniel Cay Yacht Club that has been in operation since 1956. Since it was Sunday, we found out that the market wouldn’t be open for another 2 hours, so we took the opportunity to play a couple games of pool in the funky bar area, then have a really nice lunch in the swankier, air-conditioned section of the restaurant when it opened. Jackson ate almost an entire margarita pizza. The boys are growing fast, and all of the outdoor activity, sea air, and sailing life adds to their appetite.

We had a nice walk to the market and got produce. We were a bit early, and since these little Bahamian shops are usually run by owners who either live very close by, the proprietor opened it up early when she looked out of her window and saw us coming. It was lovely to stock up on only perishables, rather than having to resupply more heavy provisions like we did last year…. A lot cheaper too. We also didn’t need to buy bread, because after years of mixed results, Tommy is successfully making yummy boat bread!

Our main purpose at Staniel was to reprovision, but Jackson also REALLY wanted to revisit Thunderball Grotto, the semi-underwater cave that we went to last year. It is featured in a couple of James Bond movies, Splash, and others, and is very well known around here. Because of the sketchy underwater entrance, it is important to visit only at low slack tide. We didn’t expect our timing to work, but fortunately our second morning was perfect for it! Last year there was a tourist group that had a bunch of crackers, and all the fish surrounded them the whole time. So this time we decided to bring a couple of old stale granola bars that we’ve been dragging around with us, and it was a huge hit. We had the place to ourselves at first, and saw some really spectacular fish. There were the largest queen angelfish I’ve ever seen, and it was hilarious to see Spencer literally covered in fish from head to toe as he pulled out the granola bar underwater.

A successful docking and refueling after having to wait in the channel next to the fuel dock while other boats fueled up completed out short visit to Staniel.