January 10, 2020 Spanish Wells, Bahamas

January 10, 2020

Bimini the day before our departure

North Bimini lobsters pre-departure

Departing friends on Blue Horizon

January 10, 2020 Happy Majority Rule Day in Spanish Wells off Eleuthera  in the Bahamas

Ringing in the New Year on Albacora

We left the Bimini Islands at 10:00 pm, December 30^th, gratefully leaving another hatch of nasty No-See-Ums in our wake.   We sailed for fifteen hours through the night under a mix of clear skies, big chop, rain and plenty of wind to satisfy Dietrich’s wish for lively sailing.   We settled at an anchorage near Bird Cay in the Barry Islands.  Australian cruisers on Albacora invited Calliope and the British Columbian cruisers on Blue Horizon for a New Year celebration.   It was a fine way to end 2019!  

Salsa at The Barrys

Minnows at Hoffman's cay

Hoffman's Cay, Berry Islands

A few days at a very bumpy, uncomfortable anchorage near Hoffman Cay left us exhausted.   However, the surrounding white sand beaches and snorkeling made the stay worthwhile.  

On sunny January 4^thwe had a rowdy ten hour sail to Spanish Wells off the island of Eleuthera.  We are at a private dock on a river (brackish water and electricity available for minimal cost above the nightly 50 cents a foot, a deal… Snapper Point Dock) fairly protected from the big winds keeping us here.   Pete and Sue Stott, on Salsa from Suttons Bay, are docked  10 minutes from us,  so we share information about weather and local finds.   

Trail to Spanish Wells beach

Spanish Wells beach

A fine Bailey Bridge to neighboring Russell Island

The island’s outlying topography is hilly, rocky, forested, dotted with small farms and meadows.  In town and along the beautiful shores, houses are mostly stuccoed masonry, painted and trimmed in white and a variety of pastels. There are still hints of British Colonial architecture.  Hurricane Dorian battered this area for three days with winds up to 100 mph, wreaking havoc with the orchards (bananas, coconuts, papayas, sour oranges, lemons, limes…) and dwellings.  In addition, nearly every available rental property has been filled with refugees from worse damage in the Abacos.   Those people are beginning to return home, but with no power and minimal shelter.

Spanish Wells beach

Budda's with the Stotts

This community is friendly and low key.  There are no big hotels, multi-leveled condos or elegant shops.   However, lively restaurants with good food and a locally made ice cream parlor meet our needs for evening entertainment.  The roads are roughly paved and quite narrow.  Bicycles and walkers compete with speedy golf carts and small pick up trucks or cars, all driving on the left.  There are usually no sidewalks.   The mail boat and freight boats arrive once a week, as weather and emergencies allow.  Yesterday, there was a run on the local grocery store after the boats arrived carrying the fresh produce we crave.   When we are not reading, writing and doing boat work, there are miles of white sand beaches and swimming a 20 minute walk away through charming neighborhoods and lush, flowered landscapes.  

Spanish Wells

Across the road from our dock is the Bikini Bottoms Café.  It is run by a local teacher and her family.  She arrives in the dark each morning to prep for breakfast, post the chalkboard menu, then head  to the classroom.   We have enjoyed her freshly baked Johnnycakes for early breakfasts in the cockpit, but the best times have been at a café table for the full breakfast and the adoring company of the neighbor’s cat.

The Bikini Bottom restaurant cat

Dietrich has spent much time learning about the intricacies of Calliope’s battery bank.  Two year old batteries should have been hardy for about four years but ours have shown signs of early failure.   A local boatyard had a deep cycle battery to replace two of the worst originals.  He had to rent a golf cart to haul it to Calliope so, we took that opportunity for wild rides to remote landscapes.  

The marine railway right through town

Sampling regional foods and conversations with locals are always high on our list of fun things to do.  In Spanish Wells, a Scourch can be fresh tomatoes, onions, seafood (coarsely chopped conch is common) and chili pepper flakes in sour orange juice, salted as preferred.   It is served as a salad similar to ceviche. The sour orange has a short growing season and Ilene (the chef who sets up on an empty lot each day,  10:00 am– 2:00 pm,  serving delicacies from under her canopy) said it was in full swing when the hurricane arrived.  She lost many of those trees!   Since we do not have access to sour oranges at home, her husband (who makes the Scourch) suggested that we use a small orange and a large lime as an alternative.  The term “salad” can be misleading to those of us used to a green presence on our plates.  Proportionately, this salad is a generous ½ seafood, mixed with mostly tomatoes and enough onions and seasonings to satisfy personal preference.  The citrus juices should cover the mixture (marinating only 25-30 min. since seafood will get tough or rubbery if left much longer…but, it’s one of those variables) and be served soupy.   Dense bread like Naan or flatbread make a good accompaniment for sopping that juice.  Dietrich added hot conch fritters served in a paper bag.   He said they were mostly conch with only a light, flavorful batter, exquisite.

Once every week, the mailboat/freight ships come in loaded with fresh produce and food stuffs along with everything else a community needs for everyday life.   This lifeline is crucial and results in crowds at the grocery the following day.   The Majority Rules Day holiday interrupted the routine with the large grocery store closed immediately after the delivery.

The freight/mail boat

Refrigerated produce on the dock all day

Stotts introduced us to Papa's Scoops, a drive up ice cream stand run from a tent next to the neighborhood street and Papa’s home.  It’s open from 7:00 – 9:00 pm and only two flavors are available each evening.  After a 20 min. trek we were happy to find one table available to walkers!  The ice cream, chocolate and red velvet, was icy and intensely flavored, worth a repeat visit.   The bonus was a conversation with the woman on duty, a young mother who grew up on the island and has never seen snow.


On January 6, a SpaceX Falcon was launched from Kennedy Space Center and an attempt was made to view this launch from the Spanish Wells beach which is only 274 nautical miles away.   The resulting photo does show a faint launch before the clouds and moving cruise ships on the horizon.

SpaceX launch with 17mm len

SpaceX launch cropped

Another Spanish Wells beach photo

Still another Spanish Wells beach photo

A very hopeful Bahamaian