The Land and Sea Park
Jan 9, 2024
I am officially one-third of the way through my thirty day yoga challenge. I thought it was going to be a nice, relaxing journey, but it’s been pretty intense. Nearly every day I’ve done it I get a workout, end up sweaty, and have to jump in the ocean. I’m usually sore the next day. Although I haven’t been completely diligent and took a day off here and there, you can’t blame me too much, it’s difficult when we are rocking around.
The wind gusted to over twenty knots all day yet our anchorage continued to fill with sailing catamarans. I would imagine today would be a great day to sail, but they’re all staying put like us. I think I counted about twenty masts surrounding us and not a single other trawler. It’s really surprising that we are the only power boat here.
I guess cats are just super popular lately
The national park service made their rounds today to collect. They charge fifty cents a foot to anchor and a dollar per foot to use one of their mooring balls. At fifty-two feet we pay twenty-six bucks a night on anchor. They also offer annual passes but for a private yacht it’s around twenty grand. With boats anchored and moored everywhere, I’m thinking the park does alright.
Today was a great day to play some cards. Jules has been beating us up at hearts so I’m proud to say I finally won today. Once again, our game was interrupted by someone’s skiff antics. A couple had lost power to their engine and were battling hard against the opposing winds. They took turns paddling but were going nowhere fast.
One of them managed to get the attention of a sailboat nearby that had their skiff in the water. The captain graciously came to their rescue and towed them back to their boat. Hopefully they were just out of gas, getting a part or new motor down here would be a nightmare.
Unlike yesterday, we did enjoy glimpses of the sun here and there that coaxed my mom and I into the water. We jumped in together but, upon resurfacing, noticed that we were being swept away from the boat. The situation wasn’t dire but we had to put the pedal down to get back. The wind, wave, and current combination was like a Micheal Phelps Swim Spa. We swam hard and went absolutely nowhere. It was great exercise though.
When we got out the difference in temperature between the water and air was barely noticeable. Personally, I was looking for some air-conditioning so I stepped onto the bow. The gusts whipped around me like the world’s largest blow-dryer. I felt like a vehicle at the end of my automatic car wash.
Jan 10, 2024
I am unsure as to why, but sleeping on this boat seems to be getting more difficult for me. There could be a number of reasons: our mattress is nearly thirty years old, being in the bow of the boat is noisy against the waves, or maybe I’m just way too excited to see what’s next. Either way, I refuse to let it stand in my way of having a great time. I was up early enough to see a gorgeous sunrise, so that’s a perk.
The colors just kept getting better and better
Around five this morning, the seas began rolling in from the west. Of course that is the one direction we are exposed to and the boat started rocking. It quickly motivated us, and many of our neighbors, to vacate the premises. We hauled anchor and headed for Hawksbill Cay.
I woke up with a sore shoulder and it slowly worsened as we crashed through the oncoming waves. Needless to say I was grumpy, but a concerted group effort from the crew had me feeling better quickly. My mom applied some icy-hot, my dad popped my back, Jules rubbed my shoulder, and I ate some Tylenol. Time to go explore.
Hawksbill Cay was colonized by the Russell Family in 1785 and the ruins of their failed plantation are hidden amongst the ever-encroaching foliage. The loyalist family, along with many others, were granted land in the Bahamas after the U.S. cast off British rule. Their intention was to continue producing cotton, however the harsh rocky environment coupled with a lack of fresh water made the task extremely difficult. After the abolition of slavery by Britain in 1834, the plantations were slowly abandoned and the islands began reclaiming their lands. Today they are some of the most well-preserved ruins in the Bahamas.
The elusive Russell Ruins trail sign
After learning about the plantation ruins, we set out in search. We skiffed to the beach and nearly sank when we tried to land. The nose of the skiff hit the sand and a large wave crashed in over the back. Immediately I jumped out and tried to turn us around but the next wave caught us while the skiff was sideways and flooded the bottom. Our life jackets were floating around inside the boat. I managed to turn the nose back out into the surf and we stopped taking on water, but the damage was done.
Everything we brought to the beach, including our wetsuits, was soaked. The small bilge pump kicked on and slowly pumped the water out while my dad and I held the skiff against the waves. Once it had taken care of the majority of the water the four of us each grabbed a handle and dragged the skiff completely up onto the beach; it was the only way to park it for our walk so the waves wouldn’t fill it with water.
It’s not going to sink anymore
The small boat only weighs about three hundred pounds, but the shape makes it awkward and we were dragging it backwards so it was a bear to get it up there. After expending all of our energy managing the skiff it was now time to go hike.
After cruising up and down the beach, we located some footprints that led back into the brush. The sand trail weaved through stumpy palm trees and led us deep into the island’s interior. Curly tailed lizards scattered off the path with nearly every step we took and tiny snail shells littered every inch of ground.
Soon the trail split and we followed it toward what we thought would be the ruins. It led us up a hill to an amazing panoramic view, but no ruins. We stared in awe at the ocean crashing on the rocks below and behind us could see the Altitude Adjustment moored in the small bay.
Hawksbill island foliage is extremely dense
Scrambling down the jagged rocks was far more treacherous than the climb but no injuries were had. The trail continued through the thick trees and eventually we emerged on the eastern iron shore. Once again, the view across the bay was incredible but what took my breath away was the trash.
Plastic ranging from ice chest lids and milk crates to bottle caps and tiny fragments was joined by scraps of netting and ropes as big around as my arm. All of it tangled deep into the iron shore and largely unreachable. At least the storm surge has thrown it up out of the ocean, but it would be a dangerous task to retrieve and dispose of it properly.
Only a small fraction of the total heap
At this point the trail was largely unmarked and we were still unsuccessful in finding any ruins. We explored the area in hopes of continuing on, but the trail was nowhere to be found. At this point the sun was baking us alive and we decided to return to the beach.
The ruins were nowhere to be found
After cooling off in the water my parents took a walk and Jules broke out the metal detector. She and I tooled around on the beach for a little while and uncovered another can, this time it was a White Claw.
Supposedly, Hawksbill Cay has a smugglers cave hidden along the shoreline so we took off in the skiff to find it. After seeing multiple holes that resembled a cave, but were unreachable, we stopped on another beach. My mom pointed out a buoy hanging from a tree and we decided to investigate. I walked into the narrow cut among the trees and quickly found a sign pointing to the Russell ruins. Apparently we were on the wrong beach and followed the wrong trail to start.
Traversing the trail in flip-flops was probably not the best idea. We scrambled over the sharp and pitted iron shore and I thought for sure my shoes were going to break, but they held strong. At the peak, we finally found the ruins deeply embedded in the jungle. It was straight out of Indiana Jones, if there was an idol to retrieve we would have.
Only the bottom half of the houses remain
The Russell family mainly used shells in the construction of their buildings. They would gather conchs to eat and then, using a crude furnace, superheat the shells to create a mortar type material. Apparently it worked pretty well as many of the walls of buildings are still standing. They dug cisterns lined with lime plaster from the conch shells to collect rainwater for drinking and farming. The deep holes still exist there today, although not full of water. I’m sure they would swallow a person whole if they fell in so be careful poking around up there.
I wonder what they used to dig these pits
We explored the remnants of multiple decaying houses and found a short, sturdy wall that stretched out of sight into the jungle. Calling the path among the ruins a trail is a stretch, it is largely unkempt and the encroaching plants are taking back over. The mosquitoes were also thick around the ruins, it was definitely not a place to stop and look around.
I plowed through the low-lying brush, half trying to see the ruins and half running from the swarm of micro syringes eager to draw our blood. We stumbled upon another huge view, this time overlooking the Great Bahama Bank. After stopping briefly to admire it we turned back.
We think this was their crude furnace
My long-sleeved shirt was no match for the mosquitoes, our only hope of not becoming dinner was to keep moving. Still I ended up with bites on my sides, back, and even my butt. Finally we escaped the onslaught and arrived back on the beach. After cooling off in the water it was time for a well-deserved lunch. We headed back to the boat and, after replenishing our energy levels, went to snorkel.
Putting on our soaked wetsuits was about as much fun as it sounds. The neoprene stuck to my skin like a fly trap and the animated jumping and grunting didn’t seem to help. Finally we got in the water. Almost instantly I spotted a small sand ray and the area seemed promising. However, after paddling around the shallow rocks there was no coral to be found.
Jules found a big lobster hiding in a crevasse and the occasional fish swam by, but overall it was a pretty boring swim. By this time dinner and sleep was screaming our names, we had checked off just about every attraction on Hawksbill Cay in one day.
An awesome battle between light and dark
Jan 11, 2024
From Hawksbill Cay we traveled south along the bank to the Exumas Land and Sea Park headquarters at Warderick Wells. Along the way we contacted the park about a mooring ball for the night. Most of the moorings in the park operate on a first-come first-serve basis, but not HQ. In order to secure a spot on a ball at Warderick Wells, you must contact the office and make a reservation.
There is currently no way to reserve a spot online and the park has no phone number listed; their only method of contact is by radio. Every day at nine a.m. on channels nine and sixteen the office makes an announcement. Boats inform them if they are leaving and are immediately followed by a cacophony of antsy captains attempting to hail the office and secure their spot. My dad hopped in and miraculously managed to secure us a ball.
Hooking up to our mooring ball at the HQ
The lady on the radio had a velvety smooth Bahamian accent and vaguely instructed us to come to the northern mooring field; after making some educated guesses we managed to locate the red and green buoys she described which were both desperate for a new coat of paint. We pulled between them and then received further instructions to drive to the park office.
The Warderick Wells morning introduction
The route was a narrow cut filled with moored boats. At one point, we were so close to one of them I could have almost stepped from our boat onto theirs. We were all nervous, but my dad navigated us through without a problem. Once in front of the office, the lady finally directed us to a mooring ball in front of every other boat. In my opinion, she gave us the best seat in the house.
My dad approached the mooring ball, I snagged the rope with the boat hook, ran a line through it, and Jules tied us off. Again we made it look so easy. Almost immediately, Jules and I looked down to see a small shark swim under the boat. Next we had to pay for our spot. They have no online portal, so we lowered the skiff from the roof and cruised over to the beach near the office where there is a massive sperm whale skeleton greeting new arrivals.
This whale washed ashore in 1995, the park stated that it died due to consuming plastic
The short trail leading to the building was laid with pavers and had some interesting facts about the native flora. Necklace Pods produce bright yellow flowers and attract pollinators year round and Poisonwood, which is related to Poison Oak, causes severe skin irritation if touched.
I dodged a bullet here
Once we got into the office we instantly understood why our instructions were so spaced out and short. The woman we talked to was completely alone. She was in charge of radio calls, checking people in, and handling sales in their gift shop. Funnily enough they sell beer and booze as well as t-shirts. They even do DVD rentals for two dollars a night and had a pretty solid selection.
We paid the mooring fee and went to investigate a snorkel spot. After winging it yesterday and being disappointed, we wanted to inspect our next spot before fully committing. My dad drove us to a spot that our crude map had labeled “coral garden”. We passed through a cut between small islands and the water deepened. Immediately numerous huge black shapes became visible under the surface.
Jules and I quickly donned our snorkel and mask to take a look. We lowered into the water and found ourselves surrounded by a squadron of massive spotted eagle rays. They swam a smooth beautiful circle around us and faded into the view at the edge of our vision.
The current was swift and pushed us back through the cut toward the Altitude Adjustment. Having had a wildly successful investigation, we returned to the boat for the remainder of our gear. Wetsuits went on faster than ever before and we returned to the spot eager and ready.
Rushing to get in the water
This time we all got in the water and my dad tied the skiff to himself to drift along with it. Initially there was nothing to see, just white sand and seagrass. The water surrounding us was semi-murky and suddenly, the rays seemed to materialize out of the cloudy blue. Sixteen beautiful eagle rays gave a new meaning to the word graceful as they approached us.
The sheer size of them was astounding. I have never seen one that large, much less sixteen at once. They easily reached eight feet from fin to fin and had to approach fifteen feet in length with their slender, whip-like tails. Eagle rays tend to be shy around humans and keep a healthy distance but these ones didn’t seem too concerned with us.
Adult spotted eagle rays can weigh over 500 lbs
I repeatedly dove down alongside them to get a better view. They seemed nearly as curious of us as we were of them. Strangely one of them was missing its tail. Again and again they faded away at the edge of our vision and reappeared, their elegant swimming looked so effortless. They don’t appear to move very quickly, but keeping up with them was impossible. Slowly the current relocated us into shallower water and the rays were gone.
The current intensified as the water lessened and we drifted quickly over a beautiful coral garden. Jules spotted a lobster buried inside a coral head, its long antennae gave away its hiding spot. There were brain corals the size of basketballs scattered through the area alongside bunches of staghorn coral and sponges.
The colors were vibrant even in the cloudy water
Once the current had pushed us back to the Altitude Adjustment we got back in the skiff and did the same thing all over again. The rays returned, but in smaller numbers. This time there were only seven. Terrible, right? They glided through the water beside us and then again vanished out of sight.
On the way back we saw three different turtles, the last of which was munching on seagrass right under the boat. Jules, my mom, and I hovered in the water above him. He clumsily meandered across the sand bed picking at the strands of seagrass, completely unphased by our presence.
We saw him trip over his own fins
This time we drifted past the boat and to the sandbar behind it. The sand was like velvet beneath our feet when we stood up. Jules found a living sand dollar which is actually a species of flat sea urchin. They are in the same class as starfish and sea cucumbers and tend to live in clustered groups in shallow sandy areas and use tiny suction-cup feet to move.
She said she could feel the feet sticking to her fingers. We were both intrigued having only ever found the white skeleton of sand dollars called a “test”. She then gently buried it back in the sand. We walked to the end and back as the tide started coming up and the water slowly reclaimed the sandbar. We loaded up and skiffed back to the boat after an unbelievable day. I was certainly ready for some sleep.
Jan 12, 2024
Well I didn’t get much sleep. I rolled around in bed like a rotisserie chicken all night. The humidity makes the sheets and blankets sticky and I ended up pulling them completely off the bed. I just can’t seem to get comfortable and I’m not sure why. Earlier in the trip I was getting somewhat consistent sleep, but lately I’ve been struggling.
Luckily it’s impossible to stay grumpy when you’re in the Bahamas. I got up, drank my coffee, and rallied, ready to get back in the water. This morning, Jules was craving biscuits and gravy. We recently experimented with making a Johnny Cake and it turned out to be a killer biscuit substitute. She combined and kneaded her ingredients to make the dough and my dad threw together his signature sausage gravy. It may not have been the healthiest meal but it certainly prepared us for the day.
We couldn’t resist getting back in the water with the spotted eagle rays. The morning current was whipping when we got in the water. I felt like I blinked and drifted the length of a football field. The eagle rays came to greet us but it was nearly impossible to hang out, turning around and swimming against the current was a losing battle. Conveniently, it pushed us directly back to the boat and we repeated the drift snorkel one more time.
We did drift dives in Cozumel together, but have never done a drift snorkel before
I’m not sure I could ever be tired of swimming with the eagle rays, but a change of scenery would be appreciated. The cays and rocks surrounding the park all seem prime for snorkeling but it’s hard to tell without getting in the water. We took the skiff around the southern end of Narrow Water Cay and spotted a tiny beach.
The water approaching the beach was shallow for a long way but the skiff managed to get us pretty close. My dad found a sign dedicated to the iguanas of the island. It claimed that the Bahamian Government would prosecute anyone who harmed one of the lizards. However there wasn’t an iguana in sight.
A small green sea turtle popped his head up in the shallow water and we watched as he munched on the seagrass. The sun rapidly turned my wetsuit into a personal sauna and I was ready to get back in the water. We investigated the west side of Narrow Water Cay but unfortunately found no coral.
On the hunt for a new location to snorkel
Next we skiffed out to the northeast corner of Warderick Wells and again were unsuccessful in locating a worthy snorkel spot. I guess we’ll just settle for the eagle rays again. How tragic. This time the tide was slack and worked in our favor. Without it whipping us along we were able to float and observe them for much longer. Fourteen rays circled through the area as if showing off.
I can’t believe they let me get this close
They are the biggest animals I’ve ever been in the water with but at no time was it scary at all. The slack tide also allowed us to explore the coral garden for much longer. I spotted multiple lobsters sheltered in the coral heads, they were all monsters due to the fishing restrictions inside the park.
They were joined by a parade of beautiful fish: gray, yellow, and blue tangs, queen and gray angelfish, but no frenchies (french angelfish), wrasse of all kinds, blue chromis, needlefish, big eyed squirrel fish, damselfish, sergeant majors, a pufferfish, and an entire school of bigeye trevally, along with all manner of snapper, two or three kinds of ray other than the spotted eagle ray, multiple green sea turtles…I could go on forever.
Bigeye trevally and atlantic blue tangs
I even had an up close and personal encounter with a nurse shark. I was minding my own business taking some underwater photos and I noticed a small shark swimming in my direction. I aimed the camera for a picture and suddenly it was right in my face. After subduing a miniature panic attack I managed to compose myself and face it.
Luckily my pants were already wet
The shark casually swam directly at me and just before receiving a salty kiss I gently touched its side and persuaded it to swim around me. I believe it was another case of matched curiosity, but there was certainly a brief moment of panic in my eyes. I think the shark was around four feet long but could have easily taken a finger if it wanted to.
The diversity of marine life sheltered on this tiny reef blows my mind. From above it looks like dark blobs of rock and sand, underneath it is a thriving aquatic city. I could, and very nearly did, spend the entire day in the water.
Finally we headed back to the boat. I was so pruny it looked like I had aged forty years. The late afternoon sun warmed us on the bow and we partook in one of our favorite entertainment activities on the water: people and boat watching.
Can’t wait to see what tomorrow will bring
Usually on anchor all of the boats swing in the same direction based on the wind or tide. Here it appears to be entirely random. While the Altitude Adjustment is pointing one way, the boat beside us will do the opposite, and the one next to it will spin completely around its mooring. Some of them seem to get dangerously close to touching if you ask me. I don’t have a degree in fluid dynamics, but this would definitely be a place of interest if I did.
Jan 13, 2024
Today Jules decided to start our daily activities on the island rather than in the water. Warderick Wells boasts a magnificent panoramic view of the Exumas and she talked my dad and I into checking it out with her. It’s called Boo Boo Hill. We took the skiff to the beach near the park office and set out from there.
This trail, unlike our last, was marked fairly well with small signs and occasional splashes of paint on the rocks. A big heron made an early appearance, no doubt hunting the countless minnows in the shallow water. The tide was right around its maximum height when we started which caused much of the trail to be underwater, at least until we started climbing the hill. A wide, waist-deep channel of water cut directly through our route and I spotted a small stingray when we crossed. Good reminder to shuffle when walking in sand, you never know where they’ll be buried.
Luckily I wore my swimsuit and flip flops
The trail led us up a small hill to Posiden’s/Neptune’s altar. Cruisers apparently bring offerings to the shrine every year in hopes of pleasing the god of the sea. Jules brought a small piece of dead coral we found earlier in the trip and my dad offered a fallen palm tree stalk. The pile of driftwood engulfs a large area at the peak. Messages of all kinds, ranging from boats and peoples names to pleas to the gods to not get struck by lightning again, are scrawled on pieces of driftwood.
Someone even carried an anchor up here
The deep blue of the ocean stretched for miles along the east side of the island without a single boat in sight. Behind us, the island interior sprawled out with watery fingers stretching inward. The point gave us a great vantage over the whole mooring field and the islands beyond.
The view was the spectacular part
The eastern side of the island is almost entirely iron shore with only a few small beaches, but just below the rocks looked like great snorkeling. Typically it would be very hard to reach with the crashing surf from the ocean, but the light winds had the water looking flat like glass.
The ocean is rarely this calm
The morning sun, unimpeded by clouds, started boiling us alive. Time to get in the water. We returned to the Altitude Adjustment, gave my mom the results of our scouting mission, and loaded up the skiff. My dad again drove us around to the northeastern tip of the island, but this time we continued around and south toward the midpoint.
We stopped directly below the peak of Boo Boo Hill and I got in the water to check it out. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as nice as we had hoped. The underwater structure was mostly barren with scattered small corals here and there. I got back in the skiff and we cruised further south to the beach we saw. Again I hopped in to look around.
I was just happy to be back in the water
The water on the ocean side of the island granted us far more clarity than the coral garden near the park office. There was still a lack of coral heads but the bathymetry was far more interesting. I dove down and set the anchor into the sand and we were off. The large, hard structures we saw from above were actually stromatolites.
These are composite mounds built from lime-secreting cyanobacteria and are the oldest known fossils on earth. Some date back as far as three and a half billion years. Bahamian stromatolites are the only known specimens still growing in open ocean conditions; the hard structures provide shelter for numerous marine organisms to thrive.
I dove down to peek under them and discovered dozens of snapper and hogfish hiding from view. Jules found a pair of lobsters nestled together under one of the shelves, their antennae had to be longer than our arms. She and my mom also spotted a nassau grouper that had to push forty pounds. I could have all but stuck my head in its mouth.
The no-take rules result in some monster fish
Right alongside them was a plethora of juvenile reef fish, tiny sea fans, and small budding corals. We saw dozens of gray and yellow tangs, damselfish, multiple types of parrot fish, and a great barracuda which was waiting under the skiff when we returned.
My dad unfortunately found a gnarly, barnacle-encrusted, rusty spear from a spear gun during the snorkel. Apparently some people just can’t resist breaking the rules. Whoever dropped it was probably scared of getting caught and ditched it in hopes of appearing innocent. Even if they escaped the authorities, I’m sure karma continued to haunt them.
We have been relying on a hand-sketched map of the cays for our snorkel spots. It claims that the entire eastern side of the island is littered with reef. While that may be true, it’s not what we expected. Unlike coral reefs, stromatolite reefs are flat, and gray. Luckily there were plenty of fish to keep us company.
Accuracy not guaranteed
We then returned to the coral garden in hopes of swimming with the eagle rays one more time before leaving in the morning. Sadly, the current was ripping us through the area as soon as we hit the water and no rays were sighted before we were pushed back to the boat.
After three days of craning my neck around while snorkeling, I was ready for a break. I had a headache at the base of my skull that refused to be ignored any longer. I got out, rinsed off, ate some Tylenol, and went to relax on the bow. My mom and Jules happily joined me with a beer in hand but my dad, being a glutton for punishment, wanted to try one more time to see the rays.
Spotted eagle rays are his absolute favorites
He and I jumped back in the skiff and I drove him out in hopes of seeing them. Sure enough the large dark shapes passed under the boat and I dropped him off directly on their heads. He said there were seven of them this time. The tide was slack at this point and he managed to stay right above them for a good chunk of time before paddling back to the boat. I think he finally had his fill.
My mom skipped our morning trek to Boo Boo Hill and was ready to walk on something solid. She and my dad paddle boarded to the beach and went for a stroll. I enjoyed my time relaxing in the sun and Jules decided to exercise. Apparently, our two snorkel trips and morning hike weren’t enough for her.
Cooling off after her workout
In the evening, the low tide exposed a sandbar behind the boat and she and I paddle boarded over with our cocktails. The wet sand was so soft beneath our feet. Jules found two tiny starfish half-buried in the sand and returned them to the water. Hopefully they survived!
We named him Patrick
After walking to the end and back our drink was empty and she paddled back to the boat to refresh. She laid her phone down on the bar and instructed me to “keep an eye on it”. By this time, my mom had joined us on the bar and she and I walked to the end and back again.
Enjoying our final evening at Warderick Wells
Having felt like we had seen everything it had to offer, we paddled back to the boat leaving Julia’s phone laying in the sand. She walked out back with a full cocktail and said the fatal words: “where’s my phone?” Immediately, I realized my error and hurried back to retrieve it. Luckily it was sitting at the highest point and remained dry. I swear I’d lose my head if it wasn’t screwed on tight.