Table For Two....Staniel Cay, Exumas

We stopped here for lunch...our own little private beach! On the menu....apples & brownies. Yum.

We left Royal Island on Thursday & had another perfect 8.5hr motor sail to Highbourne Cay, Exumas. We weren't able to get off the boat at Highbourne cuz' of weather, which is fine. Highbourne Cay is ridiculously expensive. It cost $5 per bag to throw out trash. It's $15/day for internet IF you're staying at the Marina. ...unless you have cellular service like me. Yay. It's painfully slow sometimes & not always enough signal to download pics but we have had internet everywhere so far..so.... Best investment ever. It is a beautiful spot however, and there are lots of huge nurse sharks that are fun to look at. On part of that passage, (from Royal to Highbourne) the water gets pretty shallow & all of a sudden there are huge coral heads (mini reefs) that are scattered throughout the route. Someone really needs to be on the bow looking for them in case we have to veer off coarse to avoid them...which we had to do several times.

Scott on the bow looking for coral heads in our way...

This is what the little mini reefs look like.....big black patch.. This part of the passage from Eleuthera to Exumas is peppered with them...

 

Remember...Malaika's keel hangs 5.5 feet below the hull.

We left Highbourne Cay Saturday & had a great sail to Staniel Cay.

Staniel Cay is sooo beautiful and is world famous as it was the location where the James Bond movie "Thunderball" was filmed. There is an awesome diving scene in that movie & that site still exists. It's called the "Grotto". We dove it 2 yrs ago & again this morning. My digital underwater camera is not working but I did get some great pics on a cheapie underwater camera...just don't know where I'll get those developed. Probably when we get back home.

The "Grotto". Under that big rock is an amazing aquarium & a couple cool caves....

One of the beaches in the Staniel Cay area is home to some wild pigs. Beach pigs. Awesome.

Mamma pig is looking a little suspicious of Jib...

 

Rut Roh...here she comes

 

Saved by some other tourist who brought food to feed them.

 

Baby beach pigs

The Exumas...one mega yacht after another. This one had it's own matching multimillion dollar sport fisher tied to its stern. Unbelievable....

 

We've been here for a few days so tomorrow we're heading south again....should be in Georgetown day after tomorrow. (Thursday) We'll miss Staniel.....Just in the past 2 days around our boat we have seen sharks, giant stingrays, huge eagle ray, the biggest barracuda I've seen in a long time & some tarpon.

Big fat barracuda lurking around Malaika...

 

Oh....and some pirates!! ;)

Love,

Michelle, Scott & Jib

 

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