It’s Saturday morning and we are getting ready for yet another cold front that’s headed our way. Happily, we are well secured in one of the “inner” slips here at Great Harbor Cay Marina in the Berry Islands Bahamas. Cold front or not, it’s going to be a beautiful day and the strongest winds won’t arrive until Sunday.
Yesterday Brenda and I joined a number others who took a “road trip” by dink, from the marina to the other end of the island for some exploring through the mangroves in an area known as shark creek, on the southern side of the island on the ocean side. The water is very clear there and there are loads of turtles.We zipped at a high speed down the coast about two miles and then turned into the mangroves and down passages that were impossibly narrow. 
And then “way” narrower still. Can you say “African Queen narrow?”
Once we emerged from the mangroves, it was just spectacular with many colors of blue. 
When my brother Bill was with me we visited Shark Creek and saw a load of turtles as well and I had wished that I had brought my GoPro video camera. Well, gentle reader, I brought it with me yesterday and got some great shots, including this video of a large ray, perhaps 4′-5′ across. What a sight. We also captured some turtles in the same video but you’ll have to watch closely to see all the action. Brenda did a terrific job of steering the dink as we zigzagged in pursuit of the best shots.I don’t normally include many videos in my posts when I am in the Bahamas as it’s hard to find a place with sufficient band width to upload them to YouTube. However, the service here at the marina is pretty good so there will be videos for now.
As we headed back to the marina we stopped to survey a wrecked fishing boat that had been swept two miles onto the flats during a hurricane a few years ago. Perched on a sand bank it almost looked like a Disney movie set. 
We also spied this wonderful flock of American Oyster Catchers, a shore bird that like so many of us “flock” from north to south and back again with the seasons. However, Brenda might want to diverge from their particular routine as they are found as far north as New England in the summer (check) and all the way south to Argentina in winter (check? NOT). Anyway, what cool birds. 
Not to beat a dead oyster catcher, but how about Oyster Catcher photos from various angles. First, a “fly away” shot?
And a “fly by” shot. 
There aren’t all that many birds in the Bahamas so when we see them it’s quite a treat. As we head further south toward Cuba, we will undoubtedly see many more birds as Cuba is much more lush than the Bahamas.
Not sure what today will bring but for sure it’s going to be a beautiful day. Of course, EVERYONE knows that I just love sunsets so I’ll close with a view of our view from our “new” slip. 
I guess I’ll sign off for now. It’s another beautiful day in paradise.
Oh yeah, we hope to begin heading south mid week after the next front. Details to come.
That’s all for now.
2 responses to “Another day in paradise. Road trip!”