Spanish Wells

Ann hailed Bandit in Spanish Wells to see if there were moorings available for our 2 boats and there were: #1 for Short Walk, #2 a large cat Double Diamond, #4 Makani, #5 Plumpuppet, #6 a small trawler, #7 a small sailboat, and #8 Coyote, all in a small area with Charlies Island on one side and sandbanks underwater at hightide on the other. Double Diamond stopped by to say hi, one couple having a cabin in Elmore, VT and having skied at Jay Peak, and gave us pointers. Tomorrow being Sunday, everything closes down even at Spanish Wells and Harbour Island and the ferry to Harbour Island leaves later and returns earlier on Sundays.

We, Ann and Joe, found the tiny dinghy dock in front of Pinders Supermarket crowded w/2 dinghies already tied and a small ferry. We were assured by one former sailor gone landlubber that the ferry was not being used today and this was the only dinghy dock, so we maneuvered around, got in, and tied our dinghies to poles. The town reminds us of most other Bahamian island towns w/almost every little space taken up by small shops and houses. Our first concern was food. After checking out the beach we found The Gap Restaurant and settled down for a nice lunch. Ken had the cracked conch burger; Ann and I had the hickory smoked chicken salad, and Joe had the BLT w/potato wedges. Delicious!

Ken and I walked on to the end of the island to a park w/pink sand from the coral w/a stop at Food Fair, a fairly extensive large supermarket comparable to Maxwell’s in Marsh Harbour, and left Ann and Joe to stop for an internet connection at the internet café.

Walking back we stopped and asked about leaving garbage and buying fish. Spanish Wells has a large fishing fleet and supplies over half of the Bahama’s commercial crop of lobster, conch and fish. A Sweeting, related to the original Eleutherian Adventurers, a group from England seeking religious freedom that shipwrecked on the reefs in 1648, found us some frozen mutton snapper, driving us on his golf cart regaling me w/stories about his life on Spanish Wells and showing us his large fishing boat.