Catching up at Christmas

DECEMBER 25
Jack here. Merry Christmas, y’all. It’s been a few days since I wrote, and I suppose I feel guilty for not having documented the things that have happened since I last wrote, but I’ve been so busy, and no online service. Unfortunately, with my memory, a lot of that detail is probably gone now.

What’s been up? Well, I’ll reiterate the last week if possible, and hope that I’m not rewriting something you’ve read. We left Nassau and headed for Alan’s Cay. We came in in strong winds from the east, and since it was very dark and no moon, we decided it was too dangerous to head in with all the rocks around our anchorage. So we threw anchor outside of the protected shelter of Alan’s. After a time though, it was so rough, we decided we would try to head in very slowly and try to make it. Well, we snuck in, threw anchor again and enjoyed the calm. In the morning we were shocked to see the treacherous surroundings we had barely missed. And had we gone any further before throwing anchor, we would have driven straight into some really nasty rocks too. A narrow miss for old Fiberglass Vengeance. Whew.
We went ashore and took some pictures, walked the island, and explored some ruins. The real highlight though was the iguanas that had taken over. They were EVERYwhere. And not shy either. They bite, I’m told but luckily didn’t experience it. You supposedly get a wicked infection from a bite. There was a house there built of cement that had bad structure supporting the roof, so it caved in. It was tempting to imagine coming back with a few materials on a big raft and fixing it back up. It would be pretty easy, and you’d have this amazing house in this most awesomely picturesque harbor. Except Warderick Wells, but I’m getting ahead of myself.
Next we snorkeled at Norman’s which is a bit south. That was another treacherous ride coming in. On the west side of the island, no waves, nice wind, full sail. To enter the harbor though, you have to sail around and enter from the east. Well, in the space of 50 feet the waves grew to about 4 feet. Shortly later, they were 8 or ten feet. Quite exciting, and difficult, but not impossible to maneuver in. They didn’t spook me like they did coming into Bimini. Maybe because I’m more confident, or maybe they just weren’t as confused of seas. Anyway, we were comfortable enough to take a detour out of our way to see another shipwreck we spotted in the distance wrecked on a reef.
Then into the harbor, which was scary because we were counting on these charts with our asses on the line. We ended up finding the opening to the harbor, not more than fifteen feet wide between jagged lava rocks to sailf through. And then: total calm. Pretty cool. Bless the hearts of the people that made the Explorer charts. Without them, we’d be wrecked out on that reef too.
We snorkeled about there, got conch, made conch salad, and then stayed the night. The following day we went to an airplane wreck and snorkeled it. Circled by barracuda, I was glad that I had been putting tape over my earrings, because they’re attracted to shiny things.
The airplane was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. We heard that it was basically all gone, but oh, no. It was a big old double engine prop plane that had maybe seven or ten rows of seats. Through a hole in the roof we snorkeled through to the tail Pretty fat. I took one or two underwater shots, till out of film, but I was absolutely kicking myself for not getting more shots of it. It was AMAZING. And underneath, big ol’ red snapper and a couple big grouper. Maybe two feet. So I go get the Hawaiian sling, kind of a poor man’s speargun, and go fishing. Chase off the barracuda, and try to get over under the wing to take the shot. My wet suit is so buoyant though, and the current crazy strong from the tide coming in that I just couldn’t get under that wing for more than a second before letting go, and floating to the top, missing the shot. SO, I look around for something to hold onto to keep under water for a few seconds. I reach for what I think is a piece of plane structure on the bottom, and happen to notice a pattern in the sand nearby. I realized that what I reached for, and almost grabbed was the tail of an eagle ray about six feet long. OKAY, I guess I won’t grab that. So I dive down, get under the wing, putting my shoulder to it to stay down, and pull back my sling at this big grouper.
BOOM. I shot that sucker, and it puffs up HUGE. What I thought was a grouper was a big, big blowfish, and now it’s racing around under this wing with a spear through it. It’s going crazy, the eagle ray goes crazy, and I’m backpedaling like a madman, and Ruth behind me.
Whew. A minute later, grab my spear that it dislodged, and split. That was exciting. On the way out, I grab a window of the plane that is loose on the sea floor. Cool stuff. It’s on the boat now. I’ll try to post a picture.
Next was Warderick Wells, which is the most beautiful harbor imaginable. A huge sweeping crescent of electric blue water with a wrapping curve of white sand inside it. And the people here: Amazingly cool. Ruth and I have so many new friends, that we’ve made so quickly.
One of them, Chris, we met in Nassau and were hoping to see here. He’s a dog and cat lover and superfunny and cool. He’s got a boat that is an absolute work of art. It is incredible. Three stories, fifty feet long, all wood inside. Picture a wooden socket cover over a socket that is in the corner of a curved wall. Cut just so to fit in the corner perfectly. Everything on this boat is like that. Just incredible. Like a Henderson Castle on the water, but modern.
Anyway, Chris is here with us, and our friend Dan just got in last night. We had a big Christmas feast on the beach with everyone bringing a dish. Amazing stuff. A blast with all of these cool people. It’s weird. It’s not like I’m used to, where out of a hundred people you meet, a few you might pick as friends, and some that you just find to be a royal pain in the ass. Here, the rule is none are a pain in the ass, and most you would pick as friends. Maybe boating just attracts the most laid back, positive, giving people into one place. Like our friend Dan. He just offers to give us a 30 gallon water bladder. (editor’s note: he dropped it off before leaving. I can’t wait to put it in the boat. I don’t know what it costs, but it’s not free. Nice guy. The day we met him, he cooked us pizza, gave us wine, books, and a CD. It’s like everyone’s trying to pay it forward, as they say.
I just found out that Chris is willing to let me give him a circular saw, so I finally get to do something for someone else. I gave him a big hug after he let us use his computer to get a skype call out to my pore ol’ mother. He TOTALLY saved the day, and saved Christmas for me. All I wanted for Christmas was to touch base at home, and I got my wish. I talked to my mom for 20 minutes, and got to tell her to let everyone know I love them. I feel very lucky. Thanks to him, and all of you guys for making me feel that way so much. We’re here now, and Chris just gave me a beer, and we’re going to watch a Sopranos DVD that another set of cool friends lent us. The same people that sent over soy milk when they overheard my complaints of cornflakes with water because I’m exploring a possible dairy allergy.
Oh, and I forgot. Dan and Morningglory stopped by last night with a box of wine and chips and salsa. And then he announced he’s giving us the water bladder. Amazing.