Driving on the Left!

3.2.11

Two days later, we rented a car and, taking extra caution to drive on the left side of the road, headed off in search of tourist spots. The wind was calm and the weather was gorgeous so we opted to start out snorkeling on the East coast. Brad and I had never snorkeled the ocean side before, usually the tradewinds in the Bahamas cause large Eastern swells that make snorkeling impossible. Our first stop was a reef about 100 yards out from the beach. The reef was pretty and we saw some gorgeous fish, although nothing we hadn't seen before. The coolest part about this reef was that since we were on the ocean side, the reef was right along the ledge of the ocean. So, when you reached the other side of the reef, the sand dropped down about 50feet and you were staring at an endless expanse of deep blue water. It was a bit eery, knowing that larger animals were out there watching you. I now know what lobsters in a tank feel like. Sure enough, as we swam along and our eyes got a bit used to the shadows along the ledge, we could start to make out shapes a ways out – luckily they were only large barracudas, but it was a bit spooky nonetheless.
This reef didn't hold our attention long and we were soon all back on the beach deciding where to go next. A couple who lived on the island recommended a reef a bit farther back, so we all piled in the car and headed that way. This reef was the most amazing thing I have ever seen in my life. There have been steps carved into a rock ledge and when you lower yourself into the water, you are only 2feet above some of the most beautiful reef you have ever seen.
The water itself was some 30 feet deep, but the reef has grown almost all the way to the surface! We swam over top of it for about 30yards, peeking down through the crevasses into the lives of the colorful fish below, until the reef opened up into deeper water. We swam along the edge of the reef, surrounded by reef and fish on all sides. We even saw a sea snake and encountered a large eagle ray (with a wing span almost as large as my arm span!) who was very curious about us – he circled around us for quite a bit before getting bored and moving on. I cannot even begin to do this reef justice with words, but suffice it to say it was absolutely breathtaking and I cannot remember ever seeing anything as extraordinary.
The guy that we were with turned out to be an avid diver and was digging in and around the reefs looking for lobster to spear. He only found two, but we hoped to get more later so we could all have a great feast later!
We decided we had done enough snorkeling and opted to head farther south to see some of the other great tourist spots on the island. The first stop was lunch at Max's conch bar – and we were in luck, Max was working! He was an older gentleman, who acted as if he was 18 and made fresh conch salad right in the tiki hut while we sat around the bar watching him. It was delicious and he was quite entertaining! He recommended some good spots for us to check out, so we headed farther south.
The next stop was Dean's Blue Hole – google it. Although it is not well known amongst world attractions, it is a must see among cruisers who frequent the island. It is just as the name implies – a 150foot wide blue hole that drops down to 690feet. It is in the corner of this small, shallow cove and the sand falls off suddenly into a great abyss of cobalt blue water. The free divers gather here yearly for a competition to see who can go the farthest. It was pretty spectacular!
We also headed down to Clarencetown where we saw two of the churches built by Father Jerome. Father Jerome was an architect turned priest who has built multiple churches here in the islands that are of the finest architectural design of the 1800s. We even climbed one of the spires and were able to get a great view of the city, although it was quite treacherous getting up there, with steep ascending ladders and narrow holes to pull yourself up through at each level. Brad almost didn't make it! Haha!
The front that was scheduled to arrive Thursday night showed up a bit early and we could see the approaching rain. We hurried back down the spire, got in the car and headed to Rowdy Boys – a local pool bar recommended to us by some other cruisers. We pulled in right as the downpour started. Although we had only planned to have a look around, we decided to order some beers and wait out the storm. We stayed for almost an hour, enjoying the company of the owners (the only other people in the place besides us!) and met almost their whole family! They were very generous and welcoming and we had a great time!
Finally, at 1600, after a full day of exploration, we headed back to our boats. We said our goodbyes, they gave us the two lobster tails since it wasn't enough for a full dinner and we had never had fresh lobster before. We were traveling the same track, so we knew our paths would cross again in the future. It had been an excellent day and we were exhausted!