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Stepping out of the airplane, onto the tarmac at Georgetown, Bahamas airport, the clear crisp smell of the ocean filled my nose. I was finally here, in the Bahamas! The sky was a gorgeous blue and the taxi drivers waiting outside the airport were friendly.
I hopped into a taxi (as per instructions from my mom) and enjoyed the 20 minute drive into Georgetown, where I was to meet my mom and her partner Al.
We met at the main taxi drop off which just happens to be close to the dock where many of the sailors and live-aboards park their dinghy to go to the Exuma Market, get fuel and fill their water.
From there we hopped in their dinghy and zoomed out to my home for the next 6 1/2 days, the Stout Wench.
One of the first things that captivated me about the Bahamas is the absolutely gorgeous colour of the water. At times turquoise and others more aqua the water just calls for you to hop in for a swim. Which just happens to be one of the first things I did.
After boarding the Stout Wench, we drew up the anchor and motored over to Stocking Island where many many boats were moored. After getting the boat anchored and a quick change into my bathing suit and grabbing my camera bag we hopped into the dinghy again and zipped over to the island.
Stocking Island
Stocking Island is home to the “world famous” Chat ‘N’ Chill a quintessential laid-back bare-feet beach bar, a conch bar, the Chat ‘N’ Chill Beach Boutique (which is a gift shop), as well as several volleyball courts and gorgeous white sandy beaches.
While my mom went to go play beach volleyball with some of her friends, I took some time to myself. I wandered around the beautiful beach, went for a little swim, and made friends with a friendly stray cat. We headed back to the Stout Wench after the volleyball and by that time I was ready for a nap after my long travels to arrive in the Bahamas from the far western side of Canada where I live.
I woke awhile later and my mom, her partner Al and I enjoyed some homemade supper on the boat and then Al blew the conch horn while we enjoyed my first Bahamian sunset. It was gorgeous!
The next morning, we had heard there was a farmers market in Georgetown so we puttered back across Elizabeth harbour in the dinghy and mom and I did some exploring. We visited the farmer’s market where we purchased some local produce from local farmers and I bought some local honey (it was yummy, a little more floral than the honey I’m used to). There was also a person selling homegrown, homemade salves and sunscreen made with moringa, beeswax and other local ingredients.
There is a circular road around the Lake Victoria in the centre of Georgetown that mom and I decided to enjoy.
We came by this lovely church by the sea and popped in to take a peek and a few pictures. It was so charming and had lovely stained glass and a fresh sea breeze blowing through.
After our little hike around town, we were sweaty and parched so we stopped in at the Peace and Plenty Resort which was very close to the dock where our dinghy was moored. We enjoyed a delicious, refreshing drink and chatted together at the restaurant overlooking the bay. We met up with Al (who had been gathering supplies like drinking water from the Exuma Market during our explorations). The rest of the day was spent similar to the previous day, volleyball, swimming, napping and gorgeous sunset.
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Mom and I, sweaty but happy! -
The next day we were off exploring again! We hauled up anchor on the Stout Wench and motored south to explore and enjoy some of the less inhabited cays. We planned to explore beaches as well as do some snorkelling. So captain mom took the wheel and we were off!
Exploring Crab Cay
We found a nice spot just off of Crab Cay where mom and I took the dinghy out and explored an interesting shipwreck (just from the dinghy, we didn’t go onto the shipwreck as it didn’t look safe.)
We explored a couple of the smaller uninhabited cays of the Bahamas and did some snorkelling with some turtles and sharks(!). We did a lot of exploring but unfortunately don’t have an underwater camera yet and I forgot my camera for a few parts so, no pictures but we eventually went back across to the very southern tip of Stocking Island and explored the long Sand Dollar Beach, through “the cut” between Stocking and Elizabeth Islands and went to the Eastern side to watch where the open ocean meets the more peaceful and shallow waters
| Tours to Take Around the Bahamas | Approx. Cost |
|---|---|
| Bahama Bonanza Cultural Tour | from $62.81 pp |
| Nassau: Glass Bottom Boat, Snorkelling Tour | from $106.78 pp |
| Nassau Catamaran Sail and Eco Snorkel at Sea Garden | from $81.65 pp |
I quite enjoyed all the different trees and foliage, which is probably part of the gardener in me 😉
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Some of the foliage growing on the islands.
After a couple of days of exploring, it was back to Stocking Island, to moor just off of Chat’ N’ Chill beach.
Thank you for stopping in for part 1. This is the end of part 1 of my Adventure Aboard the Stout Wench ~ Bahamas 2020. Part 2 will be coming up very shortly.
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