Hignborne Cay

Wednesday, March 14

We left Emerald Rock at 7:35am and headed north to Norman's Cay.  We arrived at 11:00 am and dropped our anchor.  All of us liked Norman's so much that we wanted to take another look.  Also, we were told there was some "primo" sand dollar hunting beaches on the other side of the Cay.  Linda and I jumped in to the dinghy and aimed for the beach.  We didn't take any pictures of this expedition because I think we were too focused.  But we were very successful.  I found a beautiful chunk of coral on the beach and together we collected at least a dozen sand dollars.  This area looked like the the stereotypical sand beach and crystal turquoise waters that  people speak of.  It is amazing and I will never get over the colors of the sea here in the Bahamas.  It is truly breath-taking.



Thursday, March 15

Left Norman's Cay at 7:48am and headed north to Highborne Cay.  We Docked at the Highborne Cay Marina at 10:17am, traveling 12.6 nautical miles.

We were anxious to get an update on Kerm's Dad who had some medical problems so we thought that a marina with decent wifi would be a good idea.  We were happy when we pulled in as this is a beautiful spot and the facility is very clean and spiffy.  Lots of megayachts were our first clue!!

A Corona moment

The office and ship's store

Lots of birds at this stop. 

I especially liked this guy, called a bananaquit.  He was anxious to welcome us to his island.

Bananaquit

At the fish cleaning dock there were lots of sharks waiting for a hand-out...

The captain of the Mega Yacht, Magic was cleaning lots of Mahi Mahi that were caught by the owner and his guests that morning.   The chef was also there, looking over the catch.  I asked captain to show me the technique so that when I catch my own I will know what to do.  He was so nice and I got a real lesson.  Then he gave Linda the carcass to toss to the sharks and the Jacks.   

Food Fight!!

Leaf Cay and Allen's Cay are close to Highborne and they are protected areas for Iguanas.  Linda and I wanted to take a look at them so we started up Tinkerbelle and blasted over the reefs and waves to get over there.  We were surprised at how big they were.  Like a dachshund.  Watch out, Jack!!

They were quite aggressive and came right up to us.  Then a tourist boat pulled up and started to feed them grapes so I guess they now associate people with fruit and expected some from us.  I told a little girl from the tour boat to throw a grape to the animal coming towards me.  I wasn't sure he's understand no grapes from Christie. .

hiuhijoij

Give me a grape and I won't bite you!!

 After our reptile adventure we got back to the Belle and were delighted when the Chef from Magic came over to our boat.  He introduced himself as Chef Raffie and he brought a bag full of delicious things for us...big mahi mahi fillets, his own signature Caesar salad dressing, special spice mix and blueberry cheesecake.  We have found the whole cruising community to be so generous during our time in the Bahamas.  This was icing on the cake!!


We stopped over at the local for a drink in the evening and made an interesting discovery.   According to the bartender, who said she worked at the bar in Norman's Cay, the reason there is no beer at the bar is because it is consumed by the guys who work there.  No way to make a profit, eh??

Also, if you are at the bar there remember to ask for a "Southern Belle".  They were naming a new drink and we suggested Southern Belle and it was accepted.  It's a refreshing rum punch made with peaches and other great flavors.

Highborne turned out to be a wonderful stop and I would most definitely call on this port again.  Tomorrow we make a passage to Nassau. We need to check weather, see if we can pick up a dancing partner and plan our passage from Nassau back to the USA.   We want to do a little sightseeing in Nassau, as well, since we didn't see much when we were there before.


Christie