Saturday, July 16, 2022

March 30, 2022 tour of the north half of Eleuthera, Bahamas

Yesterday we made arrangements for a rental car to tour the main island.  We were in town by 8:30 to catch a the ferry to the mainland, Gene’s Bay.  It’s $10/per person round trip.  Doerr’s landlord gave us Ricky’s phone number to rent the car (242-551-1726 for future reference).  A man that works for Ricky picked us up.  After getting our van at Ricky’s property, we set off. 


First we stopped at the Sapphire Blue Hole on the northern end of the island.  We had been here 3 years ago and I had jumped in with a friend.  They had improved the jumping platform and the ropes for climbing out.  But no jumpers today.  We didn’t dress for swimming/getting wet.  

 

Close by is Preacher’s Cave.  I described it in detail 3 years ago.  Basically, the first settlers wrecked their boat on the reef off shore north of the island.  They found this cave and lived in it for months.  They were seeking religious freedom and used this cave for services for 100 years.  



Praying mantis

From here, you can walk to a beautiful beach that is usually deserted.  Great photo op.


 

We headed south on the Queen’s highway, only major road running the length of the island.  We stoped at the Glass Window.  This is a narrow stretch connected by a bridge with beautiful crashing waves on the eastern Atlantic side spilling over under the bridge onto the calm bay on the western side.  






We stopped a little further south at the Queen’s Bathtub on the Atlantic side.  There were large pools of water and crashing waves.  I would come back with a swimsuit next time.

 



 

As we drove through Gregory Town, we passed the Catholic Church.  I had them stop so I could ask about the time of the services.  We plan to head this way or further south over the next couple of weeks, which included Palm Sunday and Easter.  I met Kevin, the organist.  He explained that the same priest presides over mass here at 8:00am, in Hatchet Bay at 10:00 and in Governor’s Harbour at 12:00.  I wasn’t sure if we’d be back in Gregory town, so I took a quick peak inside the church.  They are all so different.


Someone had recommended having lunch in James Cistern.  There are a couple restaurants on the water with great views.  We stopped at Delish Lifestyle.  As we were getting out of the car, the people next to us said we picked the best place, and they were right.  We had the best conch fritters ever.  Besides actually having a generous portion of conch in them, the seasoning and finely chopped vegetables made them unique.  I had fried grouper and salad.  Dave had cracked conch (breaded and fried) and fries.  Both were outstanding.  After eating, Dave and Harold watched the owner pound the conch to tenderize it.  That’s what makes the difference.


 


I liked the sailboat on the coca cola sign



grouper
conch
"BS-ing" with the owner as he pounds conch to tenderize it

We moved on to Governor’s Harbour.  We just drove through town and then over the hill to the ocean side.  We found a beach with obvious pink sand.  Eleuthera brags about their pink sand beaches on the ocean side.  I have seen faint pink in the right lighting, but this was obvious.  I have seen pieces of coral with rosy speckles in it, which I am assuming where the pink sand comes from.  


love these paths through the dunes





 

 

We headed back north from here.  We stopped at a vegetable stand along the road between Hatchet Bay and Gregory Town.  I had been here years ago and was excited to stop again.  We bought tomatoes, bread and sapodillas (a local sweet fruit).  I followed the owner into his garden as he picked my fresh herbs, mint, dill and basil.  Doesn’t get any fresher.  


pomegranate tree

Next stop was Gregory town for ice cream, but the shop had closed for the day.  So we did a little shopping and moved on.  We stopped in Lower Bogue to refuel the van and found an ice cream shop within a block of the station.  We can’t keep ice cream in our freezer, so it’s a special treat.  We returned the car and caught the ferry back to Spanish Wells.


 

 

There was one restaurant left to try, Wreckers at Spanish Wells Yacht Haven.  In the past we have had great $3 happy hour drinks, so I ordered the table a round of their coconut mojitos.  They were pretty tasty, so during dinner, we had another round.  Come to find out, the special was $9!!  $72 for drinks!  I guess that’s why we don’t spend the night on the town anymore.  

 


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