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Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7

Tallahassee, Florida
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1 942 posts
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Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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Yumey and Suma ~ The Exumas were once called this by the Indians who inhabited the islands.

Tallahassee, Florida
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1 942 posts
1 review
1. Re: Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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Saturday - We flew American through Miami and stayed at The Tree House cottage in Old Hooper’s Bay. It was just fine and the neighborhood had a private beach park with a nice little beach. We rented a two door Pajero from Berlie’s. They were great and the car was very nice. No problems. We bought beer near the airport at Gelo’s Beer Depot. They were nice and invited us to come back that night for a barbecue and music, but we were too tired from getting up at 3 am. We went to Exuma Market and stocked up on the basics (they had Mom’s bread) and bought rum at the Liquor store in town. We stopped at Tino’s at the fish fry, put our order in, took the groceries home, then went back and enjoyed our meal at the bar. The cook, Jeanetta came out to see how we liked our meals. Our lobster, plantains, mac and cheese were excellent. Her sweet little girl waited on us. We stopped at Jolly Hall and walked on the beach. We had it all to ourselves. We saw a sea turtle there. We ended the day sitting on our deck that had a view of Hooper’s Bay and beyond.

Sunday – We had breakfast at the cottage. We drove to the unfinished neighborhood near Tar Bay and walked on the gorgeous beach. We walked past the house (Casaurina) we almost rented. We agreed it would have been nice to stay there. We did not see anyone on Tar Bay on any of the times we went. We went to the government dock to meet the water taxi and I got a few good pictures of the boys jumping in the water. We had lunch at Chat and Chill. Conch salad, fed the stingrays, the staff was super nice and the food was good. We walked to the right and put our things at one of the little picnic tables. My phone was in a lifeproof case so I put it under my hat and we went out into the water with our drinks and listened to my downloaded Spotify playlist. (Message me if you want to know how to get the playlists from SCYC.) We really enjoyed our afternoon there. My husband walked to the bar a few times to get me a Goombay Smash. The water temperature was perfect…. about 86 degrees I think. It was just a really, really fun place to hang out. When we got home we went to the neighborhood beach for a while. Dinner at home and sitting on the breezy porch finished up a great day.

To be continued…

Tallahassee, Florida
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1 942 posts
1 review
2. Re: Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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Monday – We rented a Minn’s 17’ Whaler. We were surprised that they charged us $215 instead of the $185 that was on our agreement. Price went up they said. We headed straight for the monument and hiked up. Loved the rock formations that people made down on the flats, especially the alien. We met a couple from Virginia who own a house on GE and had a nice chat on the beach. We headed over to Starfish Beach but we did not see any starfish. We saw a juvenile lemon shark and two osprey in a tree. The osprey did not like that we were so close to them so we moved closer to the point. No other people were anywhere to be seen. We spent time lounging in the amazing water and walking on the beach looking for treasures before heading to Chat and Chill for lunch. We had a conch burger and an order of ribs. There were much fewer people than the day before, so we were able to have a conversation with the very nice bartender and other people who were there. After hanging out in the water for a while, we took the boat through the turtle lagoon and the hurricane hole. We anchored near the path to the ocean side and walked over. It was very windy and high tide, so we could not see the stromatolites on the beach. Maybe next time. We did some snorkeling at Black Rock Reef and cruised around the harbor before returning the boat. The wind was starting to pick up. We got takeout from Eddie’s (conch and lobster) to have for dinner. We went down to the neighborhood beach and played in the big waves. There was no undertow, so it was lots of fun.

Tuesday – We had breakfast at the Driftwood Café and did some shopping at Sandpiper Gifts. We headed south and stopped at the Rolletown tombs before going to Haulover Bay. We had a drink on the deck and admired the view of the sandbars and Man O War Cay. People were having lunch and the place looks really nice. We stopped at Forbes Hill Beach and spent a couple of hours there. Absolutely stunning beach! The cove and the water was perfect and fairly calm. Big waves were coming over the rocks like waterfalls, and it was really something to see. We had the place all to ourselves and didn’t want to leave. We went to Tropic of Cancer Beach via Percy Rd. and it really wasn’t all that bumpy. One couple was there but they were leaving, as a storm was coming in. We got some good pictures before running to the car to escape the rain. We went to Tropic Breeze for lunch and they were battening down the hatches on the little deck. We had seafood nachos and a seafood platter. Everything was delicious. My husband surprised me that night with an order of lobster poppers that he had ordered when I wasn’t looking. We had a nice chat with the staff and another couple while we waited for the storm to blow over. When we got to the Salt Marker it was drizzly and very windy. I’ve been through a few hurricanes and I swear the wind up at the marker was as strong as any I’ve ever encountered. It almost blew me over at one point. We managed to get a few pictures before heading to the Williamstown Plantation Ruins. The mosquitos were bad there and it was muddy. But I got a few good pictures including one of the goats through the window. The male goat was chained up and it made me sad as he seemed to be struggling a little. On the way back we had intended to check out Bay View Villas, but a power line was down across the road. Back to the house for rum drinks on the porch. It was a long day but a good day.

To be continued...

Edited: 6 years ago
New Jersey
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71 reviews
77 helpful votes
3. Re: Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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Thank you for posting! I am enjoying reading about your trip to paradise! I wish I was there right now!! Have you tried Santana's? I dream about that place every day! My mouth waters just to think about it. I can't wait to go back!!! Enjoy!!

Houston
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268 reviews
216 helpful votes
4. Re: Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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PLEASE keep posting! Love the stories.

Mobile, Alabama
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70 reviews
45 helpful votes
5. Re: Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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So enjoying your trip report !!!! Cant wait for more.

Tallahassee, Florida
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1 942 posts
1 review
6. Re: Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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Wednesday – We woke up to rain. After breakfast we had to take the 5 gallon drinking water bottle over to Exuma Building Supply to get it refilled. The cottage had directions for all of that. Then we went to Prime Island Deli and bought lots of good stuff for breakfast, lunches, snacks, etc. It is very close to the cottage. Prime Island was very busy and very interesting. Everyone was very nice and helpful. After putting the groceries away and packing a picnic, we went to look for the Hermitage Tombs. We found them on the road that goes to Catch a Fire/The Cays, but keep going past the turn off to those. There is a heritage marker on the right and a place to park. A boardwalk leads to the tombs. It was very overgrown but we got a few pictures. There was a giant lemon (or lime) tree that had hundreds of unripe fruit. If you go, bring bug spray. We continued on that road that looped back around to the main highway. We passed a grand neighborhood called Oceania Heights. It had a huge sign and a gate. As we continued around the corner we got a great view to the east. We headed to Three Sisters beach and took a walk with a friendly dog. The rain was intermittent, so we would take advantage of it and walk when we could. Continuing north we saw a beach access sign that was at the edge of the Sandals property. We saw lots of couples walking hand in hand around the cove. Another beach access for Flamingo Bay and as we walk we saw a rusty bulldozer in the surf. I got a really good picture of it. We walked past Big D’s which was closed, but it sure is colorful. At some point we gave a little boy a ride (school got out early) and we stopped at Frankie’s Bakery for some treats. We stopped to see the Pompey Memorial and the Jail Ruins at Steventon. Awesome history there and a great view. It’s right on the water where Pompey made his escape in 1830. They even have bathrooms there. We drove to the Shoreline restaurant to access Cocoplum Beach, but the restaurant was closed and it was raining again. We went out to the beach and looked toward Cocoplum and we could see that there were no sandbars, the water was up. It was even up on the other side at Exuma Point. There was a sandbar showing but the water was up almost to my neck to get to it. The water was chilly, but we made it out there and walked around. Lots of birds resting on the sand. And we saw a few critters in the water up there. Stingray, barracuda and a little shark. We had a little picnic on the shore by the car and enjoyed the view. We drove all the way to Barreterre just to see it. Nice view going over the bridge and it really is beautiful up there. Nice people too. We pulled over once and a man stopped to ask us if we were okay. It was a long drive home, but we were glad we went to the end of both roads. We saw a lot today!

To be continued...

Tallahassee, Florida
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7. Re: Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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Thursday – The plan was to get a Minn’s boat today, but the winds were still up and we had a few other things we wanted to do. Friday would be taken up with kayaking. First stop was CNK liquors next to Smitty’s for my Pink Sands Raddlers. I love them! We went to Hoopers’s Bay to see the turtles, but we did not see any turtles. We found a few treasures on the beach from the storm though. No one else was on the beach and we enjoyed our walk. It’s a beautiful beach. We really wanted to go back to our little spot on Tar Bay. It was a beautiful day and we swam and walked. No one else on the beach. We wanted to go see The Cays area/Catch a Fire. We knew the restaurant was closed, but we wanted to see the area. It was hot and buggy over there. No breeze. Not our cup of tea, but the restaurant looked nice. We went home to change then drove into town. We got gas at the marina and then went up the stairs to have lunch at Blu on the Water. Great spot! It was breezy and nice and the lobster quesadillas were excellent. I watched a sea turtle in the harbor for a long time. The bartender said the turtles love it around there. After lunch we went to Marilyn’s Gift Shop and bought a few gifts to bring home. We wanted to see Forbes Hill beach again so we drove all the way there only to find rough surf with lots of yucky sea grass in the water. We walked on the rocks and tried to videotape the huge waves crashing over the rocks. We never did cross over to the beach next door, but we could see it from up on the rocks. Just didn’t see an easy way to get to it. It was getting late so we went to the tower near Tar Bay to watch the sunset. Pretty neat. We went home to pack for the kayak trip. Oh…. The big full moon came up over Hooper’s Bay while we were there. We were able to enjoy it from our cottage.

To be continued...

Tallahassee, Florida
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1 942 posts
1 review
8. Re: Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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Friday – Oh what a day! Whatever did or didn’t happen that wasn’t just right up until this point… today made up for it… big time! We met Dallas from Out Island Explorers at the Little Exuma bridge at 9:00. The double kayak was $75 but we gave him $100. He told us we could have all day and just leave it at the boat ramp whenever we wanted. We went to the left and took the long way to the cut. We saw rays and sharks and all kinds of fish in the mangroves. It took about an hour to get to the cut, but we were taking our time and taking pictures. We saw a huge grove of Palms that looked magnificent above the blue water. We called it the Cathedral of Palms. We saw lots of birds and giant cactus and aloe. We beached on an island just before the cut and walked all the way around it. The lazy river current that people talk about is right there. It carries you around one end of the island and on down a good ways. We did that a few times. I used my life jacket like a floatie and went even faster. We paddled over to the sand spit at the cut and carried our cooler up to the shade trees. It was so unbelievably beautiful we were giggling. If you sit down and lay back on the sandbar at the cut, the water rushes over you like a wave machine. We called it hydrotherapy. The beach there is stunning, and so is the next one down the way. We swam and had a picnic and listened to music and walked and all was perfect for a few hours. The two houses at the cut were vacant and the only people we saw were on a fishing boat going by offshore. When it was time to leave we noticed the tide had gone out and there was sandbar everywhere. We had to drag the kayak a ways to the channel, but it wasn’t that bad. When we got back to the bridge, lots of fisherman were cleaning their catch. We bought a couple of lobsters to cook at the house. We considered stopping at Student Reef to snorkel on the way home but we were too tired. Today was our last day but it was our best day.

Saturday – We did not have to get to the airport until noon, so we finished packing and went to Augusta Bay for breakfast. We walked around the hotel zone and had a nice chat with a staff member at Hideaways. Any of those three hotels would be a great place to stay. We went back to the house and loaded up the car and drove down the hill to the neighborhood beach. A sea turtle swam up to tell us goodbye. It was hard to get his picture but I did it. After returning the car and checking the bags, we went to Kermits for one last Kalik. At the airport we talked to a couple who stayed at Sandals. We were talking about the kayak trip and they asked if we had to leave the resort to do that. We didn’t stay at Sandals I said. Where did you stay? In a house. What did you eat? We ate very well. Lots of lobster. Were you scared? No!!!!! It was hard not to laugh. But maybe they will try it next time.

Bimini, Green Turtle Cay/Abaco, Harbour Island, Eleuthera, Andros, Great Harour Cay/Berry Islands, Long Island, Cat Island, Staniel Cay/Exuma, Great Exuma

Edited: 6 years ago
Great Exuma
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9. Re: Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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Wow! Everything a visitor will want to know about Great Exuma is here! Great report!

Wisconsin
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26 posts
37 reviews
24 helpful votes
10. Re: Trip Reort ~ September 30 - October 7
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Wow! Just wow! These trip reports were amazing! Thank you! You described and even painted the pictures with your words! We are traveling there in February. We are going to Pompey and Salt Beacons. How tough is the hike?

Thanks again!!!!!

Edited: 6 years ago
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