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31 July 2017

Wandering Around At Warderick Wells | Exuma Cays Land & Sea Park, Bahamas

Warderick Wells is one of those places everyone who cruises in the Bahamas talks about. It's the headquarters for the Exuma Cays Land & Sea Park, which was established in 1958 to protect the marine environment, wildlife and plant life.

Everyone who's everyone wants to park their boat in the mooring field just off of the visitor center.


Instead of hanging out with the cool kids, we headed over to the Emerald Rock mooring field. Only two other boats came in for the night. It's definitely the off-season.


After some lunch and walking up to the ruins at Beryl Beach, we dinghied over to the visitor center to pick up the trail head to Boo Boo Hill. We call our dinghy Boo Boo, so of course I had to see a place that has the same name.


Scott always takes sneaky pictures of me when I'm walking. See that bright yellow dry bag I'm carrying? It contains the essentials for excursions away from the boat. Things you might find in any woman's handbag - money, keys, hairbrush, lip balm, tissues - and things that are a little more specific to boat living, like a portable VHF radio and a towel.


Here's the view before you make the final climb up to Boo Boo Hill. Nice, huh?


Cruisers make signs with their boat names and leave them on top of Boo Boo Hill.


Points for creativity on this one - a knitted sail. Our first boat was called Rainbow's End.


We couldn't be bothered to make our own sign so we headed back to the boat. You have to ford this creek to get to Boo Boo Hill. The tide had started to come in, so it was a bit wetter on the way back.


Then it was time for some sort of concoction created from canned goods and an early night before exploring more of the park the next day.


Cruising Log | Sunday, 4 June 2017 – Monday, 5 June 2017
 
4 JUNE
Used the generator to start engine. Anchor up at 7:50 AM. Anchor down at Emerald Rock at 10:45 AM. No one in mooring field. Checked out ruins at Beryl Beach. Did some snorkeling. Went to Visitors Center, hiked up Boo Boo Hill and checked out the blowhole. Only two other boat in anchorage overnight - fishing boat on a mooring ball and another boat anchored. Nautical Miles = 15. Engine = 3 hours. Spending = $20 (landing permit).

5 JUNE
Snorkeled at Malabar Cays. Long, bumpy dinghy ride to get there. Snorkeling just okay. Anchor up at 11:45 AM. Motorsailed to south side of Bell Cay. Went to drop anchor and it got stuck in bow roller. {Sigh} Went back into channel where Scott sorted it out with a crowbar. Came back in and dropped anchor at 3:00 PM. Amazing snorkeling ever at the Sea Aquarium. Very patchy internet reception. Nautical Miles = 15. Engine = 3 hours 15 mins. Spending = Nil.

Do you carry a handbag, dry bag, backpack or other sort of bag? What's inside of yours? Would you prefer a quiet anchorage without any other boats or one that's really popular and chock full of boats?

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21 comments:

  1. They do get extra points for the knitted sign.
    Does your husband cringe every time you say Boo Boo?

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    1. When I wrote this, my hubby said, "No one calls the dinghy Boo Boo except you." And then he cringed.

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  2. OK, so we carefully picked out a piece of driftwood, painted it, and etched it with a cute paw and our mermaid logo....and it seems that it is GONE (according to my sleuths). So, good job on saving yourself the pain.
    I've owned all sorts of bags, from beastly dry bags that don't go well with going out to Indian restaurants to designer bags with corroding zippers. And I'm not the only one....Matt spends more money on bags than I do! And we hate them all. I really wish I didn't have to design and make my own, but that's how desperate I am for a decent bag.

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    1. I didn't see your sign at all, although I did see some others that I recognized. I think you should design your own bag. Make it look like your BBQ cover. That'd be fun :-)

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  3. We spent time in both places. Loved how quiet it was off of Emerald Rock. We failed to leave our boat marker too, but enjoyed seeing all the others who had hiked before us.
    (helialetitbe.wordpress.com)

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    1. Glad to know that we're not the only ones who didn't leave a sign :-)

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  4. I love Boo Boo Hill. How fun.

    What a lovely place to read and have a cold adult beverage. That or a box of cookies.

    Have a fabulous day. ☺

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    1. For some reason, now I want cookies. See what you did :-)

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  5. I appreciate a quiet anchorage, I'm sure you do too!

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    1. I'll take a quiet anchorage over a crowded one anytime. That's one reason why I'm glad we were there during the off-season - so much quieter.

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  6. We've left several signs. They disappear with the hurricanes. We tried all of the mooring fields at Warderick Wells. The North field is best for waiting out storms. Emerald Rock is perfect for calm days. The South field is tricky to get into but it's lovely and secluded.

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    1. The South mooring field did look interesting. Unfortunately, we didn't get a chance to get there.

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  7. Beautiful! I'm a bit nervous about Banshee Creek, however. But still curious as to how it got its name. I guess I'd be tempted to hang out there and listen for a while.

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    1. The area is supposed to be haunted by the spirits from a missionary ship that sank there. Probably best to visit during daylight hours :-)

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  8. Boo Boo Hill and Banshee Creek? Hmmm..... I'm slightly nervous too.

    They look petty though.

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  9. We love the time we spent there. That place is magical. I was straining my eyes to see if I could spot out sign in your pic. Couldn't find it. Maybe we should have made a bigger one :)


    Mark and Cindy
    sv Cream Puff

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    1. I didn't see your sign when we were there. That's a shame as it would have been fun to spot it.

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  10. Amazing adventures! Love all the photos.

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