Morgan's Bluff and Fresh Creek
26 December 2011 | Andros
Wendy/Gorgeous
Andros is a wonderful Bahamian island, if you like 'off the beaten track', which we prefer. Morgan's Bluff, our check in point on the north end of the island boasts an outer anchorage, a sheltered inner harbour, a dock, a bar, a gas station, and the empty buildings at Regatta Point. That's it. The small settlement of Morgan's Bluff is up the road a bit, overlooking the Tongue of the Ocean, and has about 20 houses all told. They were somewhat small, some slightly shabby, others well maintained, and all painted in different pastel colours. Even the most humble had beautiful hibiscus bushes in their front garden. We met 2 police officers who were delivering fruits and vegetables, and they offered us a ride to Nicholls Town, a few miles away. We had a short tour past government buildings, small stores, the police station, schools, liquor stores and several very shabby bars. Nichols Town has the usual assortment of modest homes, churches, government buildings, decrepit abandoned buildings and a crescent beach, which should have been lovely, but was absolutely full of seaweed and completely covered in garbage brought in by the tides.
There are basically 3 ways for Bahamians to make a living on Andros: fishing, agriculture, or government, which is the largest employer. There was a fisherman who kept fish and lobster traps in the bay, and each day he'd go out, find his traps (which were not marked with buoys), and then dive over the side to harvest his catch. We asked him how much for the lobster tails he'd just caught and cleaned, and he said, "I fix you up for $20.00 dollahs, mon." We said okay, figuring he'd 'fix us up' with 4 tails. He gave us his entire catch... 10 lobster tails absolutely bursting with meat. We gave a couple to our new friends on Trilogy, had fresh lobster that night, and lobster salad the next night. Delicious!
We found Henry Morgan's cave, but no treasure. The limestone rock is amazingly porous, with large sinkholes that collect water and allow the vegetation to thrive. Andros is wonderfully lush, and the people very friendly. Walking is a wonderful way to see the island, because it's easy to get a ride from the infrequent cars that happen along, and that's the best way to learn a lot about the island and the communities.
Our next stop was Fresh Creek, with Coakley Town on one side of the creek, and Andros Town on the other. There's actually a marina here, with several live aboards, some snowbirds, and some Americans who work for AUTEC, the Atlantic Undersea Testing and Evaluating Centers maintained by the US Navy. Just offshore is the 3rd largest barrier reef in the world, and Andros also boasts the most Blue Holes in the world. It's a scientifically fascinating place, with great bonefishing in the interior and excellent sport fishing in the deep Tongue of the Ocean beyond the reef. I expected the towns to be much more prosperous with the nearby AUTEC base bringing in business, but most of the Americans stick to the base and the grand schemes and plans for economic growth have all gone down the tubes over the years.
On the Andros Town side of the creek, there's the Lighthouse Marina, and the Androsia Factory, with 19 employees making the famous batik fabric sold throughout the Bahamas. A visit to the factory outlet store netted me some lovely fabric, but unfortunately, the factory was closed for the holidays so we couldn't tour it. We had a great dinner at Hank's Place with Jan and Dave from Arctic Cat, who spend half their time in Fresh Creek and the other half in their cabin in Alaska. They cruised for years before settling down at the Lighthouse Marina. There was also Audrey, the 80 something woman who lives aboard her trimaran on a mooring. She cruised for 40 years with her husband, and after he passed on she still comes down for 6 months of the year to snorkel, spearfish, roar around in her dinghy (standing up, no less), and party at Hank's Place until the wee hours when we youngsters have gone home to bed at nine. I'm telling you, she's an inspiration!
On Christmas morning, we headed out to sail south to Middle Bight, as there's no anchoring in Fresh Creek, but the wind was dead on the nose and the seas very rough after a night of easterly winds. We were slamming into it and once again couldn't sail, so we simply turned around and went back to Fresh Creek. As Ralph said, "We don't need to do this." It turned out to be a delightful surprise, as Christmas afternoon turned into an impromptu party with the crews of several boats and some of the people who work at the base. What an interesting group of people, with so much cruising experience and so many wonderful stories. Our thanks go out to Jan and Dave, Stacey and Bob, Linda and Johnny, and Tilly and Jimmy for cinnamon rolls, bloody Mary's, Margarita's and an excellent turkey dinner. They made a Christmas that could have been lonely for a couple of Canadians far from home and family into a very special day. To our families, old friends and new ones, may your New Years be healthy, happy, and filled with joy.