The commander of the dinghy!
A boat boy appeared out of the blue and gave us a hand to catch a mooring ball inside the marine park – it was about 9am and we were settled in… so to speak ….. Actually Dale and I sat in the front of the boat looking in awe as the waves brushed the mile long Horseshoe Reef. Yes, there were all sorts of others cruisers there – but it was quiet ….. gentle breezes ….. And just ripples as far as the waves go – We could see the bottom of the sea floor – perfectly from the deck.
Of course – as the “boat boy” motors away from us … the "boat vendors" start …. Need bread? Need ice? Need fresh fish? How about a t-shirt? Hat? Jewelry? You want it – they got it…… so as usual we make friendly contact with them and occasionally support them. There was one special “vendor” – Sydney … a great salesman and entrepreneur – he had a great smile (that always gets me!) Was not pushy … and showed us his wares – I had a lot of fun shopping off the back of the boat!! Sydney could answer all of the questions we had about the Cays – so it was a win-win situation …. Actually I think Sydney was the winner by the time I made all of my purchases!!
Sydney .. a real character!!
John, the first boat boy – was also an entrepreneur: “How about coming over to my beach barbecue? I do it really good – you will have a lot to eat – wanna make your reservation?” We thought on it – and agreed to go the next day for a late lunch… Oh by the way – says John: “Bring your own plate, fork, knife and drink” – ok ….. so we dinghy over to his side of the island – only a couple of plywood tables, a big bucket of fresh water, a grill constructed out of a barrel … there you have it – an outside kitchen. Well I am here to tell you that it was delicious …. Tuna so moist with an amazing salsa of fresh fruit and tomatoes, saffron rice (with a secret spice) and an eggplant vegetable concoction that was outstanding … we couldn’t believe it …. Once again Dale was a member of the clean plate club … I took about half my tuna “home” and made tuna salad the next day for lunch….we highly recommend John’s kitchen to everyone!
John's outside kitchen
A happy and satisfied Captain!
Oh by the way – this iguana was our lunch time companion!
Swimming, snorkeling and nature watching were our activities for the next three days – we could not get enough of it … right off the back deck we would jump into the water – cool, refreshing and invigorating. About 150 yards from the boat was an amazing coral reef – Dale counted about 50 different species of fish and quite a few varieties of coral. Sad to say but some of coral clusters are dying – the oceans are changing, plus 50 yachts at the cays have an effect. (I got a little science lesson!)
These little islands are pretty close together and we just dinghyed from one to another – that way we could snorkel from their shores – another favorite spot was Baradel Island – known as “Turtle Island” – and for good reason …. Dale just appeased me by agreeing to go with me – and won’t you know it – We were just snorkeling by ourselves and right in front of us – a Hawksbill Turtle appeared – we got to enjoy watching him for about 20 minutes – grazing and eating the sea grasses – about a 30” shell – he just moved so gracefully thru the waters – coming up for a breath every now and then … we were so excited to witness nature’s treat!
People watching here was incredible – there were about 50 boats in this marine area – all different sizes – about a 22’ boat from Norway with a young man – probably about 25 years old – making his way for the second time around the world…. A father and three sons in a 50 year old schooner making their way to Trinidad from Denmark – this boat and crew reminded me of the “Lost Boys” in Peter Pan. We shared a five pound jar of fresh peanut butter with them - we knew we could never in a million years finish it before we head back home - they were delightful and delighted with the treat!
Can you imagine?
The cruisers we meet in St. Kitts – Janice and Steve were also there – they joined us on Companion for a happy hour – nice to get reacquainted.
To say the least – both of us loved our time in the Tobago Cays – we will come back here someday – and bring friends with us – a real tranquil paradise that is a hidden treasure – a place to be shared!
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