Morgen's Bluff

I have got about three different posts going through my head, so be warned I am going to spew a few out that aren't exactly in order over the new couple of days. We did something a little different this weekend. There was a craft fair up on the northern side of Andros, so we took a drive to see what it was like. We haven't gone all the way up there before because everyone here keeps telling us we need a guide to find stuff, and there isn't much to find. However, since we can't seem to hook up with anyone going up there, we figured this was the perfect time to do it ourselves since there was actually a definite destination for us to reach.


The craft fair itself is not the subject of this post, although I will talk about it later. After we got bored there, we drove around to see if we could find Morgen's Bluff. From what I understand, it is supposedly where the pirate Captain Morgen paced looking for ships. We were having no luck finding it (it's very true you need a guide to be sure of where you're going - there is next to nothing in the way of street signs here, so you kind of have to pick a direction and hope for the best), so we'd headed back to the main road to go back home when Oliver missed our turn. Happily, we then stumbled upon the road that appeared to go to the bluff (if what we found was indeed Morgen's Bluff).

Here's the road we drove in on. Pretty much all the side roads look something like this, adding to the difficulty of finding stuff. I loved the trees; there were kind of like pine trees, very unlike the very dense mangrove forests we have in Central Andros.

Basically, it was a huge chunk of coral that jutted out into the sea. We weren't exactly prepared to climb coral rock, which is a very prickly, grippy surface, but we did it anyway. Oliver was in flip flops, so I think he had the hardest time, but we managed to get us all up there in one piece. I'm so glad we did, too, because it was beautiful up there! We're definitely going to have to take another trip up there with a very thick blanket, some proper shoes, and probably jeans, and have a picnic. It was also, as most things in Andros are, deserted of all people, which was another plus.

 It was windy up there! Here Oscar makes it clear what he thinks about all that wind, and you can get a sense of how rough the coral rock is by looking at the texture of it behind us. I never realized coral can get to be like this. I always thought of it before as tendrils, but Andros itself is pretty much made of the stuff. That's why the beaches here are so white. Coral makes perfect sand!

Here's a shot down the length of the bluff. Where I was standing was where it joined the main island. The rest is surrounded by water. Definitely a great place to watch for ships.

 

I took this looking down at our car. We weren't terribly high, but it was interesting getting up there while carrying Oscar. Luckily, coral is very easy to climb.

We thought this was a cave, maybe a pirate hideout, but no such luck. It's just a deep hole worn into the side of the bluff. Although, maybe a couple hundred years ago, it was something more interesting...

The water here is so amazingly clear! I know our oceans are being polluted at an alarmingly high rate, but it's nice to find such clarity still exists out here.

I couldn't resist adding this one. This is Wyatt's latest picture taking pose. I am building quite a collection of pictures of him in this same pose in various places. It never fails to amuse me how quickly he assumes it when the camera comes out. At least he's still willing to let me take his picture! Oh, and the hair, yikes. We tried to get it cut this Friday when she takes walk-ins, but a squadron of helicopters are here for a bit. That means lots of action in the skies, but a long line at the barbershop. Maybe we'll have better luck next week.

The whole shoreline there is covered with concrete blocks, in what appears to be some kind of erosion control. We had some fun climbing on them, although it made me nervous when Wyatt was jumping around. There were deep open spaces between them, and I could see him getting very stuck in there. It would have taken a long time to get help to him, so I finally convinced him to get down and do something a little safer.







After Wyatt got down, Oliver climbed between one out of curiosity. He then managed to lose a sandal while standing on one of the lower blocks. I figured it was a goner, but he actually managed to snag it with his toes. He had me a little worried when he remarked it reminded him of a time he'd gotten stuck on the submarine trying to retrieve something in the outboards, but he was fine.

We had perfect weather for this little trip. It's been a little on the cold side lately, but Saturday was beautiful. So far, I'd say March is a great month to visit the Bahamas. It's too windy for most of the bugs, and the sweltering heat and humidity are tamed. There are some chilly nights, but for anyone coming from a real winter wonderland, it will be very comfortable. 

Our boys ended our trip by doing what they love best these days: throwing rocks. The water was unreachable from here, but they thought it was hilarious when they managed to shatter one of the smaller chunks of coral rock on the huge wall here. I think I almost got whacked in the head, but it was nice to give them free rein to go crazy. Boys need that sometimes.