Ile de Anglaise

Beez Neez now Chy Whella
Big Bear and Pepe Millard
Mon 8 Jul 2019 23:57
Ile de Anglaise 
 
 
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Today we spuddled the two point two miles across to Ile Anglaise, not the seaward side where the arrow is but the atoll side, we landed where it says “Ile Anglaise”. Half way across, going with the waves we realised it would be a very wet, rough ride back and in hindsight we should have turned back. However, on we went with the promise of excellent snorkeling.
 
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An escapee American buoy became a great place to tether Baby Beez. The sun was hot but the breeze was stiff. We forget just how sheltered we are on our side of the atoll.
 
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Looking toward Ile de Pass, our way out of the atoll is between this island and the next.
 
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A nosy little chap in a scruffy house came to see what we were about.
 
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This truly is an idyllic ‘Robinson Crusoe’ type island. We bimbled along the beach half way to the end of the island, the further we went the more gorgeous it became.
 
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The inner reef, like on our side, extends twenty or so feet, then a gap of sand before the outer – itching for us to explore, but, and not seen in the picture – quite a chop and by now quite a wind.
 
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It still amazes us that any hermit crab can fold themselves into such a small, tight, impenetrable mass.
 
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A couple out looking for mischief.
 
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A gap in the inner reef gave us ‘one of those travel magazine shots’, it really is that blue, no enhancement needed.
 
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We did go in to snorkel, buffeted through the inner reef but visibility was almost milky with the fine sand wafting about. We did reach the outer reef but gave up in quite big waves and the feeling we wanted to get back in case a storm was coming. These pictures did have to be enhanced as they were pretty cloudy.
 
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Bear undid the tether, I hadn’t realised what a big buoy this was until I saw it from this angle. Oh er Mrs......oh be good. Did we get wet ???? Bear began slowly to get us into deeper water and each wave had us ducking under the bucketful of ingress. Too dodgy at full speed, we grit our teeth and bucked and got wet, bucked and got wet. Sitting in the front my fingers moved like windscreen wipers across my eyes. More than half way back and at least Bear could go at top speed and yes, we got a little less covered in water. About four hundred yards from Beez Neez Bobby appeared just a little overhead of us and just as Bear slowed, there he was landed on his happy place on the outboard, what a welcome.
 
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As we drifted to the stern platform there was the usual chatter.
 
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Bobby is getting to be a big boy having lost much of his baby fluff.
 
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Makes us laugh how he now lays down but soon up if he spots any birds coming too close to what is now firmly his territory.
 
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Now not bothered how close Bear gets. Bear swam around Beez for a while getting rid of the grassy growth from the left side. I sat and chatted to Booby, who after a while, wanted to show me that his fishing technique is improving. Not paddling too far away and looking up frequently to see if I was still watching. Ooo, time for a fry up.........and games. 
 
 
ALL IN ALL ANOTHER GORGEOUS BIMBLE
                     BEAUTIFUL BEACH PITY THE WATER WAS SO STIRRED