George Town
Seafever
Tue 23 Mar 2010 16:42
75:45.3 W
We left the northern tip of Great Exuma yesterday afternoon (Monday) and motored out onto the Sound. There were large swells running from the SE after several days of SE wind, but they were slow and gentle enough that we could head SE against them. The wind had turned SW, and after a while we raised sail. It was a gray overcast day and we were happy to use it for traveling rather than staying on the sand flats by Rolleville.
Around 6 PM we sailed into Elizabeth Harbor, where we tucked up into Turtle Lagoon, with George Town on the shore a mile opposite. There are hundreds of boats here. They are moored and anchored cheek-by-jowl. It's an amazing sight, boats of all shapes and sizes -- herds of boats. Many cruisers come here and spend the whole winter, or months at a time. There is daily volleyball on the beach, and many shops and services in town. We were sort of prepared to be horrified by it all, but so far it has been a wonderful place to visit. We motored Sea Fever over to town this morning and visited the Straw Market, where they sell locally made baskets and other handicrafts, with several old women weaving the baskets on site. We went to Exuma Markets where we bought a few groceries (fresh fruits and vegetables) at prices not that different from back home.
The town has a nice energy to it, with friendly people and lots of cruisers coming and going. Today a British gentleman stopped by the boat, which is anchored on a small beach, right in town. Michael seems to be over eighty years old, stooped and withered, but he singlehands a 40-foot catamaran and snorkels every day, hunting for lobster. Amazing! He lives aboard his boat and brings it to Virginia every summer to see his grandkids.
We came back to the boat for lunch and will go back to town to get wifi and to walk around. We'll probably stay two nights near George Town and then head back north as weather permits.