Fishing Cape Santa Maria
Ambler Isle
V and S
Sat 16 Apr 2011 13:21
|
April 15, 2011
We awoke to another fine Bahama day. We slept well
and looked forward to the new day. We scrapped our plan of dinghy
exploration and weighed the boat's anchor right after coffee. Tiptoeing
the Amber Isle thru the thick reefs shielding the anchorage we were
soon in deep "mahi" water. It was so calm we came across a sailboat
anchored right out in the open, off the point at Cape Santa Maria. The SE
waves were 3-4' as we rounded the top side of Long Island. Very pleasant
as we dragged 3 fishing lines behind. The waves hit our bow quarter, our
best direction. At the top the waves increased to 4-5', not as
pleasant, but okay. We decided to get thru the Cape to the ocean side,
then go either due east to Rum Cay, or follow the eastern coastline down Long
Island. But as the seas grew to 6' with a few rogue waves of 8' it became
obvious we would be able to do neither. Just as we were getting ready to
turn around, the waves subsided a bit, maybe down to 4-5' again. Could we
continue? About that time a big rogue wave struck us and that was
it. Captain Valt started the second engine and began counting waves to
turn after the next big rogue wave. As soon as we turned, a blessed calm
overtook the Amber Isle. She seemed to sigh a sigh of
relief. But the following sea is very difficult for the auto pilot to
guide, so Valt set it to manual and steered the boat himself. I was sent
to the cockpit to keep an eye on the rods. What a big job! I donned
my floppy hat and sat on the lounge chair. I watched the rods, but also
kept a sharp lookout for whales. Many had reported seeing them in this
area. But I got no fish, I saw no whales. We did see some flying
fish, and a couple white tropicbirds scolded as we went by. We went
back to Calabash Bay closer to shore this time and dropped
anchor. I watched the anchor hit the sea floor and the flukes began to
sink into the white sand. It set before we even backed down on it.
We cleaned the fishing equipment and put it away. Next we launched the
dinghy. After cleaning up and changing clothes we rode over to the Cape
Santa Maria Resort for happy hour. The small resort has about 10
duplex bungalows and 5 larger two story multiple condo units. There is also
a pool, clubhouse, bar and restaurant. It would be one of the few resorts
we would recommend to friends looking for a nice week or two in the
Bahamas. The bartender, Rashad, was a black Bahamian with his hair dyed
red. Very congenial, he served me the drink of the day, a frozen
margarita. Not my usual drink, it was one we don't serve on Amber
Isle. Not too sweet, it was very good. Valt opted for his half
and half. We chatted with resort guests who had just arrived that day from
Toronto, Canada. They sat at the bar with their I-phone and I-pads.
What were they searching for? Would they find it here in the
Bahamas?
|