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Second Stop: Stella Maris   Stop 2 on the Bahamas Pilot Challenge brought Wild Mama and crew into Stella Maris on Long Island. This time, Wild Mama did make the excursion with Susan Carastro and her twin Cessna in tow.

Unlike the morning before, this morning was bright and sunny over LaBelle so we departed early to hook up with the twin. Some early morning fog wafted through the farm fields of inland south Florida but the coastlines were both clear. We touched down at Lantanna around 0800, met up with the twin and were off with feet wet by 0850.

It was odd to see so many clouds over the water once we broke the coastline. The clouds were spotty but there until Andros where a thick layer blanketed the whole island. We climbed out to 7500’ and settled in with a nice little 10 kt headwind. We were still clipping along at 150 kts which was not so bad.  We stayed with the 310 in tow most of the trip – note Wild Mama outrunning the twin!!!!!

The winds across the water were light with barely a ripple and no white caps at all. The water was a crystal clear royal blue with all other hues of blue mixed in around the islands and the coral reefs. This is the view that we long to see in the Bahamas. In a short 2:10 we were approaching Long Island. We tried to cancel the flight plan on 126.7 but could raise no one. Stella Maris suggested Georgetown on 118.0 and that worked just fine. (Note to self for next trip.)

The winds were light and straight down the runway coming over the threshold but we caught a couple of wind warbles from the ocean breeze making us have to come in wing low to compensate. Touchdown went well and we taxied off to the ramp. The Stella Maris FBO was warm and welcoming and customs was dutiful with a sense of humor. The taxis were awaiting our arrival and the resort was a short ½ mile.

The resort is lovely and tropical. There are no TV’s in the rooms and there is an open door policy which was really nice as we did not have to worry about house keys. The breeze coming through the room was almost enough to knock us over so there was no need for A/C in spite of the 85 degree temperatures.

We headed to the Moonshine Bar for some lunch and sunshine. Yummy Panini’s, salads and virgin mango daiquiris hit the spot before our trip to the Oceanside tide pool. We spent the remainder of the afternoon soaking up sun before our traditional rum punch reception. Ya gotta love the Bahamian hospitality!

Long Island has been a great base of operations for our five days stay. It was the perfect spot for island hopping but the island was also big enough, and the resort offered enough to do that you did not feel trapped.
 
Much of our time was spent relaxing as we all seemed to need a break from the hustle and bustle of life back home. But other times were spent exploring. Bicycles were readily available to check out some of the local things close to the resort, or for the more adventurous, longer from the resort. We had a snorkel cruise on Wednesday that took us out to the reef to the west. The reef was about 10' deep and perfect for a snorkel trip. Even I - the biggest cold woos ever- jumped in the 78 degree waters for a swim. The water was refreshing and the sun warm enough that the cold was not so bad. The corals were pristine, the water crystal clear and the visibility unlimited. We saw all sorts tropical fish including the lion fish which w brought here from Pacific waters and has no known predators. Our day on the water was perfect.
 
Our final day here we decided to become island experts, rented a car and set out to explore the 85 mile long island. Since our resort was near the north end, we started there, heading to the monument of Columbus. Judging by the road we were first to discover the monument to Columbus since it was built. The views were spectacular, but unless you are p for a slow, bumpy ride, Columbus is best seen on final approach to runway 13.
 
After our trek we needed some water, so we stopped at a little convenience store under expansion. Vince and Donna had bicycled here the other day and raved about the strawberry ice cream cones. Most unfortunately, they were out as they failed to catch the once a week supply boat, but they were kind enough to hand dip some chocolate ice cream for us all. Refreshed, we pressed southward.
 
Salt Pond offered an interesting tease: a beautiful double bay just past the HSC. We made a brief stop at the well stocked grocery and what not store for some snacks, water and a file to dress my prop where I picked the rock at New Bight, and seek further directions. The waters were quite rough today so the serene scenery in the photos was not to be had, but the shoreline was pretty, save for the myriad trash and debris scattered in the grasses leading to the beach. We all wanted to grab a trash bag and start picking. The shoreline on the ocean side is quite rugged the whole way down the coast that we have seen thus far, with hills and dunes leading to the beach areas. The harbor side, to the west of the island and leeward of the prevailing winds, had much calmer waters, sandier beaches and more opportunity for a not-so-challenging swim on a high wind sort of day. We enjoyed the walk out on to the point at the twin bays and kept heading south. Once again, we are travelling on island time and half the day is gone, far short of our intended destination.
 
We passed Dean's Hole opting for lunch as it was nearly 1300 and we were starving. Clarence Town had several restaurants, a bakery and was looking mighty fine for a place to stop. We "followed the signs" to restaurant row, completely bypassing the downtown area off to the south on the main road. After a piece we knew that this car load of pilots got off the magenta line and had to do a 180. We got back to the marina to find the Outer Edge Restaurant. Salvation at last!
 
Either the food was really good or we were really hungry but we all enjoyed our lunch, none of us wanting to share. There was an old church nearby that we spied and, of course, had to investigate. We squeezed our way through the spires up to the top to open up a spectacular panoramic view of the harbor of Clarence Town. Satisfied, we were off the the blue hole.
 
Dean's Blue Hole is said to be the deepest in the world at 662'. It is nestled on the rocky ocean side of the island and has an underwater caving system that Mark Ashley would love to explore. The water was a rich cobalt blue and the sign warning of a drop off was quite accurate: it went from several inches to the bottom in less than a foot. We had wanted to swim but the winds were still whipping enough that cold would have set in before we hit waters edge.
 
By 1500 we were again heading north back to the resort. It was a leisurely ride back and quite enjoyable. We learned that the best stuff is off of the main drag. All of the little settlements are on the side streets. We also learned that signs are not as easy to decipher as we thought. But the island was fun and the adventure is another for the books.
 
All of the food at the Stella Maris resort was outstanding. Wednesday night was Bahamas’ night with tropical fare. Tuesday night was a rum punch party with a buffet complete with steak and mahi. The virgin mango daiquiris were lushes and all of the people were over the top friendly. One from our group was delayed and missed our private rum punch party so they comped her meal the next day. You could not ask for better service.

Stop 3: San Salvador   Today was the big adventure day to go out and work on the island hopping project. The original goal was conch salad but we discovered quite rapidly that getting to the island was easy: getting to the conch salad was another matter. The best was no where near the airports so we revised the plan to look for the next resort for our next Bahamas jaunt. There was a small resort near the airport at San Salvador. The airport itself was great – a huge long runway that was really nice and plenty of ramp space. Coming in to land we saw a beautiful resort from the air so we decided to look at that one. In no time at all we walked to Club Med and met Fox, the security guard soon-to-be our tour guide.

Club Med was amazing with lush, lavish grounds, well appointed lounges and public areas and lots of activities in the all-inclusive resort. Each of us found something to our liking. For me, it was the diving, Donna loved the beaches, Trish spied the comfortable massage huts on the water and Vince liked the French aerobics. Joe like the whole thing and Vern liked the peace and quiet. For a resort that was 87% full, it was serene and hardly seemed that a sole was anywhere around. We all voted that this was a place to which we wanted to return. Passport stamped we pressed on.

Stop 4: New Bight, Cat Island. With such an awesome day to fly we wanted to hop to as many places as possible. Fernandez Bay Resort has been advertising at Sun-n-Fun and I have never seen it so today was the day. We took another short 20 minute hop to arrive at New Bight, Cat Island and in less than 1 mile the cab took us over to Fernandez Bay. It was already 1130 and we were getting hungry. We were operating on island time and figured we would be a bit farther along by now but a very nice hostess took out food order early so we could eat as soon as the restaurant opened at 1200. In the mean time, we toured a few of the rooms and the grounds. Already we were amazed at how different each of the islands is: each has its own pace, people and flavor. The consistent thing is that all of the Bahamians that we have met are very friendly and laid back.

Lunch was another amazing experience. We had a variety of dishes from Cheeseburger in Paradise to grilled grouper sandwiches to grilled grouper César salad. All were good and the self serve bar (for alcohol and non-alcohol) was a hoot. Trish did a little additional retail therapy and we all left full and happy.

Fernandez Bay is a small resort nestled on the beach in and amongst the trees. There are 18 bungalows, basically the same but each a little different. The bathrooms are private but outside – how cool!

Stop 5: Rock Sound, Eleuthera:   To the north a small way is Eleutheria Island with 3 large runways. We started at the southern most, Rock Sound. The settlement to Rock Sound is a short 2 miles from the airport but we were already bucking against 1400 and we had to be back by 1730 so we would not be flying at night – prohibited where we were going and very dangerous to boot. We bypassed the settlement but did get a Passport stamp for our “comfort stop”. We will be back to explore this settlement on the next journey.

I am not sure the issue I had with Rock Sound in remembering the name. I felt like my Mother when she would forget one of the kids’ names and she would go through what we called “roll call”. That was me with just about every radio call to Rock Sound. I think I called it everything but Rock Sound: Rock Island, Rock Harbor, Rock Star, Rocky Road, Rock Point, Rocky Horror Picture Show …. Well, you get the idea.

Stop 6: Governors Harbor   Our last stop for the day. We had enough time for a tour of the area and we found a cabbie born and raised here for the job. He was perfect and gave us a great history of the area and took us to the main part of downtown for some snacks and more retail therapy. There is one road running the whole of Eleuthera from north to south and Governors Harbor is in the middle. It was the original government center.

The downtown was quaint but active with old turn of the century (not 20-21) homes, small shops and a beautiful old church and harbor capable of supporting cargo container ships. There was a ramp where the local fisherman display and sell their fresh catch. We completed our tour and headed back to the planes. We needed to be in the air by 1600 in case the wind had not died down as forecast. We had strong winds all day but they were to diminish. We needed 50 minutes but allocated 1.5 hours so we would not miss our 1730 target arrival time – just in case.

We remained low over the water – about 1000’ AGL (or is that AWL). Our reward was seeing some shark, beautiful colorful reefs and a Regal Cruise Lines ship puttering northward. We plopped back in at Stella Maris with time to spare, relaxed, rejuvenated and in awe of the Bahamas.

When you stay at one island then do not go immediately to another, it is hard to see just how different each of the islands is. All of the people are friendly; all of the scenery is beautiful; the food is good, the service is great but the ambiance and character are different. Some places are more laid back than the others but none are “bustling”; some are quaint and charming; some are quiet; others are serene. All are amazing!

We are half way through the Challenge. I can’t wait to see the next treasures that await me!!

Stop 7: Freeport:   "Just ask and considerer it done." is what our cabbie told us when we landed in Freeport for stop 7 on the Bahamas Pilot Challenge. Vern and I flew over today in N831BB bringing the planes' owner and some of her friends on an afternoon junket. While they went off on their way, we decided on the Banana Bay restaurant: a place where we have not been as of yet.
 
This Easter Sunday was beautiful although we had the killer Headwinds on the trip over. Since I was the co-pilot this time, I got a different view of the arrival and got to see some of the large cruise ships in dry dock on the base to final turn for runway 6. Vern then made a picture perfect landing and we were whisked through customs and ushered into our cab in no time flat. Our cabbie was big, hulking fellow with a sweet disposition. He recommended Banana Bay Restaurant on the beach to the east of the airport. We had to meet back at the airport by 1530 to get the plane ready for the owners to depart for home so we Appreciated that the cabbie was not impacted by those headwinds. His ground speed was greater than ours!
 
Banana Bay is a small tropical oasis on the water. Between the heat of the day and the gentle breeze, the temperature was just perfect. There were so many great choices on the menu that we decided on a selection of banana bread, crab and tomato salad, fish fingers and cracked conch pigeon pea rice. Judging by the look on the waiters’ face, that was a lot of food.
 
He started with the "slice" of banana bread ..... a whole loaf. OOPS, I think we will go home as cargo. The remainder lf the meal was equally as grand: generous portions and scrumptiously delicious!
 
We waddled down to the beach for some R & R after lunch, watched wind surfers, kite boarders and beach goers and snoozed for an hour or so until it was time for our rocket ride back to the airport to pick up our passengers and head back to the States. With kicking tailwind this time, the trip back was quick although some afternoon clouds started rolling in keeping us fairly low across the pond. Customs at PBI was fast, although they did have a look at my left over banana bread that I refused to give up; and we were back at Lantana to drop off the plane and passengers and head back for home before dark.
 
.... And as usual, my only complaint is that our time there was waaaay to short.