1st Nights on Anchor

This trip has been full of new experiences.  After leaving the West End, we traveled for 70 miles to Angelfish Point/Crab Cay were we found a great spot to anchor for a couple of nights.  Our 1st test of water colors/danger was upon us.  We came into a cove that was plenty deep on the charts, but deceiving to the eye.  The colors of the water changes quickly based on depth and clarity.

Many times I thought we were coming up on impassible areas but Dan re-assured me we were plenty deep based off of his electronics.  We found a great location and set the anchor.  Upon our arrival, a 2.5-3 ft Barracuda greeted our boat as a welcome into his cove.

To make sure we were set, Dan dove the anchor while Sydney and I watched on.  On the way over to the anchor, he picked up and showed us a huge star fish - bigger than I have ever seen.

After settling in, we dropped the dinghy and went for a ride.  I kindly requested Dan stick his head in the water (with a mask on) to look for Conch while I drove the boat.  He reluctantly did as I requested and saw nothing.  We stopped at the beach to let Sydney run and there they were - the Conch.  We collected 10 - decided to only bring back the 3 largest ones.

Before I left, I watched several YouTube videos on how to clean/cook these animals.  After an hour of cleaning and pounding the heck out of the meat - it was ready. I made Conch salad and sautéed Conch.  The Conch Salad was less than desirable - as the textures was something close to cartilage.  The sautéed Conch was much better and tasty.

On day 2 - the winds started to pick up - so we decided to fish a little in the back waters from the dingy - something - close to what we do in Florida.  We saw several sharks (a couple large) and a bunch of fish in and around where we anchored and went fishing.  The water was so clear - they looked at us, while we were "hunting" them.  We caught 4 snappers (Dan caught 3), I cleaned them, and made ceviche - which was great.  Of course, there was only enough for appetizers.

On Monday, we headed to Green Turtle Cay to stay at the Marina for a couple of days - as the winds and swells have picked up and seeking shelter is more important than enjoying the tranquility of that very cool cove.