Hello all. We’re still here in paradise, practicing social distancing in incredibly beautiful secluded anchorages, and revisiting some of our favorites from our 2015 trip.

The prime minister and government voted to extend the lockdown through April 8th.  We can feel the fear and anxiety that these normally friendly and generous people are experiencing. They have been told to stay confined to their yards, all docks are closed,  and they are not to interact with any transient folks. All flights in or out of the country, and commercial inter-island transportation has been forbidden.  All island roads have been closed to any nonessential traffic.   Their daily lives and livelihoods, so dependent on tourism, just like so many of those in the US, have been completely shut down. We are allowed to continue traveling on our boat, if we adhere to the guide lines and only go ashore to purchase necessary supplies.

We have made the decision to stop our southerly trek. So much of the enjoyment of being here, is interacting with the locals and exploring the communities. We will continue to enjoy the rural areas, but will be turning north soon to begin a leisurely return to the States, while stopping to visit many more islands along the way. We are keeping informed of conditions at home, which don’t look like they are improving enough yet for us to risk leaving where we are.

The Bahamian people understand the seriousness of the threat, as there are so extremely few hospital facilities available, and the rural nature of these islands make them even more vulnerable. An outbreak would be devastating to the local communities. This is a picture of the clinic on Staniel Cay where Tom went to get his antibiotic. The clinic is a basically a room attached to a modest home where the nurse who staffs the clinic lives . Not all of these rural islands have the “luxury “ of such a facility.

So far the lockdown has limited the spread of the disease to a total of 15 cases, located on New Providence ( where Nassau is located) and Grand Bahama Island (where Freeport is located.) yet all the 700 islands (30 inhabited) remain on lockdown with the  Police and National Defense force making their rounds to make sure no one is cheating or congregating.

We are very fortunate that the larger islands and marinas will allow us to come ashore to buy groceries and will sell us water and fuel.

After the resupply ship came in to Black Point, we replenished a few supplies.   Our old friend “Fishy” who we met on our last visit here, was able to hook us up with a fisherman to supply a couple more beautiful “essential”  items.

We moved on down Great Guana Cay to enjoy the luxury of this remote and isolated beach.

All public beaches are closed. Robert Earl is a great boat dog, but he and mom and dad, really appreciate going ashore to stretch our legs and cool off in the shallows.
Robert Earl especially loved the long stretch of beach and swimming in the vast open cove as much as the 5’+  leopard ray pictured below, who came gracefully cruising through each day.

We are now anchored at Little Farmers Cay. We took our dinghy into the “Little Harbor” cove to buy some fresh conch salad from Aiden Burrows, our favorite entertaining conch chef.  He was glad to see us, but was very nervous about the virus. He asked us to wait on an adjoining parcel of the boardwalk, while he prepared our lunch.  He brought the salad over and set it on a bench, about 10 feet away, asking us to wait until he had stepped away before retrieving it. When it was time to pay, he asked us to put the money under a rock and leave it for him.  It is sad for Aiden, and for us, that our interaction is so limited. We know we are not the threat, yet suspicion and now the law, has made it illegal for us to enjoy the easy camaraderie these islands are known for.
The Little Harbor is actually a small protected sea park. It is completely open to the sound and the fish and turtles are free to come and go as they like.  Aiden hand feeds his favorite turtles and tries to keep the remora from stealing the conch scraps right out of the turtle’s mouth.

This is certainly a global issue. I hope in the end it will bring us all closer, and more respectful of each other. Who knows how long this will go on, and what our “new normal” economically and socially will be. Please stay safe and healthy all!