Monday, December 7th, 2015 to Tuesday, December 15th, 2015
To say we are tired of the rain would be an understatement. Some days it rains all day, and on others it comes and goes. It always seems to be around, so everything is always wet. Until today! Today feels like the first day without rain in weeks. And, it was a beautiful sunny day in the 80s. Gorgeous! Great for getting things dried out.
Regardless of the rain the last few weeks, we get out and about and enjoy ourselves. The Hope Town Song Writer’s Festival event at the Hope Town Marina was very lucky and manages to take place during a few hours of dry weather without howling winds. And, the next morning the sunrise is breathtaking.
Hope Town Music Festival was really good!
Performers are the writers of many of the current hit country songs.
Our table at the festival’s Hope Town Marina event, from left to right, Randy, Cassy and Brian (Miss Informed), Susan and Brian (Good Morning Vietnam), and Lee.
Sunrise over Hope Town harbour the day following the Song Writers concert.
Beautiful sunrise deserves two photos.
On Thursday the rains stop in the morning, so we take the opportunity to sneak out of Hope Town and head down to Lynyard Cay. We anchor there and dinghy in to see Pete’s Pub in Little Harbour. Unfortunately, Silver Maple needs more depth than what this harbour offers, so we can’t bring her in. Pete’s Pub is a cute beach bar with sand floor and picnic tables. Next door they have a great art gallery displaying bronze sculptures made at the on the premises foundry. We eat lunch at the bar, visit the gallery, explore the ocean side beach, and tour the harbour.
Calm day heading to Lynyard Cay to visit Pete’s Pub.
Water so clear you can see starfish on the bottom at 15 feet. Amazing!
Sails up but not much wind.
First Mate enjoying the view.
Randy on the dock heading towards Pete’s Pub.
Dinghies parked at the Pete’s Pub dock. The transportation we all use from our boats at anchor.
Lee and Randy with Cassy and Brian (Miss Informed) at Pete’s Pub.
Pete’s Pub is a funky, fun place.
Lee and Randy at Pete’s Pub. Photo courtesy of Miss Informed.
Needles are washing up on the shore around the Abaco Islands from the debris of the El Faro container ship disaster. Photo courtesy of Miss Informed.
The guys examine an interesting beach find. Photo courtesy of Miss Informed.
Foam and metal from a container of El Faro, the ship that sank during hurricane Joaquin. Photo courtesy of Miss Informed.
Lee and Randy exploring Little Harbour where Pete’s Pub is located. Photo courtesy of Miss Informed.
The caves in Little Harbour. Apparently the first settlers to this area lived in these until they were able to build other shelter.
The next day, it is pouring rain when we wake up. To be expected these days. Thankfully, it stops in a couple of hours so we head to Snake Cay to explore the mangrove waterways and do some snorkeling. It is overcast, but trying hard to clear. Bad weather with very high winds are forecast for the next day, so our plan is to get back to Hope Town before night fall. We have a great day and see an amazing amount of sea life.
On our way from Lynyard Cay to Snake Cay. Wind on the nose, so no sailing. Boo! Photo courtesy of Miss Informed.
Lee and Randy enjoying the trip. Photo taken by Miss Informed.
Exploring the Snake Cay mangrove waterways required constant checking of the depth with the hand held depth meter, as well as a map so we didn’t get lost.
The mangroves have lots of roots and are able to survive in salt water. They make great homes for wildlife and apparently help to clean the water.
Lee and Randy exploring the mangrove waterways at Snake Cay before we jump in for some snorkeling. Photo taken by Miss Informed.
The waters behind Snake Cay are full of turtles. They swim really fast, but Lee managed to catch a photo of this guy.
We see Eagle Rays where we are snorkeling. Beautiful! Photo taken by Miss Informed.
Back in Hope Town, it is a rainy weekend but thankfully the sun has now finally won out, so we are enjoying a few days of some good weather before we head home.
Finally, a day of nice weather in Hope Town.
The Hope Town lighthouse is decked out for the holidays.
Randy out cleaning Silver Maple now that the weather is nice. Always lots of work to be done!
We leave on Friday for Canada for the holidays. Really looking forward to seeing Jackson, Leo and the house again.
Silver Maple Blog 
December 16, 2015 at 4:25 pm
So nice to hear from you. The days must be long when you are dealing with the rain. The weather on the island has been mostly mild with some rain. Where do you expect to celebrate Christmas? i just received a card and picture of the family from Nancy and she mentioned seeing you over the holidays. Hope to chat with you sometime over Christmas. Love Mom