On our first day in Green Turtle Cay, I woke up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Just like every other day, I was ready to get to work. We all went for a walk together to check out our surroundings. We didn’t get much of a look when we got there the night before because we were tired. Sailing is a lot of work! Guarding against pirates and sniffing salt air doesn’t just happen; it takes a lot of energy.
We walked down the long dock, we were near the end by where boats stop by to get fuel. When we got to land, we had a lot of trees and bushes all around. There were a lot of bushes and trees on the islands. The bushes around the water were mostly what are called mangroves. You don’t want to park your boat near these. No bueno. That is where all the bugs live. Green Turtle taught me that. I will get back to that in a minute. There were a lot of coconut palm trees and other trees too.
We noticed a small shop at the marina, Mom went in, and the guy at the front said it was ok for me to go in too. Dad waited outside with Sugar because she couldn’t ever shut up. People think she is mean, but really she is just old and scared. We looked around to see what they had, and I decided they had a good variety of things in case we needed anything. We had a good stockpile of basics on the boat, and we planned to head into town the next day to see what the local store had.
Mom called shopping provisioning. Sailors have special names for everything.
On the way back from our walk, we passed by a fish station where people could clean fish they caught while they were out in the ocean fishing. A group of Bahamian men had just returned, and they were cleaning the biggest fish we had ever seen. I mean big. Like big. Dad asked the man what it was. The man said Wahoo.
We decided we needed some wahoo.
We headed back to the boat to get on with boat chores, and mom went to work on her computer as usual. Dad and I had to repair things that broke during our passage from Something Cay. We needed to make water and do some regular maintenance like good sailors do. Its all in a day’s work!
After lunch, Dad and I went to explore the area a little more.
Here is my report:
There were a lot of wild chickens on this island. There had been a few at West End, but nothing like here on Green Turtle. They were everywhere! Some of them were sassy and didn’t like it when I tried to say hi. I like the smell of them and just wanted to check them out a little closer. Rude. Some of them even had little babies following them around.
There was a little sandy beach near the marina where I could play in the water. This was a top-notch fancy place. The sand between my toes, the salty wind in my fur, and the sun on my face. What else could a Shep want?
Well, a bonus was the smells on the beach. No, not the wonderful smell of salt water, but the smells coming from the restaurant next door. The marina restaurant overlooked the beach. There was always something amazing cooking there, and people sitting on the covered deck overlooking the bay. Now I know why Mom wanted to stay here!
Later that night, Mom said the mosquitoes were really bothering her. Mom is always the first one they go to. She was jumping around all evening, slapping at herself and yelling ouch and other words I won’t repeat because I am a respectful Shep with good manners. Come morning, she didn’t look good. She was a swollen mess. Bites everywhere. Hundreds of them.
There were tiny black bugs dead all over the counter in our galley, which is what sailors call the kitchen. Dad said, these aren’t mosquitoes. These are midges. No-see-ums. We had the flying menaces that plague so many sailors, and they come from the mangroves. We were docked too close to the bushes, and they were eating my mom alive! These things were no joke.
Would these things ruin the most magical place I had ever been?
Wait and see.
Karl out.