Day 38 April 29 Lay days in Spanish Harbor

 Day 38

We pulled anchor and traveled into the canal that separates Russel Island from St George Cay to get fuel and pull into a dock for a few days.  These two cays make up the town of Spanish Wells. 

A bit of history about Eleuthera.

Eleuthera is an island of firsts.  It was the first republic in the New World with a constitution and Parliament.  In 1649, the former Governor of Bermuda with several merchants in London formed the company of Eleutherian which had the goal of settling this island.  Receiving a grant for the land of Eleuthera from the crown. the 70 settlers, called Adventurers, set sail in two vessels for the island.  The Adventurers wrecked both vessels along the northern shore of Eleuthera.  The settlers took shelter in a huge cave on the north shore.  Only one person was lost, but all the provisions were gone.

The colonist struggled to survive, spreading out along the island, many building homes in Governors Harbor.  Some of the settlers returned to Bermuda and others emigrated to the Boston area.  The settlers which stayed, learned to live off the bounty of the sea.

Here is a chart of the islands of Eleuthera.  It has a unique shape with land creating the Bight of Eleuthera. 

The Town of Spanish Wells is named by an early explorer who found fresh water here. Today this town is famous for its fishing fleet which supplies well over half of the Bahamian commercial crop of lobster, conch and fish.  The town is also known for its charming cottages and gardens. We are looking forward to exploring the town.

After settling in and clarifying an electrical issue, we took off for town.  Walked past several the fishing fleet at the waterfront, cute cottages and a few shops.  

The narrow roads are filled with golf carts which zip along quickly. We've gotten used to the traffic driving on the left! 

 

We were told by a clerk in Little Harbor to visit her mom at the convenience store.  So as we walked past her store we asked to speak with Sandra, the owner,  and she helped us contact a rental car for tomorrow and gave us an itinerary for our road trip on Eleuthera.  We told her she should be a tourist guide!  

After visiting the store we headed to the quirky bar in town call Buddha's.  It was filled with people who had just finished fishing in charter boats for the morning.  Loved to listen to their fishing tales!!!

The restaurant is outdoors and the rafters are covered in wooden plaques filled with words of wisdom and license plates from the states and Bahamas. Enjoyed our late lunch. The restaurants kitchen was in a colorfully painted school bus!

Here are some of the words of wisdom.

On the way back, we came upon one of the fishing fleets areas where they store their traps, all decorated with license plates and shells.

Returning to the boat, I tackled the laundry, while Bill cleaned all the salt off the boat.

 Was good to get everything clean!!!