It was a 5 hour run from Antigua to Barbuda.
Sailed some, motor-sailed some.
Couple squalls to wash the decks.
Anchored with RomantaSea at Coco Point.
The queen & I have declared this
the #1 beach in the world!
Including us, 7 boats anchored here.
Dinghied to the beach off the abandoned K Club.
Beach chairs & umbrella in dinghy
We had the beach to ourselves.
The Queen
And I
The Queen & I
OK, I lied.
We were not alone on the beach.
There were some flowers.
And of course, there was the water.
We set up our chairs & umbrella
& relaxed & read our Kindles.
Swam a bit, walked a bit.
Then got the kayak.
Yes, it's not just a deck ornament.
If you look over the queen's right shoulder
in the next photo you'll see Dance Aweigh anchored,
without kayak for a change.
We even got George & Joanne to try the kayak.
George & Joanne (RomantaSea)
Even the photographer gets his photo taken
every now & then.
Yours truly by RomantaSea's dinghy
Did I mention that we love this beach?
Anyway, we also wanted to see the Frigate bird rookery
at the North end of Barbuda.
So we called George Jeffrey, guide extraordinaire
& scheduled a tour.
We dragged ourselves away from Coco Point
& motor-sailed up the West coast to Low Bay.
We dinghied to shore & met George.
Walked across the narrow spit of land
& climbed into George's Boston Whaler
on the lagoon side.
Margaret & George Jeffrey
Codrington Lagoon is 2 miles wide, 7 miles long & about 8 ft. deep.
It connects with the Atlantic at the Nothern end.
The town of Codrington is on the East side of the lagoon.
We motored over to town to pay $2 per person
for touring the rookery.
Codrington waterfront
On the way to the rookery, we passed a huge buoy.
Apparently it broke loose from Canada
& ended up in Barbuda!
Canadian Buoy
It's now firmly aground in Codrington lagoon.
I'd hate to run into something like that on a night passage!
The rookery is near the North end of the lagoon.
Frigate birds in the air & in mangroves
Poling alongside mangroves
It was mating season.
George tells us the males inflate their red throats
to attract the females.
Come to Papa!
The mangroves are full of them.
Looks like quite a party
The females have white breasts
Here's Mom & Pop
The newborns are all white.
The juveniles retain the white on their heads only.
The adults are black with huge wing spans.
They soar in the air & dive for fish in the water.
If they contact the water, they are unable to fly off.
It is said that other frigate birds may then
swoop down & pluck them into the air!
Newborn, juvenile & adult Frigate birds
He shouldn't have any trouble getting some action!
OK George, that was a great tour!
Back in Codrington, George showed us
the Fisheries buildings donated by Japan.
Fisheries buildings in Codrington, Barbuda
George is also a stone mason.
He built the supporting structure for the
monument for the Japanese donation.
George at monument
Bahamas flag in honor of RomantaSea
(from the Bahamas - currently)
After another fine day in Barbuda we got George to join us for lunch.
George, Joanne, George & Margaret
What can I say?
We'll sure miss Barbuda & her beaches.
But tomorrow at dawn, we'll be heading to St. Barts
along with our buddy boat, RomantaSea.
Love them Red Throats, folks!! What a beautiful beach! Enjoyed your last entry also. (But for some reason the site would not allow me to leave a comment - but no problem tonight). You guys - as always - are having an awesome time and leaving us "Workers of the World" feeling deprived. But the photos make up for it!! Enjoy - Bill 'n Les.
ReplyDeleteVisiting the Frigate bird rookery had to be a high light of the trip! I would have loved to see that. I have always been curious about Frigates, from the time I first sailed into tropical waters.Your pictures are terrific! Also thanks for the picture of the Pillars of Hercules!!! Boy, do I wish I was there!
ReplyDeleteHerm
Story book beaches! Wow. But what Amazing looking birds. And they never fly to Ja., eh? Sweet to see that Canadian Buoy, ... like it got fed up with all the freezing cold water and headed South. Sensible! Keep safe & Happy. Pam & Brent.
ReplyDeleteGreat photos - this is one well-documented trip! Would love to be on that beach about now! Love, Rich
ReplyDeleteFantastic photos, guys! BTW, I just got a 2meter HT- I thought it might be fun to link up an echolink repeater with the repeater in town and chat over ham radio sometime! What frequencies are you capable of operating on with your current radios? (de N9RZC)
ReplyDeleteMichele and I wish you two the best! Enjoy the sun! [We're getting 2 inches tonight they say! yikes!!]
Sorry we missed Barbuda! What a beautiful beach and those birds look incredible. I'll bet George and Joanne were enthralled. I hope you had safe passage up to St Barts. We are heading over to the USVI tomorrow and want to head to Culebra next weekend. We might slow down in the Spanish Virgins and spend some time there and in PR. Will keep watching the blog for your progress. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteEileen and Kevin, S/V Chameleon
Good to see your beautiful photos - and that wonderful beach. Hope all is going well. Mary Lou
ReplyDelete