Sailing Sea Dog

We weighed anchor early this morning and motored down to the south west corner of Castle Harbour. We dropped anchor in about 25 ft of water and jumped in the dinghy for a wet ride to a small beach near Walsingham Nature Preserve. Once ashore we round our way thru the jungle like trail until we found one set of caves. We spent a hour or so exploring the caves.

Michele, Keith and Michelle letting there eyes adjust to the darkness before venturing deeper into the cave.

There are multiple entrances into the caves so you get light from different angles that are really pretty.

I only bumped my head once and once is enough.

We then headed to Blue Hole Park, where there is literally a hole in the rocks filled with very blue water. It is a popular spot for locals and tourists alike. You can swim, snorkel and cliff jump from various spots along the rim. The hole is affected by the tide, so you need to judge the depth before you take a plunge. I went to the highest spot at the far end of the hole, but it looked to shallow for the height, so I changed plans. Really, the water was too shallow...

Here we go!

A safe landing.

The high spot with the shallow landing.

Michele taking the plunge.

I went to the next high spot where you can get a running start.

Second attempt, showing off a little bit.

There was also nice flora and fauna to be found in the preserve.

Not far from the preserve you cross the road into civilization in the form of the Grotto Bay Beach Resort and Spa. On the grounds is Cathedral Cave that is back lit with walking paths. You can swim in the cave but the water was pretty chilling, never seeing the sun.

After an exhausting morning of caving and cliff jumping, we acted like we were staying at the Resort and partook in the beautiful swimming pool on the ledge above a white sand beach and the blue waters of Bermuda. At the pool is an outside bar and cafe, unfortunately no one remembered to carry a wallet, credit cards or cash. The grounds have pretty natural landscaping and I took this picture of a bird of paradise.

It was time to leave Castle Harbour and head back to St George's Harbour. The rest of the fleet was starting to arrive. The fastest boats were in the harbour as we returned. Tonight was the first of several social events put on by the World Cruising Crew as part of Arc Europe 2023. It was an open bar socializer at the St George's Dinghy and Sports Club. We got to meet some of the other boaters that will be joining us on the next leg of our journey across the Atlantic. Seems like a good group of people and we are looking forward to more adventures and camaraderie.

Another spectacular sunset looking west over the St George's Harbour toward town from the balcony of the St George's Dinghy and Sports Club.

Sea Dog out.

We dropped the mooring ball this morning and headed around the corner to Castle Harbour. From Wikipedia: "Castle Harbour is a large natural harbour in Bermuda. It is located between the northeastern end of the main island and St. David's Island. Originally called Southampton Port, it was renamed as a result of its heavy fortification in the early decades of the Seventeenth century.

We dropped anchored in the northeast end sheltered from the NE winds. The waters are an incredible blue due to the sand bottom. Michele says she saw the anchor hit the bottom in 25 feet of water. There is a small island that is off limits, without a permit, that is an ecological preserve. There is a rusted out sunken ship near the island that has good snorkeling. Michele and Keith took the snorkeling gear out to check out the fish. We then dinghied to a beautiful white sand beach and walked along the trails for spectacular views east over the Atlantic. Unfortunately I left my phone on the boat. The pictures here are limited to those taken from the boat of our little corner of Castle Harbour.

Sunken boat, great snorkel spot!

Five years ago, June 2018, when we were here with Gadi and Marina, we visited the Walsingham Nature Reserve, a set of caves and nature area in the southwest corner of Castle Harbour. It was an incredible adventure. I have included some pictures below of that trip. Our friends have not been there, so tomorrow morning early, we will weigh anchor and head down to the reserve.