Travel with me #80 : A visit to the Staniel Cay Yacht Club and enchanting hidden "sandbar" beaches!

Dear Steemit friends:

Sometimes it's hard to decide where to go given the limited time you have in a place you travel to. Indeed we are all limited by a finite amount of time and that is what makes life so exciting. The fact that we can't be two places at the same time, (and yes, I know Quantum physicists will argue otherwise) means that we tend to enjoy things more when the most precious commodity - time, is spent unabated on things that we ourselves choose.

Given the reality that I only had less than 2 weeks in Bahamas, and around half of it was at the Atlantis resort, it really only left me with less than a week to explore everything else. Quite a monumental task given that Bahamas has over 700 named islands and cays, and that is why as I mentioned in my previous article about whether to visit Atlantis, I recommended that first time visitors spend an adequate amount of time there but forget not that Bahamas is so much more than this one resort.

In fact, as amazing as Atlantis is, I would even suggest to avoid it for non-first time visits. Such a conclusion came from the epiphany I had, reminding me that I really didn't spend all that much time exploring the majority of what Bahamas has to offer. This is no doubt one of my small regrets now that I've been back for a while and reflecting on my journey's there.

On one of my last days in Bahamas, I had the pleasure of visiting Staniel Cay Yacht Club, in Staniel Cay, Exuma and once again be spoiled by an absolute eye feast of the serene natural landscapes we have now come to know Bahamas for.

Crystal clear, pristine blue waters stretching endlessly in all directions, mini islands greeting us every few minutes. It's no wonder Ernest Hemingway adored the Bahamas and spent three of his summers of 1930's in the Bahamas.

Far from being a nobel prize winner in literature, I can at the very least, appreciate Bahamas for being a muse to my writing.

After travelling on a rocky bumpy speedboat for nearly 1.5hrs, we finally arrived at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club.

Although it is known for being a low key getaway location offering many bungalows, villas and many a Yacht adventure, my visit would be a short visit to their signature restaurant for a quick bite to eat before heading back out to the seas.

Inside, the restaurant is decorated like an accomplished helmsmen's humble abode. On the ceiling, there are too many flags and burgees to count. It's certainly very impressive, and I do wonder what the backstory behind all of these are.

The pool table gives the bar at the restaurant that nitty gritty feeling of authenticity. This is not a fancy restaurant and nor is it pretending to be.

The service wall shows an interesting plaque of USCG. Do any of you know what that means?

It is of course the United States Coast Guard, and here, the Yacht Club has proudly been a part of the maritime service for many years as shown by the number of services badges awarded to them.

Because my trip was a prepaid excursion, I had to choose my meal option beforehand.

You can either have a grilled Chicken Burger with chips and salad.

Or, the Classic Beef Ham Burger also served with chips and salad.

Suffice to say, the meal was actually really pleasant, although I do wonder whether the meal was really worth the $40 odd extra dollars.

Never the less, it was time to move on, and everyone else seems to be very satisfied with their meal.

On the way back to the boat, I'm really happy to once again see my friends the Nurse Sharks being friendly with the visitors. I instantly recall my experience swimming with them at Compass Cay, and with the weather being so hot, I had an insatiable urge to jump in to greet them again. Sadly, on this occasion my hesitation got the best of me.

The mini harbour is absolutely beautiful, there are little huts built facing the sea all around the landing area and just in-front of them, mini boats with cloth shade roofs ready to take out small parties of people on their own adventures.

My own adventure, begins with a can of Coke. You have no idea how refreshing it is to drink an ice cool coke under the blistering heat. By this time, my own skin was turning a similar shade of red to the can. One bottle of SPF 50+ spray on Tan Lotion is clearly not enough.

Back on the boat, and ready to discover some more of the paradise!

A very short ride on the speed boat, and we pull over at what appears to be a natural shallow kids swimming pool. Upon further inspection, you'll quickly realise that this is actually part of the ocean and the waters here are really shallow!

How fitting that the excursion was named hidden beaches, it appears we have found just that - a hidden beach emerging from the ocean surrounded by the clearest shallow water I have ever seen.

At low tide, Bahamas reveals these secret sandy beaches to us known as sandbars. The waters are so shallow that when standing up, they only come up to my shins!

Strips of sand formations are revealed as the water recedes on low tide. I can safely say at least at this moment, this is my own personal beach!

I'm not usually a bird watcher, but this lone seagull was so beautiful standing there alone, waiting to see if it could find any crustaceans in the sand to eat.

Traversing between "Islands" is a matter of walking just a few feet from one sandbar to the next.

There are many small islands surrounding the sandbars, making it feel like a private enclosure, truly secluded from the rest of the world. With the waters so shallow, I could literally walk on water straight to the main islands!

There is something different about shallow water. It almost doesn't feel real as I sit down and have only half of my legs submerged. Frequent beach goers will be dumbfounded by the "lack of" water, and yet, all around it is all I can see.

Where did it all go?

Do you remember those mini inflatable swimming pools that we used to paddle around in as little children?

That is the feeling that I had as I rolled around in the shallow water, struggling to find a spot where I could fully submerge myself under the water.

It's a beautiful thing when nature can remind you of your youth and not only that, make you behave like time never passed by, and you are just a little child playing in a summers paddle pool.

After turning a light shade of red from paddling around the sandbar beaches all day, it was time to come back home. Back at Magaritaville, I didn't realise that they had a tiny pool for customers. It almost looks too deep and uninviting after paddling around at the sandbar all day.

Just by the restaurant, we have a local preparing some Conch salad, his displays of the conch and starfish really drew a lot of attention to his offering.

A nutritious end to a marvellous day at the hidden sandbar beaches of Staniel Cay.

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Thank you for joining me on my experience to Staniel Cay and the majestic secret sandbar beaches. Most of us including me are quite used to the idea of going to the beach and paddling around in shallow but submersible water. Who would have known you could enjoy a sandy beach in the middle of the ocean surrounded by water so shallow it barely covers your feet?

Just another one of Bahamas' examples of paradise and I'm really excited to do more exploring like this in future visits.

As always, I really appreciate an upvote if you liked my post, a follow if you like what what you see and want to stay up to date with my activities, and do please leave a comment to let me know what you think!

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要说海岛里的一股清流，巴哈马可能是比马尔代夫还要浪漫的伊甸园，纯色的蓝天，干净的海水，洁白细软的沙滩。这里除了是《加勒比海盜》的拍摄取景地，著名作家海明威也曾在这里生活了3年，并写下了最终获得诺贝尔文学奖的《老人与海》。今天我很开心，可以继续带大家体验我和海的故事，感受自然海岛的魅力。今天我要带大家去埃克苏马岛的Staniel Cay探索一家有趣的餐厅用餐。Staniel Cay有机场和码头，是前往猪岛最近的有飞机，又有码头的岛。这里是一个非常值得细细品味的世外岛屿，岛上的游艇俱乐部港口停泊着来自世界各地的富壕们的游艇，看的我眼神呆滞，好像从来没见过这么多奢华的船，如同能够在水上移动的小别墅。在这里有一家面朝大海的彩色木屋，就是我们今天探索的目的地——Staniel Cay游艇俱乐部餐厅。

一走进俱乐部，最吸引我的是头顶挂满了五颜六色的旗子，可能是各个俱乐部的旗帜，我在想会不会是世界上每个游艇小分队的旗子，只要来过Staniel Cay，都会升起他们的旗子挂在屋顶留作纪念。整个餐厅的装修风格，绚丽多姿又温馨，年轻有活力，应该没有人不会爱上这里。餐厅里一派热闹的景象，人们享受着美事，啤酒，说说笑笑，看着球赛。饭后还可以打会桌球，太悠闲的度假环境了。墙上除了挂着各种留作纪念的合影，还挂着吉他，鲨鱼雕像，还有大奖杯，和许多巴哈马本土的手工艺术品。而最大的亮点，是这一面贴满了美国海岸警卫队各个支队的队徽，都是警卫队曾经支援过这里而得到的奖章，满满一面墙的荣誉，不禁为他们感到骄傲。食物上桌了，让食欲爆棚的鸡肉三明治和牛肉汉堡，还有大快薯条，分量超足，绝对不用担心吃不饱。饱餐过后，走出餐厅欣赏下码头的风景，这里总是处处都带给我们无与伦比的小惊喜，不知道是意外还是巧合，我们的游艇边围着一群可爱的护士鲨 (这是我和护士鲨们游泳的文章）这些鲨鱼不会咬人，性格温顺，长相可爱，有着萌萌的大脑袋。其实这世界上大部分的鲨鱼都不会主动攻击人类，有些攻击，也只是因为他们以为自己要遭到威胁才会发生的。记得中国有句古话，水至清则无鱼，大家看到了这副场景，又会不会打破了原有的观念呢？如此清澈的水里，浅水里，不仅有鱼，而且是鲨鱼。你们是不是已经在感慨世界怎会有如此清澈无比的海水，听说巴哈马的海水是世界上最清澈的海域。那么接下来我就带大家去一个神奇的地方，来见证一下如同自来水般的巴哈马海水吧。

我们的船停靠在Sandbar，看到眼前的场景，我惊讶的目瞪口呆，一直感叹，世界上原来真的有人间天堂。淡蓝色海域平静且清澈无比。一片荧光色的海中央，睡着一条弯月状，细细的，绵延的沙路。准确地说，这是一片没有人的小岛，岛上没有棕榈树，没有石头，只有纯粹的，又白又细的沙子。Sandba的r边缘是一片很大的及腰水域，我在水中或躺或坐，还可以劈叉，简直就是人间仙境，还以为自己掉进了异度空间。我被完全的震撼和感动到了，这幸福的时空。我都开始怀疑这是否是真实的世界，会不会像书中的桃花园，下次来就找不到了？总之，这片仙境都让我开始怀疑人生了，哈哈。你看，就连海鸥也来和我们凑热闹，生怕错过了享受天堂的机会。测试时间到了，我拿着gropo在水下自拍，完全高清不模糊，证明了这片海水清澈的如自来水。玩足了水，拍够了照，便启程返航，回到了拿骚码头的泳池酒吧，漂亮的彩色椅子好可爱。还看到了刚刚打捞上来的新鲜海螺，当地渔民已经开始现场制作，并开始售卖了，满地的海星，海螺壳好美，放在一起，好像一幅艺术画作。希望大家喜欢我今天带大家享受的人间仙境，之后还有更多令人震撼的风景要跟大家分享。