Hopetown, Elbow Cay, March 28

Hopetown Lighthouse

Hopetown is the nicest settlement we have had the pleasure of visiting. It's located at the north end of Elbow Cay with a protected harbour complete with an authentic lighthouse that still uses kerosene to power its light. The glass mantel that revolves around the flame is mechanically rotated similar to a watch movement and must be cranked by hand every two hours of every night, 365 days a year! This lighthouse is one of three of its kind that still exists in the world and all three are in the Bahamas. The full time lighthouse keeper lives in a house at the base of the tower. Open to the public, tourist are welcomed to climb the 101 step circular staircase to the top. Being the full time tourists that we are, we took the challenge and climbed up to the most spectacular view in the Islands. Our pictures will describe the view much better than we can. Roly was fascinated by the mechanical apparatus that rotates the lens but getting out of bed every two hours and climbing all those stairs to crank the spring is not a job for him!

Rol & C's anchored in the center

Beautiful Bahamian Water
 (make sure to adjust your screen to get the full effect of the water colors)

Climbing those stairs was a piece of cake, ugh!

Roly checking out an old piece of furniture in the lighthouse



Roly trying to hold it in, lol

Walking through the narrow streets, we were amazed at the colourful pastel painted homes and small businesses. The village is clean and shows the pride of the community.

Very narrow streets

We tried renting a golf cart for a day trip but after calling all the rental outfits on the island and found none available, we settled for bicycles! The day became an abbreviated "pedal til you puke" as we stopped at every bar we found! I believe it was the Hopetown Inn that had the coldest and first draft beer I found since we left the USA. This is where we ran into Mark, our neighbour at the harbour moorings. Mark's boat is named the Dixie Chicken and we had a chance to hear him play the blue grass music that must have inspired the name of his sailboat. He plays a mean slide Dobro guitar!

Roly enjoying a Marguerita at the Firefly

Noticed this during our bike ride

Looking out at the Abaco Inn

 

The water colour here is even more intense than the northern area of the Abacos. The blues and aquas are so rich that even after being here for two months, we're still mesmerized by their hues and clarity. We see many more sea turtles and stingrays here as well as starfish and conch that makes us want to snorkel even more. Hopetown will be a definite stop on our way back north.