Tides

The moon, right?  Directs the pull and push of our oceans to create tides.  Some big and some small.  Here in Abaco, tides are typically around 3 feet.  Which can often be the difference between a safe passage and running aground.  But a new moon or full moon can dramatically increase the tides.  Here is the ladder at the dinghy dock at Cap’n Jack’s.

You can barely reach the bottom rung from your dinghy.  Yikes!  And see the barnacles on the bottom of the pilings?  They are usually below the water line.  Here are the ladders for the Edge restaurant.   Same problem.

Some boats are even resting on their bottoms, tied to their docks, the lines stretched tightly.

A low tide can create a land bridge.  Here is a mucky walkway from Elbow Cay to a little island near the harbor entrance. 

It’s usually covered with water.  Here it is from a higher angle.  You can see the Albury ferry leaving the harbor, staying in the deeper water in the middle of the channel.

Yep, we were up in the Elbow Cay Lighthouse.  Because we wanted to take a walk without being sand-blasted by the strong easterlies on the ocean-side.   So, no beach; lighthouse instead.

Here’s the freight boat at low tide – you can see the bottom stirred up in its wake.

Here is the freight boat entering the harbor – not a huge entrance, is it?  Especially at low, low water.

Hope Town Harbor from the Lighthouse – our boat is just above the white cap on the lighthouse railing.  The little boat; the pretty one.  (The boat to the right of us has been around the world.)

See the waves crashing over the reef east of Elbow Cay?  That white frilly stuff at the top, right side. 

A beautiful day to climb to the top of the lighthouse.