Click pictures to navigate this website. Elizabeth Harbour is a 7.5 by 1 nautical mile body of water stretching from Conch Cay to Fowl Cay.  Well protected from ravages of the sea, hundreds of cruisers anchor in powder sand.  With a busy town and amenities close by, many stay year round. The inner shores have many beaches of pure white sand. Here, Chris Milan-Williams of S/V Airagone Strider, walks the point toward Conch Cay. As you can see, you have most beaches all to yourself. Where the ocean wrecks havoc on the land, the ground is ripped asunder by the relentless pounding of the surf. This is not a shore for barefoot explorers. Even in mild winds, the surf explodes through gullies carved in the soft limestone rock. Offshore reefs cause sudden unexpected surges that race hundreds of feet up the shoreline. One minute you're perfectly safe, then ... Gone !!! Just kidding - Chris actually survived, albeit a little damp. This is a mildly windy day. You should see the show here when Mother Nature decides to ratchet the winds to 40+ knots. Randy Milan-Williams, who had taken the preceding photos, was posed beside this rock formation by Chris.  I'm not sure about the phallic symbolism here.  What the heck, it's their picture! S/V Airagone Strider at anchor off the Monument. In reciprocation for a visit to their boat, Randy and Chris visited ours for dinner.  After sampling Jan's Bouillabaisse and quaffing Margaritas the liquors came out. In Chris' humble opinion, flaming Sambuca goes perfectly well with Cherry Cheesecake. Somewhere around midnight, Long passed out. This summer has had its mishaps.  Here a pair of boats got too close to shore as the tide went out.  No damage, but some bruised egos for certain. This professionally crewed M/V dragged down on us in a squall.  Its crew jumped over the side to check our anchor.  They concluded that ours was not in sight, whereas theirs was clearly visible on the bottom. Naturally, we had dragged up to them !! Same M/V 20 minutes later nearly sideswipes another boat.  Professional crew shortens scope by hand to swing by the bow. Once past, lets out the rope again, same insufficient length as before. Proceeds to drift down the channel for an hour. We rode out the hurricanes in Hole 3. One big concern was this fishing boat swinging wildly in the high winds.  Luckily at the height of the storm, they were behind us. We were lashed to a mooring secured by a cement filled engine block and two sand screws.  We also place three anchors in a triangle for additional holding.  We only saw 65 knots of wind, but that was enough. With all the flying salt spray and darkness, we could not take pictures of the storm.  We hunkered down for the duration, tending lines and adjusting rode; however, some of us  just went to bed. Here Bill and Debbie from M/V Marika drop off hand-painted sand-dollars to be sold to support the local Humane Society. These porpoises visit quite regularly to see what little fishes are living under our boat.  It's a real delight to see them rocket around gathering up dinner. Speaking of dinner, did we mention the beach parties? In the evenings, it can get very cool on the beach. Naturally, it is a prerequisite to fortify oneself in these freezing conditions. Everyone brings in food and munchies to share.  The kid's love to roast hotdogs and marshmallows over the bonfire. Party. Party. Party animals. The life of the party telling everyone to dinghy home safely. A little cat called 'Islander' came down to share in the festivities. Judie was so concerned for the cat's wellbeing that we nearly added it to our boat crew. When Long heard about the possible adoption, he went in and sat on his tent house.  Apparently he was not prepared to share! Next day, a gentle rain shower and beautiful rainbow helped lift our flagging spirits.  We decided that  'Islander' should remain Bahamian.