REPORTS FROM THE RIP: Back to da islands mon!

Los grane Pescadores

The day after my last blog Tyler and I took the boat out fishing off of the Point in Samana DR. We carried with us, two of the local dock attendants. The day was calm and we trolled for a better part of it. We were looking for Blue marlin but only found a bunch of nice size dorado. We invited along two of the dock attendants to fish with us. Santos and Luoise had never fished before from a boat of this magnitude and had never caught a fish bigger than their hand. On the ride out, they stood wide eyed next to me on the bridge as we cruised out. They had never seen electronics and gear the likes of what we use. Once fishing, we started catching dorado. To see and hear the excitement these guys had as they reeled in their first dorado was so cool. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in the whole Marlin fishing thing that we forget how much fun it is to catch Dorado. To watch those two guys reel in those fish was a real eye opener. Santos and Louise now have an insatiable appitite for fishing. So glad we had the opportunity to share what we do with them.

The boys were all teeth when we got to the dock

After returning to the dock that afternoon, I let the boss know that we had not seen any marlin. We can catch doado anywhere. We decided that we would go ahead and take the boat to the Turks and Caicos Islands ( TCI). We left the DR and made Grand Turk that night. The weather had been looking worse and worse but I knew if I did not leave the DR when I did we would not be able to for a few days. In the lee of Grand Turk we found flat calm water. there is not much shallow water on the lee side of grand Turk. The depths come up from a thousand feet to 50 feet then to 20 feet all within a 100 yards. The waters were very clear and we could see the bottom even as the days sun faded.
In the morning , we awoke to building couds and winds. We only had 20 miles to go to get to the point off East Caicos ( Phillips reef). We were fishing by 7:30 am. There was a large swell but it was directly behind us. After about 30 minutes, we raised a Blue marlin on one of our long rigger baits. It came in hot but faded quickly. I made several passes back where I saw it but never got another strike. As we trolled our way westward, we began to curve around the islands and the seas calmed with each mile. We had one big dorado come crashing in on a lure but he missed the hooks and went on his way.
The clouds continued to build as the day went on so we picked up and ran the last few miles to Provodenciales. Or Provo as they call it here. We entered Leeward cut and found our way to the new marina. The name of the marina is Blue Haven. Not to be confused with Blue heaven. When I called the marina on the VHF radio, it made for some funny yet cunfusing banter as the Blue heaven called Blue Haven.
The Marina here is still under construction but very nice. IGY Marinas owns it and they are doing a great job to welcome boats and their crews. The facilities are well kept and the channel is marked well straight in from the reef. there is a slight shoal as you approach the second green marker but you just need to hold the red side at that point in the channel and the depth is fine. There are a number of 140 foot + yachts here and three other sportfish boats. The docks are all cement floaters and the electric is good. The fuel is not available as yet from the marina but you can get it by truck. The number for the marina is 649-946-9910.
After clearing with customs and immigration, I called Bob from Scooter Bobs car rentals and he gladly came to pick up Tyler and I to bring us to rent one of his cars. Anyone coming in and going to Blue Haven can call him and he will deliver a car to you. Scooter Bobs- ( 649-946-4684). The crews have full use of the gym, pool and any other facilities on property.
When we got to Bobs rental office at Turtle cove, I said I wanted a jeep. He had two sitting side by side. A dark red one, and an old beat up Pink one. Yep Tyler and I looked at each other and we both knew we had to have the obnoxious pink one. Its a little rough around the edges but it was good to be back in a jeep.
On our first night here night Tyler and I took the Barbie Jeep and went to " Fish Fry".
In the islands they have what is call Fish fry. Its not so much a dinner as one would think. Its more of a gathering of locals to try the fares of local sea food restaurants. They had Conch and fish and all kinds of seafood served at different booths as a reggae band jammed out up on stage.
That night the impending storms that had chased us all the way from the Dominican Republic, finally hit with full force. Around 1 am the lightening and thunder was about as bad as I have ever seen. The winds increased and the rains were torrential. With sunrise you could see its effects. There were two rental boats piled against each other, One of the yachts here, lost all of its canvas covers to the winds. and there was a new boat at the marina that came in to seek shelter. the only damage that we recieved was that I cant find one of my flip flops.
Last night the marina opened the bar here at the marina. Quite a few regulars showed up and all the crews attended. They really are trying to push to make the crews welcome here. I met with Belinda Martin last night. She is a concierge on the island and anything you need you can get it from her. 649-331-7944 or 954-353-8964.
Looks like we are going to sit here a couple of weeks. Its nice to be back on an island where Everyone speaks english and I can get parts to fix things. The boss comes in this week, then Tyler will fly home with him the following week for a week. After that We will begin a slow trip island hopping through the bahamas to San Salvador. Love being back in the islands mon