Tobacco, NASA, and Stranded Sailors.

Inlet or Outlet?

We have a lot of irons in the fire here in Bermuda (or is it swizzle sticks in the rum?), with a number of people we’d like to meet and places we’d like to see, so we are not exactly sure what our day is going to look like until after sunrise. We’ve got shipwreck experts, open water swimming gurus, conservationists, and free dive instructors to coordinate with, but we also need to scout swimming locations. Today was a swim scout day. 

We started by driving on the LEFT all the way up to Tobacco Bay on the northernmost point of the island. Doing a bit of freestyling, we came across a pulloff with access to the rail trail that runs along the island, which also provides access (across private property, sometimes, says a sign, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays TBD, noted). This spot is near the inlet (or outlet, we debated this in the tiny little car) to Harrington Sound, and might be a wild spot for a swim. 

A Passion for Parrotfish

As soon as we arrived at Tobacco Bay and took a short scouting hike, Heather and I both knew this was a SwimVacation kind of place, a bit untamed, lots of rocks formations to swim through, a white sand beach, an island to swim around, and an A to B route that could easily be made into a mile or 2. We jumped into a mangrove pond that had an easy sand entry and headed out through a narrow set of rocks to the open sea. We were immediately greeted by a big school of parrotfish, some the biggest I’ve ever seen. We’d been told by our friend J.P. that they were rather friendly here because they are not allowed to be fished for, and he was right. They swam alongside us as we swam between big limestone formations, zigging in and out like at the Baths in the BVIs, if you know that place. Lots of healthy hard and soft corals covered the bottom, a welcome sight. We exited at a white sand beach, thrilled that we’d found another classic Swimvacation spot. 

Tobacco Bay was totally inviting.

The water was clear and the reef life was as healthy as we’ve seen, with beautiful hard and soft corals. I did not get a photo of the HUGE parrot fish up to my standard for this blog. But they were huge and cool. - HP

Fresh Paint

The village of St. George has that classic colonial architecture and the caribbean colors, but it’s also rather spiffy. In fact, it looks like the whole island has been recently painted. We found a lunch spot on the waterfront, sharing the space with quite a few cruise ship tourists. Look, they’ve got a real bermuda fish sandwich on the menu with raisin bread and everything! Alas, a disappointment compared to the Mel’s Spicy Dicey sandwich. Not even the same league. Heather had some decent crab cakes. I sucked down a coke, needing some sugar and caffeine for the next few hours of driving and scouting. We took a lap around town, bumping into the museum that used to be a hotel where Mark Twain once stayed. That guy sure got around.

The colors of St. George are cheerful and fresh. I met a lovely son and mother pair, Kevin and Marlene who is just about to turn 93. Hopper inspected a portopotty (C-), and a very typical Heather & Hopper moment. - HP

Houston, We Have No Problem

Way back in 1996 or so I came to Bermuda to race in a triathlon with a bunch of friends from New Paltz, NY.  I remember that it was at an old US Navy base, and the swimming was great. 30 years later, I’m back in the same spot, but with a different mission. This part of the island is even wilder than up in Tobacco Bay, with long beaches and pocket beaches and pink sand and old military bunkers and trails this way and that. NASA has a facility here but nobody seems to know exactly what they do. I inspected a port-a-potty, and gave it a C-. This is important information when you’re running trips. Anyway, this wonderful place is exposed and windblown, but there are enough nooks and crannies to get out of the wind by just turning the corner. We plan to come back here Saturday morning with our friend JP to explore Nonsuch Island, just a couple hundred yards offshore. 

The mysterious Nasa orbs preside over Well Bay Beach, which somehow work on the landscape.

The Northern peninsula of Bermuda is filled with beaches facing all directions, all are made of the softest, finest white sand. Absolutely beautiful. - HP

Hopper takes a break at the Northern point.

Rats. 

We spend a lot of time on the internet researching different places, but we also get local information from doormen, cabbies, waiters, wanderers, people climbing out of the water with goggles and a cap, hitchhikers, and old guys smoking on the corner. One of those people, and I don’t remember exactly who, led us to Blue Hole Park. It’s a nature sanctuary with trails and some old forest and shore access, but the star of the show here is a sinkhole filled with brilliant blue water, between the forest and a mangrove. There’s a sign that, among other things, warns visitors not to swim into the caves because rats like to swim there. I found this amusing. It was the perfect place to cool off after a long day of scouting, and may actually be a good spot to bring guests for a picnic and a splash. 

A short hike through a dense wood, one more portopotty check (A-) and the magical Blue Hole swimming spot opened up before us, complete with weird little ship wreck, caves with stalactites, thick mangroves and a cliff for jumping. - HP

What do you do with a shipwrecked sailor? 

Whoops we forgot to make dinner reservations but no worries, I just picked a random place near the hotel that most reviews called “eclectic”.  Interesting spot. The restaurant is actually in the same building and associated with The Bermuda Sailor’s Home, a charitable organization that exists to assist stranded sailors. Huh? Well, it turns out these groups exist all over the world, and they do very good work. Let’s say a cargo vessel becomes disabled and slams into a reef just offshore and sinks. Any surviving crew often need medical attention, have no documentation, and no place to stay. They are literally stranded. That’s where this organization and others like it step in. They have 2 apartments for these sailors, access to legal and medical services, and eventually return these sailors back home. We were the only diners, and after we ate our host Mark gave us a tour of the place. It was a glimpse behind the curtains of Bermuda that few get to see. We were there for a long time. 

The Gab

Mark called us a cab, and we were picked up by Dalton, who it turns out likes to swim at the cove at Admiralty Park, and we realized that we were swimming at the same time as him yesterday, and we all remembered seeing each other. We talked for a long time while idling in front of the hotel, where we were greeted by the doorman. He also struck up a conversation with us, and we were there talking for a long time. We then went up to the lounge for dessert, where a couple from New Hampshire talked to us about travel for a long time. I think it was my salmon colored shirt that attracted people tonight. Or maybe my friendly Irish face. 

Heather chiming in here. Hopper is a great blog writer, but as he hates for any party to end, so he doesn’t like to write a conclusion to any blog post. I like a nice neat tidy ending to things, a kicker, a final sentence. It’s late and I’m not sure I can think of a good one for tonight, but I will say this - Bermuda is a gem. The swimming is rugged and wild, but it’s beautiful and no matter how the wind blows, it seems there’s always a place to swim. The people are very kind and very chatty, in the loveliest of ways. We have one more full day tomorrow and one more corner to visit. We are both excited to see what awaits.

Love,

Hopper (and last paragraph as usual by Heather)

More colorful architecture, Hopper working in our amazing office for the week at the luxurious Hamilton Princess, and our ummmm private restaurant where no one else seemed to want to eat. Great day, quirky night! - HP