Russell Island

Once Brenda's cast had been removed and we returned to Wrinkles a visit to Russell Island was on the menu. This is an island that is connected to Spanish Wells by a one-lane metal grate bridge. Don and Gail met us at the ferry with a rented golf cart and off we went! Russell Island is where the overflow of Spanish Wellians are settling and where the housing is more affordable. It was clear that there were agricultural plots laid out but it was hard to see how anything grew. The "soil" was all rocks and sand, but nevertheless, citrus trees were planted next to banana/plantain trees and goats were used to clear new areas. The Sands Restaurant, although closed on our first day there, is our vision of an ideal island bar. Located on a small hill overlooking a crescent-shaped sand beach, the view was stupendous! We would return the next day.

Back on the cart, we continued our explore. The island is only a couple miles long and less than a mile wide, so we didn't get lost! We wandered through the Pelican Bay development where a channel was blasted through the coral. Several nice homes lined the channel. We were getting hungry, so back to Budda's we went.

The next day we decided we needed to return to the Sands since it would be open, but first we needed to stop at Kathy's for more Johnny Cakes and fresh bread. We are now completely addicted to Kathy's breads. We also dropped into the Food Fair grocery store for a few fresh items; not lettuce ($4.40 for a scrawny head or $10 for a bag of Romaine leaves). Cheese was reasonable as were summer squash and zucchini. The bread shelf included fresh bread in clear plastic bags. The labels on the shelf indicated which local had made the bread; Joan, Sally, etc.

Once our provisions were stored on our boats, we took our rented cart and wandered to the west end of Spanish Wells. There is a beautiful public park there and the sand stretches over to Russell Island. Brenda thought it would be fun to walk from one island to the next through the water. Don and Gail dropped us off and drove over the bridge to pick us up on the other side. The water never got over waist high.

Public beach on Spanish Wells

Back on the carts we explored some of the side roads we hadn't seen the day before. There are some beautiful vacation homes as well as some homes for young families. There are also two small Haitian villages. We saw one multi-million dollar house for sale with a large circular chicken coop. We laughed that the chickens had a $1,000,000 view of the water. Happy chickens lead to lots of eggs? We know Mike's sister Lisa will be drooling over the chicken coop.

A Chic Chicken Coop

We had lunch and drinks at The Sands. Such a gorgeous place. We wandered out to take advantage of the hammocks overlooking Russell Island, Spanish Wells and Meek's Patch. Breathtaking! We spent several hours there soaking up the view, great food and some cocktails.

 

Hammock at the Sands

Gail lovin' that lounge chair.

Back on our boats, and after a nap, we joined Don and Gail for our traditional sundowner routine. Mike blew the Conch and then Don played Amazing Grace on his iPod. We have come to treasure this time of reflection.

Another day in Paradise!

 

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