Bahamas Day 3...

Day 3 was packed full of adventure, sea life, water and sunshine! 

Our day started early, where we drove the golf cart over to the marina and hopped aboard our boat for the day! We had all kinds of fun on our to-do list, and we were all busting with excitement and anticipation!

We were venturing over several islands, so we made fun little scenic stops along the way. Our first little stop was at David Copperfield's island cave. This cave was so big, it was like a big boat garage! When our captain pulled the boat up into the cave, I was amazed when we looked up to see the sky poking through a hole in the cave roof. It was beautiful in that 'secret passage to another world' kind of way! From here, we popped into a little bay that is frequented by sea turtles! We saw two and got to swim close with one! We also spotted a sting ray while we were searching for turtles. 

Our first big stop came next! We finally made it to Pig Beach to pay a visit to the famous swimming pigs! I was so excited about seeing fuzzy, pink, Wilburs splashing and swimming about! You can only imagine my excitement about being greeted by all the pigs as we pulled into shallow waters! It was absolutely adorable seeing all these pigs swimming out to our boat! Were they bigger than I imagined? Sure, but I didn't care,  I couldn't get out of the boat fast enough! I wanted to feed them, pet them, nuzzle them and frolic about on the sandy beach with them! I immediately went up to the hut that very plainly said 'do not feed the pigs' and asked if they had anything to feed them. I saw other visitors feeding, so when he offered half a bag of carrots for $10, I took it! This is where things took a turn. The little hut local, advised me to hold the food over my head so that the pigs couldn't see the food- if they saw the food they would swarm me.  He did tell me not to run, so I very eagerly walked over to a sunny spot to start feeding. It was then that I was swarmed like bees on honey. Not a cute, patient line of waiting pigs, but aggressive, tusky toothed, grumpy pigs wanting the food I held! As advised, I held the carrots over my head and immediately a big, fat, pregnant pig came up from behind, and bit me right on the hiney! It bit me so hard, that I squealed and threw the entire bag of carrots as far as I could. Well, Miss Preggo, proceeded to take the bag and ran into the bushes as fast as she could... with the sweet little hut local chasing her down to retrieve the plastic bag of carrots. For some reason, he brought the carrots back to me, thinking I might want to go for round two. Nope, me and my bleeding pig wound were done. I splashed salt water on my bite, and made my way back to the boat. I've decided that I read too many books and that Charolette's Web gave me an unrealistic version of how this pig adventure would go! In the end, I think we all appreciated seeing the swimming pigs and had a grand ole time interacting with them! 

Swimming with the nurse sharks at Compass Cay was next on our list. It really worked out perfectly to have a bleeding wound, going into this activity. Actually, Remi's stitched ankle was still healing up, so he just happened to have some of his waterproof bandages on board! I patched myself up and was good as new! The sharks were really such an awesome experience! The little shark hut stood on stilts over the water and was covered in colorful, painted signs. I loved every bit of this artsy shark shack! The nurse sharks were huge and everywhere! There was no one there to really tell you much, so it was hop in, at your own risk! I think my favorite part was the way they felt- their skin was like course, rubbery sandpaper! They really didn't seem to mind being touched, held and petted- they were not quite as rude as the pigs were! Remi of course, was in absolute heaven. He snorkeled off by himself,  inspecting, interacting, chasing and loving every minute of this shark adventure! At one point, I even caught him swimming off under the docks into deeper water- I was constantly having to reign him in and as you can imagine, actually getting him out of the water was a challenge in itself. When he finally poked his head out of the water and saw we were loading the boat, he decided maybe he would aboard the boat as well, or he was going to be left behind! I grabbed a local Bahamian beer to celebrate all the shark fun!

Pipe Cay was our next stop! Sometimes, the most magical places are the ones in the middle of nowhere, without a soul in sight! Pipe Cay was a large area of sandbar where you felt like you were walking in the middle of the ocean. It was the exact spot where water meets land, tiny pools of salty water, turquoise as far as you can see, and a place begging you to just sit in wonder. The boys snorkeled, Micah and I walked, no words can really describe and no pictures could do justice, but this place was a yummy slice of Caribbean perfection. 

Next up, was the James Bond cave, Thunderball Grotto. When we first pulled up, it just looked like a big rock sticking out of the water. However, once you swim under the rock and pop back up, you have entered an entirely different world! There were holes and crevices all over the place, allowing you to swim in and out, tons of colorful fish swam below your feet, almost like a massive rock bubble- it was incredible! We lost our GoPro on the trip, so sadly we do not have pictures of any of our underwater adventures- but Google it!

When it was lunch time, we stopped at one of my favorite places of the entire trip- Staniel Cay Yacht Club! In fact, if we ever find ourselves planning another trip to the Bahamas, this is the island I would pick! This place was bursting with island vibes, incredible food, even better drinks and the best gift shop of the entire trip! 

After filling up on fish tacos and fruity frozens, we headed over to what I was looking forward to all day- Iguana Island! I always have been a reptile lover, and am quite fascinated with the island iguanas- I just love them! Each Caribbean island we have visited, seems to have their own little species of iguanas- some are bright green, some have really long, skinny tails, others with large frills. Well, the Bahamian iguanas look like dinosaurs! They are HUGE, bumpy skinned creatures with long, clawed toes! What a blast the boys had feeding and interacting with them! Remi successfully lured them into the water so he could see them swim and Roen's gentle little touch had him up close and personal with these giants. As it was time to leave, I somehow lost track of my wandering Dr. Doolittle, and I ended up finding him over on the rocks, where he lured an iguana and was teaching it tricks... ya'll this boy is something else!

This day, the memories made, the smiles that covered our faces, being imersed in so many faucets of these islands.... it was a day I will never forget!