Our final evening with the remaining Navy ships was spent at the “Royal Bahamian Red Shanks Yacht and Tennis Club” enjoying happy hour, throwing around the frisbee and taking in a gorgeous sunset.
Now before you think we’ve gone all fancy, schmoozing at the “yacht club”, realize that this is no ordinary club. In fact, it’s a short beach that only exists at low tide. And only accessible by private yachts boats. There is a simple wooden bench and a driftwood bar secured to the rocks so they don’t float away. The backdrop is adorned with creatively decorated and signed conch shells left by members who have come before. And there you have it. A bonified Bahamian yacht club. Design by – and for – the quirky, yet ever imaginative cruising community.
As a place of legend in one of our cruising guides, and positioned in the front yard of our anchorage in Red Shanks, we couldn’t pass it by without a visit before making our way toward Long Island.
Just as many cruisers had done before, we all signed and dated a conch shell and secured it onto the rocky wall. The shell we signed had special significance as Rusty and Linda had given it to us the first time we met them wayyyyy back in Kemah! They had found it on their first trip to the Jimentos and told us to return it to the Bahamas when we got there. The “Royal Bahamian Red Shanks Yacht and Tennis Club” seemed like as fitting place as any to keep the promise. Thanks, Rusty and Linda!
