POWELL CAY

Powell Cay is a lovely deserted island located some 2 hours by sail north-west of Green Turtle Cay. Our first night here we anchored with “Tally Ho” and while Andrew and Vince remained aboard the boats, puttering around with various things, Vanessa and I headed off in her dinghy in search of “shelly treasures” along the shore. After beaching our craft in the shallows of the sheltered western side of the cay we combed the waters edge for shells all the while keeping a sharp lookout for a path which would, hopefully, lead us through the dense tropical foliage to the Atlantic side. We found several beautiful Milk Conchs here and eventually came upon a “shrine” composed of various pieces of flotsam & jetsam which marked the passage over to the other side.

In less than five minutes we had made our way across. The end of the trail opened up onto a long crescent of sand which formed the lower rim of a large shallow lagoon. Its distant edge was ringed by rocky islets and larger cays. And the whole effect beautiful--to say the least. The recent onslaught of Hurricane Tomas in the Caribbean had resulted in huge ocean swells crashing upon this beach, bringing with them long swathes of sea grasses and dozens of luckless sea creatures washed up onto the shore. As we combed through this rubble we came across many well preserved sea urchins and sea biscuits--the best of which we gathered up to take back to our boats. When we had enough of these, Vanessa suggested we wade through the shallows to search for different things.

Shelling conditions here were ideal. The smooth tranquil waters of the lagoon acted as a magnifying glass enabling us to easily see and retrieve all manner of shells lying upon the ocean floor. Vanessa was a real pro. Her “eagle eyes” spotted pointed bits protruding from the sand which, when dug out, revealed themselves to be parts of healthy Horse Conchs or other types of shells. Unfortunately the vast majority of these “finds” turned out to be filled with living creatures--either the conchs themselves or large hermit crabs who had already claimed them as homes. And so we returned them to the deep. But there were many other beautiful specimens that were ours for the taking--sun-rise tellins, cowies, fan shells, and a variety of bi-valves--to name a few. Vanessa even found three delicate shells from the “tulip” family--but although we both recognized the species, neither one of us could remember its common name.

After several hours of beachcombing we found ourselves so laden down with shells, sand dollars, sea biscuits and urchins that we were forced to consider turning back and heading home. The wind had kicked up and Andrew was anxious for us to return safely before conditions worsened. Once back on our boats we found our husbands concerned about the anchors. We had dropped our hooks into a mixture of sand and grass--not great holding. And with the winds intensifying and waves whipping up there was the very real possibility that we might drag during the night. “Tally Ho” decided to sail back towards Green Turtle Cay and anchor at Manjack Cay where they’d be in a safer place and closer to “The Whale” which they hoped to cross early the next morning. But we stayed put at Powell where we spent a further two days combing its various beaches and enjoying the island.