Turks and Caicos

The journey continues as we left Clarence Town on Long Island and headed to Provo at Turks and Caicos. However, we made a pit stop at Landrail Point on Crooked Island which was a 40 mile sail. The snorkeling on the coral reefs was fun as we saw a sea turtle among the myriad of fish. He was content to hang out until Dave tried to dive down for a closer look. That turtle then took off like a rocket. It is amazing how fast they can swim.
Landrail Point is primarily settled by Seventh Day Adventists (SDAs) and at Gibson's Lunchroom we met the owner, Willie, who is SDA. She was hosting the Bahamas' conference president, Leonard Johnson, as well as the local pastor, and Gail got to meet them all. As always, the SDA hospitality was very welcoming.
From here, we met our guides who took us to the other side of the island via skiff boat for a tour of some caves. Of course, their boat would not start on the return trip after the tour and we were on a tight schedule as we needed to leave the anchorage due to weather. It was a nervous thirty minutes, but the boat finally started and we were were able to just make our next anchorage.
Our next passage to Provo was the longest so far at 170 miles which included an overnighter. It is fortunate for me that Dave can get by on one hour of sleep, but we were both tired after arriving at Provo. We had a great sail though since it was almost all downwind at fifteen to twenty knots. It was a hair raising experience getting into the marina though as there are so many coral heads and reefs and narrow cuts. It was still challenging even following a guide boat into the marina, but Dave did an outstanding job. We now have to wait for the swells to subside to leave as we do not want to crash on the reef as our next door neighbor large fishing yacht almost did last night!
Provo is definitely the tourist attraction with the long stretch of beach with the many resorts and restaurants. With the many reefs and coral heads, it is one of the top diving spots in the world. We are going to check out the snorkeling here this afternoon. Dave is also itching to do some diving. Yesterday we checked out the town which definitely has more businesses than what we have been used to.
When the next weather window allows, we still plan on leaving for Jamaica via Mathew Town at Great Inagua. This will be the greatest test yet as the longest passage for either of us at over 200 miles and encompassing several nights with little sleep. I am sure seeing the land of Jamaica will be a welcoming sight, but as Dave says, "One day at a time!" Yes, we are taking it one day at a time and having an amazingly awesome time! Now, off to do some snorkeling....