Grand Day on Grand Turk

Some days you just want to bottle so you can experience them again. Yesterday was such a day.

We woke up just as we were docking on Grand Turk which is an island in Turks and Caicos. It got its name because there’s a cactus that has a red flower that bears some resemblance to the fez which is named for a city in Morocco but also a type of hat worn in Turkey. 

Fortuitously, the sun was rising on our side of the boat and I was able to do something I’m rarely able to do, namely take sunrise pictures which is even more special on a very clear day with just enough clouds to make the lighting interesting. The water was travel-brochure colored, vibrant blues and greens, and very clear. It was a relief to be able to visit the island as back in 2019 it was too stormy and windy to dock so many of us had waited four years for this visit. 

After breakfast, over 50 of the 57 people in our group toured the island on a private tour. Most of us were on an open-air tram, some were in a van. Even riding backwards in the tram was delightful, and it was fun to be in a “compartment” with people from Ontario and New Brunswick, most of whom I knew from previous cruises and other adventures. We explored the entire island, all 7 square miles of it.

The first stop was a fabulous beach with nearby reefs and enough tree cover to offer shade throughout the day. And yes, there was a cache there as well as at just about every other stop we made. Doug, the tour guide, was outstanding as provided history in an interesting and memorable way and was happy to support our geocaching efforts. 

We drove past a replica of the Friendship 7 capsule that US astronaut John Glenn had flown in to orbit the earth and landed near Grand Turk in 1962 (no geocache there). Then we visited another stunning beach with aqua and deep blue water and a geocache. Next was a restaurant overlooking more beautiful water that had a sign in the back with its coordinates, and a geocache that was available only when it was open but the staff heard us looking and made the cache available. Then a stop “downtown” at the national museum where I was actually the one to find the cache in a red British style phone booth; there was a chance for a short walk to visit a few nearby shops and I bought a hand painted magnet made by Carolyn who I got to meet. 

After our “walk” we went to the mountains, altitude 98 feet (30 meters) and headed to the far north of the island to see a nice white lighthouse. Not only was there a cache, there were several donkeys (boy donkeys, for those keeping score at home). Yes, two of us took a picture with ourselves and a donkey to show the three asses together. 

My favorite cache of the day was the next one. Doug pulled the tram to the very edge of the road and we disembarked, crossed a cattle guard, then walked downhill toward the beach on an overgrown pothole-filled once-paved path with gorgeous views of the tropical water. Just after the path to the cache was another path with an incredible viewpoint of sand, lush greenery, and the water. The only downside was returning uphill, but as we’d started from no more than 30 meters high it wasn’t a difficult climb back. 

Lunch was at Doug’s new beachside restaurant. I passed on the conch salad appetizer after being reminded that conch is like a chewier clam as I’m not a fan of either clams or octopus, though I did sample the tasty rum punch. I remembered why drinking on an empty stomach is not wise  after drinking a couple of swallows and feeling ever so slightly buzzed. Ever the resourceful person and not wanting to waste the liquid delicacy, I gave my glass to Roy who was a good sport, took one for the team, and agreed to finish it. My lunch of rice and beans, chicken breast in a lemon sauce, Cole slaw, and pita bread hit the spot. 

More importantly, the lunch provided enough sustenance to allow me to get into the water to go snorkeling with Alison (aka Sister Long Legs or simply SLL; for those who have not met Alison, I’m the shorter SLL). I gathered my gear, put on my snorkel mask, braved the rough sand made up of eroded seashells, and got into the water. The waves were small but powerful, and there was a significant drop off within a couple of feet. I managed, however ungracefully, to put my fins on and started swimming. 

Unlike reef snorkeling, this was more like snorkeling over a desert. The phrase “the ocean is a desert with its life underground” from America’s song “A Horse With No Name” kept going through my head. There were places with a sandy bottom and what appeared to be isolated strands of grass that reminded me of soccer fields in impoverished areas (no goalposts). Other areas seemed more like boneyards with long skinny “strands” of white coral. There were some rocks, occasional fish — I saw a single sargeant major, a blue wrasse, and several gray fish but no schools of fish — and some brain coral and other types of coral. We meandered our way out about a quarter mile (about 400 meters) from shore. Then we realized we’d drifted a bit so swam “upstream” to realign with our group. Eventually we snorkeled our way back to the area where about 20 of our group were in the water. If that had been my only snorkeling this trip it would have been disappointing, but as it was a “bonus beach snorkel” after pleasant snorkeling a few days ago and more scheduled next week it was great fun (and that’s not even counting the fact that I got to share the experience with SLL). 

Spending time with friends in shoulder-deep water was delightful. We were shallow enough that the water was aqua. The waves and tide were gentle enough that we just allowed the water to lift us and move us a little bit closer to and further from shore. At some point SLL pointed our that there was a reef a bit north of us about the same distance from the shore as we were, so I put my gear back on and we went to check it out. The reef area was much more diverse though the wave action was more pronounced and we would find ourselves moved several feet (a couple of meters) without warning which was an interesting and not entirely unpleasant sensation. I saw a sea urchin and more tropical fish in a few minutes there than I had on our deeper swim and I also saw lots of the unidentified upside-down umbrellas. 

We realized we were getting tired, which isn’t surprising after an hour in the water. Getting out of the water proved challenging. I had my gear off and was contemplating how to stand up when SLL mentioned that her snorkel mask had disappeared. I put my mask back on, threw my fins up on the sand (though not far enough, and a friend was kind enough to rescue them from shore for me), and joined the search for the mask. It became quickly clear that the waves were strong, that visibility was poor and that I was quite tired. Just as I admitted to myself that I would have to give up, Carol stepped on or near the mask and saved the day. Relieved, I headed back to the edge of the water and tried to get out but each incoming and outgoing wave knocked me over. In a move more elephantine than gazelle-like, I managed to scoot my way out and eventually stand up though I felt a bit wobbly. I went back to my backpack where I retrieved a piece of hard candy — a very useful method to recover from the taste of salt water. A few minutes later I had some pineapple juice and felt like myself again.

I was among the last ten or so cachers to leave the beach area to return to the ship. We were supposed to stop at a newly constructed Grand Turk sign but went past it so asked the driver  to turn around. I looked out the window of the van we were in and announced “horse horse” which was validated by other passengers, but the originator of the horse horse game accused me of being delusional. I was vindicated when we saw a pickup truck that was “towing” two horses running behind it. We returned to the sign, I got a picture of the horses, then we took a group picture at the Grand Turk sign before returning to the ship area. 

Hands down one of my favorite days on all of the Landsharkz cruises I’ve been on. If only we could bottle great moments to relive them whenever we want to. Alas, I’ll have to be content with the memory of an incredible day. Perhaps someday I’ll be able to spend a week or more visiting Turks and Caicos.