[caption id="attachment_3281" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Cutter Loose in Hopetown Harbor"]
Hopetown is a place that is difficult to leave. It is a quaint village of narrow streets and picket fences. At noon and again at 6 PM, the sound of chimes from the carillon at the Methodist Church descends on the village. The red and white striped lighthouse at the head of the harbor forms the town's visual identity. Every night at sunset, the keeper of the Elbow Cay Reef Light manually ignites the brilliant kerosene lantern that illuminates the Fresnel lens. The light flickers at first, then casts a wide yellow swath across the harbor as the lens begins its slow but steady rotation. It is comforting to ease into the rhythm of this community.
[caption id="attachment_3283" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Hopetown Coffee House"]
Each day begins with coffee and muffins on the veranda at the Hopetown Coffee House. A short bicycle ride to the south of Hopetown is White Sound and Tahiti Beach. Tahiti Beach is formed by sand deposits at Tiloo Cut, a small opening between the Sea of Abaco and the Atlantic Ocean. At low tide, a massive white sand bar becomes exposed, attracting sunbathers and shellseekers. Nearby, the Abaco Inn at White Sound serves lunch with a view of the ocean.
[caption id="attachment_3297" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Tahiti Beach at low tide"]
[caption id="attachment_3292" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Solo performance of Jefferson Starfish at Tahiti Beach"]
[caption id="attachment_3280" align="alignright" width="225" caption="Brown Tips, energetic saw player at the Abaco Inn"]
We return to the Abaco Inn in the evening for entertainment. Brown Tips and his band have the patrons on their feet, swaying to "rake and scrape" music...calypso and reggae with live percussion parts performed on Stanley rip saws scraped with knives. Live entertainment is also provided each evening at various restaurants on the periphery of the harbor. Cruisers are normally asleep by 9 or 10 PM. The ability to fall asleep to the pounding rhythms of the reggae bands is an important skill in this harbor.
At dusk on our final evening in Hopetown, we are invited to witness the lighting of the lantern at the lighthouse. Sam, the keeper of the lighthouse expertly preheats the burner with a mixture of alcohol and kerosene. Soon, the kerosene is flowing, the burner is glowing and the Fresnel lens begins sending its warning to ships at sea. Sam will remain awake all night, hand-cranking the weights that drive the rotating mechanism every two hours. Most lighthouses of this vintage have been automated for decades. Local residents believe that the Elbow Cay Reef Light is the only manually operated lighthouse in the world.
[caption id="attachment_3305" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="We have ignition!"]
[caption id="attachment_3307" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Warm glow of the kerosene lamp illuminating the intricate Fresnel lens"]
[caption id="attachment_3306" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Sam, second generation keeper of the Elbow Cay Reef light, is passionate about his job"]
The weather has settled significantly since our arrival in Hopetown. Out visit to Elbow Cay has been interesting and relaxing. Tomorrow, we will leave Hopetown, sailing further south in the Sea of Abaco.
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