Took a spin to Wreck Bay and found an Unusual Treasure

[bdahunter]

It was a Bermudaful day so I paddled out to my little fishing boat 'Plumbago' and slipped the mooring this afternoon. I headed out past the rocks in the middle of Mangrove Bay where Plumbago normally swings on her mooring and headed for Wreck Bay.
Wreck Bay is at the base of Wreck Hill which was the home of the Wreckers who worked these waters for 200 years. They would arrange for the lighthouse light to be extinguished at Gibb's Hill, then light a bonfire on the top of Wreck Hill 5 miles away. Ships coming into Bermuda would make the turn past the dangerous reefs that surround these island 5 miles too late and wind up on the reef. The wreckers would row out from the safety of Wreck Bay and 'save' the hapless mariners who had run afoul of the reef. The wreckers would also liberate everything of value from the ship and the souls onboard her.(Wreckers or Pirates, you decide)
I was hoping that the wreckers might have dropped a little of their loot in the bay for me to find today but no such luck. (I really want to find a gold escaudo in the bottom of my scoop one day) Wreck Bay was badly sanded in so I pulled the lunch hook out of the sand, fired up the motor and headed for the tiny beach at the Lantana Hotel, now closed for these past several years.
I found 2 - 14k bands on my last trip here but it is a tiny beach so I felt I would be lucky to liberate any more gold from this hotel beach. I was right about the gold but little did I realize that another treasure was waiting for me.
My primary target when hunting is gold (and platinum of course) but today I found a treasure that didn't require a metal detector. When I landed on the beach at Lantana a swarm of blue bottle flies was covering a smallish rock where I had brought Plumbago's bow in. As I went up the beach to tie off, the flies took flight and a nasty stench assaulted my nose; I looked down and saw a beautiful but foul smelling Conch shell. The conch had been stranded above the rocks several tides ago by the smell of things but its' shell was shining in the afternoon sun. I rinsed out the rotting remains of the Conch and left it to soak while I went about hunting for another gold ring, it was not to be. I did find $2.07 of mostly 1960's clad and a 1922 King George V Large Penny but that was about it. The Conch was the big find of the day and it is a rare find indeed as the Conch is an endangered species in these waters. (too many conch fritters in the past) Seeing as the poor bugger was already dead I put the shell in the bottom of Plumbago and headed for home as the sun set behind me.

All in all a Bermudaful day,

BDA

[Gregory]

Wow them are beautiful shots and mighty nice finds. You live in paradise BDA!

[Arkwater]

That is an awesome hunting ground you have! Thanks for the pics.

[gordiesgirl]

Fabulous Photos, I took a cruise to Bermuda in 1999 do you ever hunt Tabacco Bay? WTG

[ObMiT]

Loved the story and the pictures.

[bdahunter]

You must be a little psychic, Darlin'. I have yet to hunt Tobacco Bay because it is at the other end of the island from where I live. I live Upcountry (west end) and Tobacco Bay is Downcountry (east end). It's about an hour drive from my cottage which is only around 25 miles but the speed limit here is 35 km/h so it takes a while to get there. I local hunter tells me that the bottom at Tobacco Bay is very rocky and tough to hunt but I think I'll give it a whirl when the winds are right. The wind governs all my hunts as it makes the difference between going deep or just swinging in the shallows. I'll probably hunt Clearwater Beach while I'm out there but a Mate of mine was stalked by a 10 foot shark on his last hunt there so I'll have to keep my eyes open. (crazy bugger thought it was a dolphin)
I'm hoping you enjoyed your time in Bermuda. I've been here for 3 years and it's been a lot of fun, generally.

Fair Winds and Calm Seas,

BDA

[sarge1stone]

Awesome pics! Sounded like another good day in paradise!

[Buster]

Really nice finds..Not liking the shark stuff though but that's me..Congrats..Buster...

[liquid1]

WOW what a beautiful place to live and hunt..nice find..

[grasshopper]

those are some really cool pictures and finds! thanks for sharing!