Sandbar at Bonefish Point

A beautiful walk from the little beach by Osprey Rock all the way to Bonefish Point

A high light of any trip out to South West Bluff is the beautiful walk from the beach at Osprey Rock down to Bonefish Point.

Osprey Rock in the distance as we wade through the shallows

A mangrove is salt tolerant and look at the roots.

Miles of beach with only us walking along the shoreline.

Bone fisherman stalking the flats for the elusive bonefish

A Haitien sloop washed up along the shore

Sad to say, we often see these wrecked Haitien sloops carrying probably 100 or more people to what they think will be a better life. Many are caught and repatriated.

Pin cushion sea stars love the sandbar. We found many of them.

That’s an amazing flat but make sure you have your fishing license with you if you plan to fish

Turquoise waters and brilliant white powdery sand

Mr Crabby shows his fighting form.

In search of starfish at the sandbar

A picturesque, dream of a day at Bonefish Point

A perfect afternoon to wade into the water at Bonefish Point

On another rather cloudy day, a storm changed the colours to a soft pastel combination of hues.

These great kids hammed it up for the camera in the shallows of the sandbar.

These great kids hammed it up for the camera in the shallows of the sandbar.

Some local kids were fishing  with one fishing rod and a hand line but I’m not sure that they caught anything other than disturbing a blue crab, a cushion starfish and a conch.

A blue crab wasn't too impressed with facing the camera but he was let go after his modeling debut.

A blue crab wasn’t too impressed with facing the camera but he was let go after his modeling debut.

The boys were having fun finding starfish and a conch while their Dad or uncle continued sitting and fishing.

The boys were having fun finding starfish and a conch.

Life is always interesting around the sandbar and on this day I lucked out, smiling kids, someone fishing, finding a small blue crab, a bright orange cushion starfish, a conch and of course, the muted colours of the ocean at low tide and passing storm clouds. Wow! What a spectacular and lovely day.

Marta

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Sea Stars

Aside

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Cushion sea star or starfish in the shallows.

A more modern name for Asteroidea or starfish is now Sea Stars. Usually they have five arms but sometimes a few species have more. Here are some beautiful Sea Stars that I have found and photographed around Providenciales out at Bonefish Point, Grace Bay, Taylor Bay as well as other areas of the Turks and Caicos Islands.

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Snorkeling the underwater world often brings an exciting discovery of a brightly coloured cushion sea star

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Knobby spines create a geometric design of orangey brown and yellow.

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Loads of starfish or sea stars found in Grace Bay

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Tiny crab found on the under side. Tube feet located under the arms have small suckers.

The red cushion star can be very large, sometimes growing to about 50 centimetres (20 in) in diameter. It usually has five thick, broad arms projecting from a cushioned disc  therefore the name. The colour of adults is some shade of red, orange, yellow or brown. The juveniles are greenish-brown with mottled markings which provide camouflage from predators.

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A juvenile Cushion Sea Star

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Small two spined sea star washed up as the tide goes out

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Front and back of the two spined sea star found out at S W Bluff on Providenciales

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Burying itself in the sand

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Not sure what kind this one is

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Pretty shot as it buries itself in the sand

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Seemed to have one longer arm?

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Pretty painted toes as a size guage

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Showing the underside with small suckers or tubes

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Red Spiney Sea Star found out at South West Bluff on Provo

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This one had lost an arm

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Osprey Rock in the background with a little Red Spiny sea star

Sea stars are often found in calm shallow waters (depths from 1 – 37 m) and more commonly occur on calcareous sandy bottom. The ones I’ve found have been mainly out at Bonefish Point just off the sandbar. It’s a beautiful spot to enjoy our “beautiful by nature” Turks and Caicos Islands on your next trip to Provo.

Happy Sea Star watching everyone.

 

Marta

 

www.harbourclubvillas.com

A Beautiful Leeward Afternoon

Ripples on the rocks, ripples in the sand, gentle waves and calm, turquoise waters.

An afternoon spent on the beach at Leeward brought many interesting sights and things to photograph. This island is rich in natural beauty and you don’t even have to look for it. Here are some of the photos taken in just a few hours.

A group of Black-Necked Stilts dropped by for a visit.

Elegant, long pink legs and quite noisy as they circled and dive-bombed .... not sure if there was a nest nearby??

 

Stilts are a common breeding resident of our islands.

 

Leeward rocks with patterns created by the clear waters

 

A small crab scuttles along the rocks and disappears quickly from the camera's view.

 

A grinning potcake with no collar was happily taking a cooling swim.

 

 

A beautiful starfish and look at that water....spectacular!

 

Ten or so starfish but why were quite a few floating? I'm hoping it wasn't that they were dying. Anyone know?

Washed up on the shore.

 

Brown Pelican sits on his favourite perch at Leeward

 

Constant entertainment watching the pelicans as they dive into the water for fish.

So that’s it, a lovely afternoon at Leeward and many photos later.

 

Marta

 

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Taylor Bay Starfish

First time sighting of sea stars in the shallow waters of Taylor Bay

First time sighting of sea stars in the shallow waters of Taylor Bay

Malaika was sooooo excited when she first saw some small starfish as she played in the shallows at Taylor Bay this passed weekend. She wasn’t too sure about holding them.

Do you want to hold it as I'm kinda not sure about all this?

Do you want to hold it as I'm kinda not sure about all this?

We tried to get her to "gently" lay them back in the water but she liked it better when she plopped them into the water

We tried to get her to "gently" lay them back in the water but she liked it better when she plopped them into the water

Malaika quite liked the starfish after a while and was reluctant to leave them behind.

Malaika quite liked the starfish after a while and was reluctant to leave them behind.

The Sandbar at Bonefish Point

The sandbar at Bonefish Point......an idyllic afternoon of lazing in six inches of water.

Light winds and pretty smooth seas so off we headed to Bonefish Point. We hadn’t been out there for ages and it was spectacular as always.  The shore line has changed somewhat but as usual, we nosed right onto the sandbar and stepped off the boat into about two feet of water. Right away we sighted some beautiful pin cushion star fish, a large orange and a yellow one and then a smaller sandy coloured one. They were just laying in the shallows and our little munchkin was fascinated by them.

Malaika was enthralled with the starfish as we taught her to keep them under the water.

As you can see, the sandbar is really shallow and extends quite a ways out to where the boat is anchored in two feet of water.

We strolled along the deserted beach looking for shells and bits of coral.

 

Malaika stops to call out to her Dad who's on the boat.

We thoroughly enjoyed the day  and walking along this stunning stretch of shoreline. A big bonus was seeing all the starfish and getting a close up look at them in the shallows.

 

 

Marta

 

 

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Taylor Bay Sunday

Barry enjoying a beer.........look at how clear the water was on Sunday.

Barry enjoying a beer.........look at how clear the water was on Sunday.

On clear and calm days, it’s hard to get any work done around the villas. One look at the ocean from the hill and you just have to put everything aside, pack a lunch and lots of drinks and soak in the beauty of the day. The boat skims over the shallow waters of the ocean on the south side of Provo and sometimes it’s so clear that you can see right to the bottom.
Malaika is quite independant now as she strolls along the water's edge at Taylor Bay wearing her water wings.

Malaika is quite independant now as she strolls along the water's edge at Taylor Bay wearing her water wings.

I spent ages trying to capture a starfish with the foamy edge of a wave coming to shore. Tough to do as my little camera has a slow shutter and I missed many shots!

I spent ages trying to capture a starfish with the foamy edge of a wave coming to shore. Tough to do as my little camera has a slow shutter and I missed many shots!

Wading back to the boat and time to head home.

Wading back to the boat and time to head home.

A sunset beach wedding was about to take place as we slowly motored out of Taylor Bay

A sunset beach wedding was about to take place as we slowly motored out of Taylor Bay

A beautiful archway of flowers was set up on the beach for a sunset island wedding. We met the groom as he slowly made his way down the beach to greet his guests. The bride wasn’t seen until we started pulling out of the bay to head for home.
Providenciales and the Turks and Caicos Islands have the most wonderful beaches for those wanting an exotic island beach wedding.
Contact me if you are planning a wedding or family occasion.
Marta
For weddings, check out our website at

Cushion Starfish on Grace Bay

We went to Grace Bay today and were treated to seeing some beautiful Sea Stars also known as Cushion Stars very close to shore.

We went to Grace Bay today and were treated to seeing some beautiful Sea Stars also known as Cushion Stars very close to shore.

I took Tina and Sheldon down onto Grace Bay close to the Club Med area. The water was beautiful but unfortunately, the sand under the water was really crusty. It used to be one of my favourite beach spots but I think the dredging at Leeward has been a detriment to this stretch of Grace Bay.  The same can be said of Leeward Beach which is also rocky and full of bits of shell and coral instead of soft sand under the waters. We still enjoyed it because we saw at least a dozen large Cushion Starfish close to the shore.

Three large Cushion Sea Stars and each one was a slightly different colour combination.

Three large Cushion Sea Stars and each one was a slightly different colour combination.

Three beautiful Cushion Starfish

Three beautiful Cushion Starfish

 

Marta

 

 

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

French Cay

A magnificent stretch of beach with the clearest turquoise water at French Cay

A magnificent stretch of beach with the clearest turquoise water at French Cay

French Cay is a small uninhabited island about 15 miles due south of Providenciales. It was once the hideout of a pirate called Nau L’Ollonais also known as Francois L’Ollonais in the 17th century. He would ambush and capture passing sailing vessels and was a ruthless and cruel buccaneer.

Floating in the water was the only way to cool off......it was so hot

Floating in the water was the only way to cool off......it was so hot

The boat's shadow is reflected in the water and note the starfish.

The boat's shadow is reflected in the water and note the starfish.

The day of our trip to French Cay was certainly one of the best ever for weather. All the way there and back we could see the ocean floor as clear as day. One of the highlights was seeing so many orange cushion stars strewn along the sandy bottom.

 

Marta

 

http://www.diving.tc

Bonefish Point Sandbar

A perfect afternoon on and in the water with the boys pulling us up to the sandbar..........it simply was the best

A perfect afternoon on and in the water with the boys pulling us up to the sandbar..........it simply was the best

We both had family visiting so it was an opportunity to take a leisurely run out to the sand bar at Bonefish Point. We took off from our marina at Harbour Club Villas. There’s a deep water channel ( 12 feet deep or so ) to the right of the sandbar and all of a sudden you’re in a foot of water. The guys put the anchor out and then decided to walk it into the shallows.

Barry floats along in the clear water and enjoys the best view in the world

Barry floats along in the clear water and enjoys the best view in the world

We saw some beautiful sea cushions ( see my previous post) and some smaller white starfish. Laura explored some rocks in the shallows and found numerous hermit crabs.

Laura shows me her find.............tiny little shells with crabs in them

Laura shows me her find.............tiny little shells with crabs in them

Here's a small hermit crab just walking along the edge of the water

Here's a small hermit crab just walking along the edge of the water

 

Barry, Tina and Sheldon stayed in the water pretty much all afternoon.

Barry, Tina and Sheldon stayed in the water pretty much all afternoon.

We all cooled off by staying in the water beer in hand. The Bonefish Point sandbar is on the south west tip of the island and accessible by road now. It never used to be……….the only way of getting here a few years ago was by boat or doing an excursion with Capt. Bill of Ocean Outback. This trip by the way is a great way of seeing the south shoreline. Hope you get to see this part of our island too.

 

Marta

 

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com