Half Moon Cay

Monday, February 22

Half Moon Cay
      We arrive at Half Moon Cay, an island in the Antilles privately owned by Holland America early in the morning. Our first day on tour is a rainy one, but the rain is sporadic and allows us to take the hike we had planned for with our guide “Friendly Frank”.

While billed as an eco-hike, it is more of a botany experience than an exploration of the bird life on the island. That’s OK, because we do enjoy the hike and learn a great deal about the plants and their medicinal uses. Part of the tour brings us up to some old ruins and we find the tamron tree from which the fr;uits used to make A-1 Steak sauce is made…..very tasty! Asked about birds, Franks tells me to wait until we get to the barbecue provided. The birds love to scavenge the picnic grounds in search of a few morsels and we are sure to see some birds of inerest there. Indeed, we do come across our first Banaquits, our first Bahamian mockingbirds and Ground doves. The birds are really fine looking and are certainly plentiful, but diversity is lacking on this island or at least at this crowded spot. I’m sure the rain has not helped either, but all the same, here we are in the Carribean and we are ready for some new spectacular birds.