Boats at anchor   The morning of the 10th we met at the boat to bad news: the weather pattern was sitting in a front over Georgia and sending a spiral of high wind over the islands, ruining our diving chances for the day. We were able to sit Melanie down by the pool and tape her going through the dive brief for each site we had visited. This was good practice and a source of excellent information for the group, as four days of solid activity had blurred the dives together in our heads.
 		  
  The Anglican cemetery

West side of the island

schoolkids just getting home

   We decided to walk North Bimini to see what we could see, and set out at 11 to explore the island. Walking the east road northward, we passed through typical Bimini neighborhoods: tired cinderblock buildings in states of disrepair, surrounded by lots filled with trash or vehicles, with occasional glimpses of pristine turquoise water behind. Each store we stopped at for film seemed to refer us back to the same tourist shop. We passed the Bimini Anglican Cemetery and continued up the east side of the island to the end of the road, sweating in the heat. Finding a path heading west, we walked up a hill and into a large glade of pine trees, stepping over piles of rubble and trash heaped along the way. As the path leveled off, the sound and wind increased until we could see the west beachfront spread out in front of us. The temperature dropped about twenty degrees, and spray from the surf carried across the edge of the trees. Cooling off and admiring the view, we turned southward again and walked back out of the shade.
 		  
    Lunch was served at Cortez' Deli, a quiet, nondescript cafeteria halfway up the island. Inside, a quiet, friendly woman served us fresh burgers in a blindingly clean yellow kitchenette out of a mid-70's brochure.
 		  
 

A very peaceful bench

The ring toss game at the Compleat Angler

   The west side of the island, obviously the wealthier side, was still developed randomly, with larger beachfront houses neighboring vacant shacks. We did pass the Holy Name Monastery and elementary school, watching the children practice soccer across the street on a sloped field; as the road took us further south, the development got progressively better until we found ourselves across the island from our hotel. Returning to our rooms, we waited around until dinner and took in the sights at the hotel restaurant once again. Afterward, there was another stop at the Compleat Angler for more Kalik and games of ring toss.
 

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