Just look at that title - don't go thinking that I've been off on a jolly jaunt to the Bahamas with my dashing hero of a pirate, Captain Jesamiah Acorne, because, for all my wishful thinking (regarding jolly jaunts and my pirate) I haven't.
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A dear friend, and author (see last week's blog post about her book and Highwaymen) regularly visits Nassau and offered to supply me with some research information that I wanted for the next Sea Witch Voyage Gallows Wake. Although I have to be honest, it might be for the next-but-one, Jamaica Gold as, not having written Gallows Wake yet, I'm not entirely certain what will, or will not, be included. Two hints though: Jesamiah finds himself aboard a Royal Navy Frigate, and the threat of the gallows looms... (I hope to have it written for early 2018 publication)
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| not yet written! |
Anyway, I asked Cryssa for a few specifics because they are not easy to find via Google Wikipedia etc, and, bless her pirate boots, she came back with some fabulous information, which she generously said I could turn into a blog article. (The idea being a) gives me something to write about b) ensures I know where to find the info when I come to need it c) is a public way of saying thank you to Cryssa)
So, here's what she sent:
I’m a bit (a lot) shamefaced at the length of time that it’s taken me to write this up for you. You could have rafted to the Caribbean in less time.
I read Pirate Code while I was last down there and thought the bits you included about Nassau were very well done. I enjoyed it as much as Sea Witch which is the one thing a reader can ask for.
Now for Nassau.
December: the sun sets pretty quickly I find, no sooner than you realize the sun has set, it gets dark. I seem to remember the sun falling around 5 p.m and dark by 5.30. Sunrise is around 6.30 a.m. December is very unsettled weather because the cooler air comes down from the Florida coast and mixes with the warmer air from the south. It’s usual for it to be partly cloudy by noon (rather than clear blue skies), though the early morning seems to be more clear. There is always some heavy condensation or dew in the early morning that coats the windows and the chairs, etc. It can also be windy at this time and when the winds pick up they only die down after it rains. They can be windy for a few days in a row before the rain comes.
The half moon is very curious. Here it hangs on the side but there it lays on its back.
It’s hard to say what trees there would have been in the 18th century. I believe the palms were brought over from elsewhere. What is common along the natural coastline is a tree with soft needle like foliage. I wish I could name it but the people I asked had no clue. I can’t see Jesamiah fussing with botany though! It does remind me of an evergreen. Poincianas are also popular there but I’m not sure how far back they go. I get the sense they are native. I believe they lose some of their leaves in the winter.
There is a variety of sea gull that I’ve noticed only inhabits Paradise Island. It looks like a highwayman bandit as there is a dark band like a mask over the face. All the gulls around Nassau have black feet not yellow.
Grouper and conch are main staples down there. Yellow tailed snapper, red snapper, hog snapper are also well stocked. The island doesn’t have the soil for agriculture and they end up importing most of their food. The middle part of the island is higher than the rest of it but the elevation overall is not high. Blackbeard’s Tower, when it was still standing would have been the perfect place to see both approaches to the island.
Paradise Island used to be called Hogs Island because of the wild pigs that lived there. I believe most of these little islands were stocked with pigs, but now they are filled with high end yachts. This a brackish lake (fairly large) in the western part of the island and there are various streams and rivers that empty out into the water around Paradise Island (northern shoreline). It’s a bit sulphurous there and muddy and mucky with lots of ducks hanging out.
Nassau’s shoreline (the part that the hotels haven’t touched) tends to be both rocky and muddy. The rock is yellowish and pitted. The out islands (tiny Rose island, Harbour Island) are famous for their pink sand which isn’t what they have in Nassau.
July/August: By August, you’re getting into hurricane weather. July is hot but not completely unbearable because of the winds that blow in off the Caribbean. I’ve been in Florida during that same time (staying two blocks away from the beach) and the air felt like a closed oven. There is always humidity in Nassau but the shade does provide sufficient relief.
July is jelly fish season. I should know. I discovered them first hand - it’s not hard to get stung in the surf! When we were there in July, we noticed that it usually rained in the afternoon (around 2ish). The sky would go dark and violent as the storm came through, and then within a half-hour blew through. Sometimes there would be lightning. The sand flies are very annoying, they bite at ankles when you are on public beaches. If you see sting rays swimming close to shore, guaranteed there are sharks (sand sharks, tiger sharks) out there and most people prudently come in from the water. In July, I’ve seen warnings over lion fish (though it might have been December?)
Beaches - Cable Beach is just west of Nassau and tends to be somewhat sheltered so that even when it is very windy, you can still safely swim. There isn’t a big undertow there. Goodman’s Bay, which is beside Cable Beach is very shallow. The sand in the water is somewhat spongy.
Paradise Island is the best looking beach, but it can be very dangerous. It’s completely exposed and when the weather is windy and unsettled (no matter the season), you could have six foot waves. You’ll get the roar of the waves crashing there. In Cable Beach, not as much.
Along the west end of the island there are caves but I haven’t explored those. The southern end of the island has fewer beaches. It’s rockier there and has more places to snorkel. It looks a bit rougher too.
I’ve revisited the Pirate museum and have a few pictures, one being a map of Fort Nassau at the time of Woodes Rogers.
BLACKBEARD'S TOWER
Legend has it that 'Blackbeard's Tower' was where he would keep watch on shipping coming in and out of harbour. It is unlikely to have been Blackbeard's - but it was a watch tower!
The tower' is situated on a ridge five miles east of Fort Montagu on the island of New Providence, Nassau. The tower was used as a lookout point, giving commanding views over the sea. Today, the ruins are nothing more than crumbling masonry, and it is not easy to find, as the site is tucked away in an overgrown location and not visible from the road.
It is highly unlikely that Blackbeard himself had anything to do with the tower - it was more likely to be a military installation to keep watch for the Spanish, who raided Nassau several times.
I wonder if Governor Woodes Rogers was responsible for its building?
There's nothing to say the place wasn't connected with Blackbeard though...!
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| photos: Cryssa Bazos |
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| This is the view from the base of the tower facing north. |
LINKS
Cryssa Bazos: 17th Century Enthusiast
Website: http://cryssabazos.com
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And
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Thank you Cryssa - expect some of the above information in one of the next Voyages!
a few more photos of NASSAU
My thanks to José Bográn for these photos!
approaching Nassau - sunset
Nassau Harbour
View from the cannon mount at Fort Fincastle (c 1793).
Cannon mount at Fort Fincastle.
These are replicas, the original weaponry was sent back to England.
View of the other end of Fort Fincastle.
Fun fact: the castle was shaped to look as a seagoing ship.
View from the bottom of the Queen’s Staircase.
Carved by slaves in the 18th Century
(after Jesamiah's time)
Market stalls at the bottom of Queen’s Staircase
Jesamiah sails again! Just keep his head out of that noose on the cover, please! Thanks for a wonderful virtual trip to the Caribbean. Although, with an early tropical disturbance forming, it might be dicey even for pirates to be heading that way.
ReplyDeleteLove the promise of another adventure of your intrepid Pirate.
Well, the next in the Saa Witch series is titled Gallows Wake.... and of course Jesamiah will be in trouble again...
DeleteThanks for an inside look at a writer's contacts, Helen. And, Cryssa, your information is excellent. One writer helping another!
ReplyDeleteThanks Elaine - Cryssa is a wonderful lady. I'm honoured to have her - and many other supportive writers - as good friends!
DeleteThanks Elaine! We writers must continue to stick together and support each other as much as possible.
ReplyDelete