*BIG BLUE STAND-UP PADDLE-BOARD SPECIAL* $55 per person
The next three days (September 2, 3, 4) are going to be still and the Leeward Channel is going to be very calm. Perfect for some late afternoon paddle boarding in the National Park. Explore the mangroves and see baby sharks, turtles and eagle rays.

Thursday Sept 2 at 3.00pm
Friday Sept 3 at 3.45pm
Saturday Sept 4 at 4.30pm

*Plus discounted prices on other Eco-adventures:

Friday September 3rd            
Heart of the Islands Eco-tour                
8am to 5.30pm            
$250 per person

Saturday Sept 4          
Edge of the Banks Snorkel Adventure  
8am to 4pm                 
$175 per person

Sunday Sept 5           
2 tank dive to French Cay                    
8am to 2.30pm            
$170 per person

Kayak Eco-tour                                              
EVERYDAY              
$75 per person

CALL 649-946-5034 or 649-231-6455 or bigblue@tciway.tc
www.bigblueunlimited.com

We’d like to tell you a little bit about the craft market in the Grace Bay area of Provo. It’s officially called Alverna’s Craft Market.

If you’re a visitor coming to Turks and Caicos, this is one of the spots that you wanna check out to get some nice handicraft that’s ‘almost’ authentic from these islands. The vendors that sell at the market are actually of Haitian decent, but they’ve been here in Providenciales for so long that many of our visitors that come frequently have grown us to buying souveriers for friends and family back home.  There’s a very wide assortment of shells, basket weaved crafts, tee-shirts, bent metal and some local spices and treats.

Savannah Sottak and Limbo getting ready for Horse ShowArtist painting portrat of a Dalmation

I have a new appreciation for the expression “dog and pony show” after experiencing both in one day recently!  

A few Saturday’s ago, we had the island’s first Gymkhana at Provo Ponies.  Eight young children between got to strut their stuff and their ponies amongst a crowd of 50 or more.  We all enjoyed a morning of equestrian sportsmanship and lots of ribbon presentations!  From equitation to jumping to the most stubborn pony, there was a prize for everyone, ensuring no one left the stable without a smile.   Provo Ponies did an outstanding job - not only on this event - but over the last 12 weeks of preparation and practice.  My daughter has loved spending her Saturday mornings there with the ponies, chickens, dogs, cats and other various lovable creatures that hang out there.

After the Pony show, we moved swiftly to Turtle Cove to catch the TCSPCA’s Annual Dog Show - an event anticipated by pet-lovers of all ages.  As in previous years, there were prizes for the best dog trick, best-looking potcake and dog that looks most like its owner as well as the obstacle course.  I particularly enjoyed the half-time entertainment when an artist speed-painted to music.  It was fascinating to watch him jump back and forth between the two canvasses as the song switched from “Who let the dogs out” to “Josie and the Pussycats.”  What was even more amazing was watching his work literally appear before our eyes upside down!  The paintings were later given out as prizes to two lucky pet owners.

Needless to say, by 3 pm we were all exhausted but very impressed by the beautiful, well-behaved animals we shared our day with!  We can only imagine how they must have felt.   This just goes to show there is a lot more than just, sun, sea and sand when it comes to Turks and Caicos!

Welcome to Provo Golf Club – a residential and vacation golf community in the Grace Bay area of Providenciales, Turks & Caicos Islands, British West Indies.

This green oasis hosted the 2009 Caribbean Amateur Golf Championship and the course is consistently voted one of the Caribbean’s best golf courses. We’re sure you’ll enjoy our challenging, and beautifully maintained, 18-hole championship course which is extremely popular with our members, guests, and visitors to the island.

Provo Golf Club, Providenciales, Turks & Caicos from HAB Group.

One of our favorite tour operators is Kenard Cruises. Captain Kenard runs a ship-tight operation, giving guests a truly memorable experience out on the beautiful waters of the Turks & Caicos. His craft, Dream Aweigh, is a luxury 42-foot power catamaran with all the bells and whistles. If you want to feel like the rich and famous for the day, this is the perfect way to do it.

Kenard Cruises offers half and full day charters and can accommodate groups of up to 20 or so people. The Captain and his crew and a real friendly bunch and flexible with how you want to spend you day. They can customize just about any service or catering need you have and they are your beck and call during the entire cruise. The boat itself offers loads of roam to spread out, both out on the ample decks as well as in the luxury cabin areas. It’s built for comfort and luxury, for sure

The gang at Turks and Caicos Reservations decided to ‘see for ourselves’ what great service and luxury awaits on Dream Aweigh (several of us had been out with Kenard before). We chartered the boat for a half day recently, partly to celebrate the launch of our new brand and logo. The Captain didn’t disappoint (even arranging for near-perfect weather up until the last few minutes when a refreshing shower passed by).

We left Turtle Cove Marina and sailed east along Grace Bay Beach, admiring the sandy shores and luxury accommodations that we entice tourists with every day. We passed over the Leeward Cut and sailed out in front of peaceful Pine Cay, where we anchored just off the eastern tip of the beach there (a remarkable stretch of beach it is, too). We were close to the cut separating Pine Cay from Fort George Cay and there is a large sand bar there where sand dollars abound).

Captian Kenard broke out the floaty toys, including a massive 8-foot-by-8-foot raft type thing, which every one enjoyed lounging on – and ultimately negating in a game of ‘kind of the raft.’ Cold drinks, great snacks and island music highlighted a relaxing day anchored in the quiet area off the exclusive island that is home to The Meridian Club.

We headed back toward Turtle Cove Marina in Provo just as the sun was setting, reflecting on our great day at sea. It was an awesome chance to bond as a team, and get a chance to experience a superb tour option for the guests of Turks & Caicos Reservations.

People from all over the world live and work here in the Turks & Caicos Islands.  Partly because of the laid back lifestyle of living on a gorgeous Caribbean island, but also because we just enjoy being around water as blue as can be!  There’s just something about the these islands that make people come back again and again (shhhhh… don’t tell them that we actually put something in the water!)

Our friends over at Brilliant love living here too, and they’ve put out some eBook guides on some great topics that are certainly useful to read if you’re thinking of visiting our shores for the first time.

The three e-books include

• Best beaches in Turks and Caicos
• Things to do with families in Turks and Caicos
• A guide for those with children under five

What’s best is that they’re all FREE! 

Interested?  Here’s where you go to get ‘em!

Check out the video clip of Tennessee Titans QB in Turks & Caicos!

Even though I live here on the island, things still tend to get busy with the usual routine of school for the kids, work, and sports.  So we’ve only had the pleasure of a pleasure  ride on Dave’s Atabeyra twice now, and both times had an excellent time. 

Easter Monday, and we pulled up to the Big Blue back yard in Leeward around 1:45 pm with a bunch of friends who decided to rent out the boat for a half day and enjoy some time on the water.  Adults and kids all got on board and got quickly settled in with our bags of goodies, towels, etc and proceeded to leave the dock right on time.  The vessel itself sails gracefully on the water and the mood is easy and relaxing with all of us taking in the turquoise shades of the water and listening to the cool reggae vibes.  Weather was just mint as a cool ocean breeze cooled the hot rays on the back.  Junior (just started about 6 months ago with the Atabeyra) was a nice addition to the trip, was interesting hearing his story about coming up the ranks in the Caicos Marina in Long Bay.

After sipping on some beverages and just chillin, catching up with friends and enjoying the ride, we pulled up to the old and abandoned ship out in the middle of the ocean, at first, I thought we were just getting close to it to check it out, but I then heard a few of the guys and teens jumping out of the boat, swimming to the net type ladder and proceeded to climb up the ship!  Scary, but fun, I couldn’t resist and took the ‘plunge’ out myself and did the same thing.  These crazy kids got all the way to the very top (bow) of this monstrous ship, and jumped off the bow!  Well, I couldn’t let that happen without giving it a go myself, so I did the deed with a ‘weeeeeeeeeee’ all the way down and slammed into the frigthening but irresistable water below.  What a rush!  I was a proud dad when my 7 year old jumped off the Atabeyra and proceeded to swim to the ship as well to do the same thing, so up I went with him and followed him down. 

After spending another half hour or so just swimming around and enjoying the scenery, we got on board again and headed past the point to Little Water Cay (Iguana Island), where a bunch of the little ones got off again and went exploring to see Iguanas.  I decided that it was again another time to catch up on the drinks and chatted away some more while some of my fav Marley tunes came on.  What a life!  Some of the boys ended up playing soccer on the beach and the girls went swimming.

Back to the marina in Leeward by Big Blue, goodbyes to all, and on our way back home. 

All in all, this was probably one of the most memorable Easter Mondays we’ve had as a family.

Thanks to the great company, Captain Dave, Junior, and Turks & Caicos’ Resident favourite, the good ship Atabeyra.

Was high time that the family made its way over to explore some of the outer islands of the Turks & Caicos Islands, so we packed a bag full of snacks and headed to Leeward Marina (at the very end of the Leeward Highway) to catch the TCI Ferry over to North Caicos.  The folks at ‘Caribbean Cruisin’ are pretty well organized, and we purchased our return tickets to get over to North Caicos for just $30 for adults and $20 for kids 9 and under.  The marina itself is very scenic with nothing but clear turquoise water views from the dock. 

The ferry left exactly on time and reached exactly a half hour later at Sandy Point in ‘North’ where we met up with Suzie from Pelican Car Rentals.  Suzie is truly a doll and always has a smile on her face.  Her and her husband Cliff own and run the Pelican Beach Hotel.  For this trip, we decided to head straight for the Causeway connecting North and Middle Caicos so that we can go exploring around ‘Middle’ and time it so that we can have a bit of time to also get up to Pumpkin Bluff in North on our way back in time to catch the ferry back at 5:45 pm.  Both North and Middle Caicos are truly beautiful Caribbean islands and are what you typically think of when you vision a Caribbean Island in the sun (Provo is more developed and touristy, so was quite a different vibe and scene over there). 

Driving over the causeway was quite interesting, it was unfortunate to see what damage the hurricane did in September of 2008, but still very driveable and extremely safe.  On Middle Caicos, there are a wide variety of sights to see, including Bambarra Beach, Conch Bar Caves, Mudjin Harbour, Indian Cave, Crossing Place Trial, Haulover Plantation and several more.  So we set out to see the sights and was totally surprised at how naturally beautiful this island really was.  Every small village that we passed by (such as “Kew” and “Bottle Creek”, had willing and friendly locals who were excited to tell us about where to go, how to get there, and who was related to who (did I mention how proud they are of their island?).  Middle Caicos is a very large island, about three times the size of Provo, but only 300 residents.

We arrived at Mudjin Harbour near to the Blue Horizon Resort and headed up the driveway and parked by the concrete path down to the beach.  What a sight!  Simply stunning.  I had to stand there for a few minutes in awe, just thinking how lucky I was to see what I was actually seeing.  On the way down, you see a dramatic cave formation with some lovely benches in the shade, followed by white powdery sand, a long stretch of beach and ended up at Dragon Cay.  There were only two other people enjoying the beach and said that they were just out snorkeling. 

After spending some time there (and taking at least a hundred pictures), we headed off to try Daniel’s Cafe, and again, were totally impressed with the casual and scenic ambiance that this friendly restaurant had to offer.  After meeting up with Daniel Forbes himself and getting to know him a bit, he opened the door to the ‘Middle Caicos Co-op’ where they make local items including weaved baskets and dishware out of a conch shell.  We headed back to the restaurant and met Daniel’s son Devon who turned 34 years old that day!  We ordered fish and cracked conch, totally delicious.  This father and son combination brought out a highly unique personality and charm of the establishment as they took the time out to talk to us and share stories.  This is not something that you have a chance to do at many other restaurants (in TCI, or around the world) so it really stood out to us.

After enjoying a wonderful meal and great company, we jumped in the car and stayed on the paved road, across the airport tarmac, and onto a rough road by a roundabout and into the brush.  The gates at the cave entrance suddenly appeared and there came Mr. Dennis with his light brown truck.  He gave us all flashlights and gave us a great tour of the interesting cave formation, which just happens to be the largest above-water cave formation in the entire Caribbean!  The kids really loved walking around the limestone rock and looking for bats with their flashlights (watch out for the bat poop which apparently the Lucayan Indians many many years ago would reap and use for excellent manure).

By this time, we thought it might be a good idea to head back to the causeway and back to North.  That we did, and still had time to stop in to Suzie’s Pelican Beach Hotel for a drink (one more for the road).  We met up with an interesting school teacher there who was just sitting and enjoying the water on a Saturday afternoon and sharing some stories with her.  Up to Pumpkin Bluff and then back down to the Sandy Point ferry area.

Once again, TCI Ferry Services got us back exactly half hour later to Provo.

All in all, a day trip to North and Middle Caicos are well worth it, in fact, if you come to Turks & Caicos and just stay in Provo, some may argue, that you haven’t experienced all that this wonderful destination has to offer.

Estimated Costs for taking a day trip over to North and Middle Caicos from Provo:

• Return ferry transfers on TCI Ferry Service:  $30 per adult or $20 per child 9 and under
• Rent a car from Pelican Car Rentals:  $75
• Gas to get you from North Caicos to Middle Caicos and back:  $15
• Lunch at Daniel’s Cafe in Conch Bar including drinks per person:  $25
• Guided 1/2 hour tour at Caves per person:  $10