Turks and Caicos 2023 Days 6 & 7

June 8th was our sixth day on Grand Turk Island. It was another two dive day for us. I have a hard time sleeping in so I watched the sunrise each morning we were on the island.

A cruise ship was heading into port that day.

The dive sites we visited were Momma Nature and Pillories. Momma Nature was not a good site. There was hardly any marine life there. Most of these pictures are from Pillories dive site. That was a great site. We saw three turtles there.

There was a bit of a current along the wall. It almost felt like a drift drive.

This is a view of Manta House from the water. The Sandbar is the wooden building closer to the water. Manta house is the building with the white roof.

Lots of little fish on this dive. These blue ones were everywhere on top of the reef. We did not see a lot large animals on our dives. We did see a couple of sharks, a sting ray, and an octopus.

When you see it underwater, this purple color is so much deeper and more brilliant.

We had a relaxing afternoon walking on the beach, swimming, and resting. I finished the puzzle I was working on.

On the day we arrived in Turks and Caicos, we chatted with a man at the airport while we waited for our flight from Providenciales to Grand Turk. He told us we should visit The Sunflower Oasis, which his family owns. The restaurant at the Sunflower Oasis is called the Fisherman's Wife. The menu changes daily based on what fish are caught each day. Jorika is the chef and her husband does the fishing. The tables were set up in an inner courtyard around an in-ground swimming pool. It was a little hot but the food was fabulous!

We were there for almost three hours. In between our dinner and dessert, Jorika joined us at our table for about an hour long chat. She has led a fascinating life - born in South Africa, met her husband while she was dancing on a table while on a vacation in Zimbabwe, was a chef for ambassadors and dignitaries on safari in Africa, and eventually settled in Grand Turk and opened the Sunflower Oasis. Everything she cooked was delicious!

We looked a bit tired and worn out by the time we had dessert. It had been a long day. Scuba diving makes me tired. I would happily go back and eat at the Sunflower Oasis again.

June 9th was out seventh day on Grand Turk and our last dive day. It was a two dive day, our dive sites were McDonald and The Library. 

King captained our last two dives.

We loved all of our dive days! 

Can you spot the hiding flounder?

Boogs filmed with a GoPro on all of our dives. My husband used my iPhone 14 Pro on all of our dives. They mostly took videos so there are not a lot of pictures. They are planning to turn the footage into a little vacation movie. If that ever gets completed, I will post it.

Turks and Caicos 2023 Days 4 & 5

Day 4, June 6th, on the island was a two dive day. Every morning that we were on Grand Turk island, I sat on the beach at sunrise. It was so peaceful.

We dove at The Amphitheater and The Anchor dive sites. My husband took very few pictures and lots of videos. I have not yet gone through all of the videos.

Puffer fish

This is the anchor the dive site was named for. This type of anchor was used by British war ships about 100 years ago. The anchor is 8 feet long and covered with coral and sponges.

After our dives, we cleaned up and then had lunch at The Sandbar. It was really hot and humid but the food was great.

 Cracked Conch, Fires, and Salad 

Boogs was very tired after lunch, actually we all were. Boogs took a nap while my husband and I toured the island. We basically went off roading in our little golf cart. The dirt roads were super bumpy! 

The ocean water was so pretty. I think I need to live by the ocean someday.

There was a group of people taking the off road tour. Their vehicles were much faster than our golf cart.

There were wild horses on the island.

There were also wild donkeys on the island.

June 7th, day 5, on the island was another two dive day. The dive sites we explored that day were Approach Landing and The Chair.

June 7th was our 20th wedding anniversary. The dive shop gave us a slate with "Happy Anniversary" to hold up for a picture during one of the dives that day. Awwww!

Boogs looked in every nook and cranny for marine life.

I always like looking in these types of formations. They are usually empty but this one had a shell and coral growing inside it.

There was not anything inside this one.

Boogs and I posed for an underwater pic.

We spent our surface interval hanging out at Bahia Beach.

We got to swim with a turtle at The Chair dive site. So cool! I love turtles.

Boogs is in his element when he is diving. He was 10-years-old when he first became certified to dive. In the past seven years, Boogs has been on about 50 dives. He has his Open Water certification and Advanced Open Water certification.

This eel was not happy that we found his hiding spot.

The wind picked up while we were diving and caused some swells. The Blue Water Diving shop decided it was better to pick us up in a truck and drive us back to the shop instead of trying to get off the boat near their shop.

We had a quiet evening at Manta House. I found a puzzle in the cabinet to work on. 

We sat on the beach to watch the sunset.

Nigel decided to join us on the beach. Isn't he cute!

Nigel is also a bit crazy. He likes to dig for crabs in the sand. He does not kill or eat them. He plays with them and bats them around for a bit before losing interest in them.

He stayed with us until the sun went down.