Salt River Bay National Historic Park
Feb. 27, 2024
The visitor center is closed due to hurricane damage but I was still able to walk around the beach area which is where Columbus landed on his second voyage to the Americas. There used to be an indigenous peoples village at this location that has been excavated in the past. Common to the beaches on the islands is somebody takes the largest piece of trash and others add to it with whatever debris they find on the beach. I added a chunk of blue plastic and a snorkel clip to the trash pile/art on this beach.
Evening was time for a kayak tour of Salt River Bay, specifically a small section of it that is known as Bio Bay. It has a large concentration of tiny zoo and phytoplankton that are bioluminescent when agitated. I got a see through clear kayak which made it look like science fiction movie warp speed lights zipping past under the kayak if I paddled hard. With even a light paddle the light show was cool. We also saw a comb jelly that triggers a flash. I did not see it, but two of the kayaks saw a fireworm that glows during its mating cycle which is for about 30 minutes after sunset during the 5 days after a full moon. They were lucky to see that as we were a bit late getting to the seagrass area where the worms are located due to one of the kayaks capsizing while crossing the windy bay. The people were OK but wet. We also saw a bunch of egrets roosting in the mangrove trees and an iguana. My camera did not show the light up creatures so no pictures of that.