Swimming Pigs (and video!)

" . . . when pigs fly!"  How 'bout when pigs swim?!

Yes, it's true.  Pigs swim.  At least, island pigs swim!  

I've posted about this before as part of an evening boat excursion, but it's just too fun a topic not to revisit.  Besides, the pigs really warrant their own post!

So, the scoop . . .

 

On a nearby (uninhabited) island, a handful of large, wild pigs are the dominant residents.  Some twenty years ago, a couple of the local guys brought in two pigs and placed them on that island to breed and provide table fodder for the occasional pig roast that our local community loves to do.  (Over the years, there have been funny stories about pigs slipping overboard while the guys tried to transport them by small dinghy and other such adventures.)

The pigs have slowly gained fame or notoriety (depending on whether you've been entertained or terrorized) as a tourist attraction.  The pigs have learned that when boats approach their shoreline, these boats often bring slop and food treats.  So, the pigs now swim out to meet the boats!

All too often, visitors decide it'd be fun to get out to swim with the pigs, or pet the pigs onshore.  While this can certainly be entertaining and make for good vacation photos, it's really not the best idea.  These are still wild animals!  And in their excited quest for food, the pigs get quite aggressive.  I've seen pigs practically climb aboard smaller dinghies.  And I've seen pigs chase people onshore.  Unfortunately, the local medical clinic is all too familiar with treating various pig bites, some of a serious nature.

That said, they're still fun to go observe at a safe distance!

ESPECIALLY because I hear there's a new litter of piglets!

So, yesterday, Beau and I took a boat ride over to see the pigs.  Unfortunately, the piglets were nowhere in sight.  They were napping or otherwise tucked safely back in the bush.  Given the aggressive nature of the pigs, presumably even more so as mommas protecting babies, I did not go ashore to root the piglets out of their hiding spot to pose for pictures!

Nonetheless, the big pigs are always a treat.  See for yourselves . . .

No other boats around, so the pigs were still onshore as we approached.

Here they come to greet us!

Yup, pigs swim.

As many times as I've seen this phenomenon, I still chuckle.

Realizing no food was being thrown from the boat (sorry, pigs), the pigs start to turn away from the boat.

Checking us out one last time.

Ambling back ashore.

Digging nests in the cool damp sand.  You can see that's a nursing mother pig.

Although I failed to deliver piglets to you this time, I have an extra treat.  To complete this virtual experience, you must hear the snorting sounds of the pigs and see their pig-paddling legs in action!  So, here is a video clip.  (I apologize for the wind noise - it was a squally afternoon.)

 

Looks to me like the pigs enjoy their own Better Life!!  What do you think?

Evening Boat Excursion

One evening last week, we took the boat out for a couple hours.  With daylight savings, our evenings are longer now and conducive to such weekday adventures!

This particular boat excursion was in a 17 foot Boston Whaler, the boat in which I'm being taught to actually DRIVE (and dock and anchor and tie up, etc.) rather than to simply enjoy going along for the ride.  But I begged off taking the wheel first since I wanted to snap some blog photos for you!

Off we went.  We pulled away from the private dock and waved good-bye to Milo, one of my favorite island dogs.

Milo, just chillin' out.

We backed into a small canal, then headed west.  I never fail to be amazed at the clarity and brilliant hues of the water!

You can see to the bottom!

As we pulled away from the island, I looked back at the local boat yard.  One of the island's sailboats was up on the land getting a fresh coat of paint for the upcoming regatta (sailboat race).  These boats are Bahamian-made and Bahamian-owned.  They are wooden sloops, harkening back to the traditions of early fishermen.  This particular boat has been hand-planked and rebuilt by hand in the past.  And she's fast!

Local Boat Yard

We cruised along the many little "cays" or blips of land, some larger than others.  The western backside of a larger (uninhabited) cay forms a safe harbor where many boats are now anchored during this busy season.   

Sailboats anchored out in a protected area.

I mean, look at that water!  C'mon!  I'm not biased, right?!

Tiny little cays in the sea.

Then the real mission of this adventure commenced - wilt-hunting!  Wilts (a.k.a. whilks or whelks) are large Caribbean snails.  Locally, they attach to the hard coral rock near the water line.  So we cruised toward the rocky cays jutting out of the sea.

Like this one.

The water was deeper in some areas than others.  You can tell in the pictures by the shades of blue.  The deeper the water, the darker the blue.

See where it changes back to shallow water in the distance?

We maneuvered the boat close to the rock - some seriously challenging driving practice for me! - and pried the wilts off with a knife.  I took quite a few pics, so I'll give you a fuller description later.

For now, this is what our bucket looked like when we quit.

After completing our mission, we cruised along for a little joy ride.  First stop . . . pig beach!  There's that expression about "when pigs fly."  Well, in this case, pigs swim!

Approaching the beach.  See the pink pig by the left dinghy and the two darker ones by the right dinghy?

The pigs are wild.  One or more just had a litter recently, and I've counted more than a dozen piglets running around!

A couple piglets in the beach background.

The pigs are used to being fed by boaters, and they can be quite aggressive in coming out for food when they hear a boat engine nearing.  It's important to have the food ready to throw or the pigs will actually try to climb into the boat!  Not so good in a small boat.

I'm manning a camera and throwing bread bits as fast as I can as they swim up to the boat!

Lots of snorting.

Yup, those pigs are doggie-paddling.

They finally give up and turn to the beach as we motor away.

After we left pig beach, we cruised back toward home.  At a local marina, a unique-looking and beautiful boat caught my eye.  I'm not sure what type it is, but one of you more astute boaters is likely to know.  Pretty, huh?

The wood gleamed perfectly.

"Freedom" had a very patriotic feel, with an old-school look and a large American flag flying proudly.

Also near the marina, we saw a fisherman friend returning with a large haul.  So, we tied up the boat and went to the fish-cleaning bench to check it out.  He had a very large Wahoo!  Yes, that's the fish name.  But it's worth getting excited about - good eating!  If I heard correctly, this Wahoo was caught on an electric line in 600-800 feet of water.

Cleaning the Wahoo.

Right under and around the fish-cleaning bench, nurse sharks slowly swam in circles.

Waiting for fish scraps to be thrown over.

Yes, the sharks are underwater.  The water is really just that clear!  These photos were taken from the dock above, not with an underwater camera!

I also thought you might enjoy seeing the posted "rules" for the fish bench and grill area.  For decades, nothing was posted, so this is a modern touch.  It's still fairly loose and island-style, and people generally respect the rules.  However, the outdoor grill that had been built into a concrete wall no longer exists!  Hurricane Irene carried it away with her last summer.

As I've mentioned in other posts, tourists and locals like to gather around the fish-cleaning bench and check out the action.  The group this day happened to be mostly visitors.

Watching the fish-cleaning and the sharks around the fish-cleaning bench.

This visitor was especially brave and waded in with beer in hand - Kalik, which is a Bahamian beer.

The sharks weren't the only creatures being fed that evening. We were able to take home a piece of the Wahoo, so I delighted in a very fresh Wahoo sandwich that evening for dinner!  Just lightly sauteed, plenty of lime as always, and it was down the hatch in no time.

Another great day.  So grateful!