Woke up at 6:00 this morning to find that Tropical Storm Chantal has stalled. We aren’t feeling much here, but the prevailing winds are from the west and are pushing waves up over the sea wall back on our mangrove island. So, Mr. Sidney has asked us to stay here for a bit longer until it’s safe to go back.

About 10:15, we get the word—we’re going back to Spanish Lookout Caye. Carolyn is on her way and will pick us up at 11:00. Another hurried packing job and in 30 minutes, we’re loading the truck ready to go.

Carolyn picked us up in her truck. We stacked up the luggage in the back and Debbie and I jumped in as there wasn’t enough room up front for all of us. Bouncing and sweating down the dirt road to the highway I reflect on my adventure so far. I’ve already seen some amazing things, met some great people, and find that I’m falling for this beautiful country. Debbie and I actually had a good time bouncing along in the back of the truck watching the countryside pass by.

Carolyn dropped us off at Ventura Shopping Center where we met up with Clifton and Patch. Clifton had passed the storm playing games with his cousins at his aunt’s house. He and Patch helped us load up the Blue Tang and off we went to return to our little mangrove island.

The city is still quiet and appears deserted. There are few people out and about and even fewer vehicles on the road. Most businesses were closed—some with boards over their windows.

The fishing fleet was inside the swing bridge with 4 lines attached forward to poles or the shoreline, and another 4 lines led aft off the stern. One boat, had her mast and boom lashed to the deck with the dories stacked and bound above them. The signal flag above the government building was green—signaling an all-clear for Belize City.

We practically flew across the water between the cayes and Belize City. From a distance, nothing looked out of the ordinary on our little island. Once we got ashore, however, we found we had lost a lot of sand and our side of the island had shrunk a bit.

We unpacked and surveyed the damage. Some of the palm fronds are gone from the palapa. Things left untethered were scattered around the yard and the soil erosion was significant.

It was clear that even though the storm was a near miss, we would have been in serious danger had we stayed. Most of our side of the island had been under water at some point during the storm. It will take Mr. Sidney and the guys some time and effort to put things back as they were.

We had a visit from Mr. Gilroy and Jose. We spent the evening talking with friends and chatting about Chantal. We were all tired and went to bed early, by about 9:00 p.m.