Sassy: 4 1/2 Years of cuteness!

 In May of 2011, Sassy and Scuba, came to live at Small Hope Bay Lodge. They immediately were a hit with guests and staff alike. Not surprising, considering how adorable they were/are! Just about everyone was tempted to put them both in their suitcases and smuggle them home.

Sassy and Scuba are what we call "Potcakes". A Bahamian term essentially meaning mutt.

 Despite very different appearances and highly contrasting personalities, Sassy and Scuba are brother and sister, litter-mates. Sassy is very mellow, intelligent, and rather lazy. Scuba is highly energetic, athletic, and very sweet though not the "sharpest tool in the shed". It was determined after a short while that Scuba was probably better suited for life up at Jeff's (owner/manager of Small Hope) home.

 Sassy has proven to be a WONDERFUL dog! She loves welcoming the new guests arriving by taxi, monitoring what all the staff members are up to, checking to see who gets to give her illicit snacks each day, and watching over cocktail hour and dinner time on the patio, letting us all know that she, too, likes conch fritters!

She even comes on some of the morning dive trips. She is always very concerned when people jump into the depths, but she is immensely relieved and overjoyed to see us all return to the boat safely.


 Sassy is absolutely, 100% part of the family, as well as the staff. She sees her role here as part watchdog, part groundskeeper (picking up any food dropped), and part fisherdog (she chases those little fish but hasn't caught one yet).

We love her to bits. She makes everyday a little bit better and we are so glad this is her home.

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Thanksgiving at Small Hope Bay Lodge

Wow! Another incredible Thanksgiving here at Small Hope. Our kitchen staff did an amazing job of preparing the most delicious meal, as well as 32 scrumptious desserts.

Most of all we enjoyed a wonderful holiday with friends and family. Some things I am thankful for: living in a gorgeous location, working with funny and friendly people, Jeff Birch (a hilarious and sweet boss),  great food, great company!

Now to the food. Here is what we had:
 

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Cat and Dan's Wedding on the Beach!

We were honored to be a part of a beautiful wedding ceremony this past Saturday. Cat and Dan decided to celebrate their love here at Small Hope, under a canopy of buttonwood and palm trees. They had visited Small Hope once before and were enchanted by the family-style atmosphere and beautiful scenery. This time they brought a small group of loved ones with them to enjoy the special day.

Congratulations Dan and Cat!!!!!

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Recipe: Our amazing, delicious, wonderfully scruptious Mac n' Cheese!

Macaroni and Cheese: One of the most ubiquitous and universally adored dishes. Everyone and every region has their own style of preparing it. Some like it thicker, other prefer the loose and gooey. Some prefer vegetables mixed it, while other top it with bread crumbs. They even top hamburgers and pizza with it these days!

The Bahamas also has its own way of preparing this dish. The Bahamian style of mac n' cheese is more thick and casserole-like with tasty peppers and onions for a little pizazz! See the recipe below. It goes best with baked or fried chicken, potato salad, cole slaw, conch salad, and of course, a ice-cold Kalik beer and great company!

Ingredients: serves 5

•  16 oz. elbow macaroni
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 sweet pepper, diced
• 24 oz cheddar cheese, shredded
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup evaporated milk
• 4 oz butter, melted
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven at 375F. Cook pasta according to the direction on box, drain. In a large bowl mix the evaporated milk and eggs, then the butter, salt and pepper, onions, peppers, and 3/4 of the cheese. Add the drained macaroni and mix well. Grease a baking pan. Pour the mixture in to the pan and top with the remaining cheese. Bake at 375F for 35 minutes or until set.

Bon appetit!

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Get to Know the Staff: Meet Jardie!

Introducing . . . . . 

the lovely Jardie Adly!

If you've ever been to Small Hope, you have probably met this outgoing woman. She was the one bringing your delicious breakfast to you, or serving your favorite dinners and desserts.

Guests love her because she is always smiling, very friendly, and extremely helpful.

The staff love her because she has a wicked sense of humor and always keeps us on our toes!

Here are some fun facts about Jardie:

# of Years at Small Hope: 7

# of kids: Two. CJ is 10 years old, and Destiny is 15 months.

Favorite Thing to do Outside of Work: Cook, take care of the house, and SLEEP!

The Best Part About Working at Small Hope for her: Talking to all the guests, and keeping  them smiling.

Favorite Food: Steamed Chicken, and Red Beans and Rice.

Favorite Color: Purple


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Small Hope featured in the Washington Post!

In early September we had a writer come stay with us to learn about Small Hope and all of the amazing things to do on Andros. 

Check out his amazing article here!

Dolphins spotted on the way back from the West Side!

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Great Week of Fishing

Last week was a great time for fishing at Small Hope!

Anne and Kieth went reef fishing with our guide, Jeff, and caught enough yellow tailed snapper to feed everybody with a Bahamian fish dinner and a sashimi appetizer. Reef fishing is a great option for families and inexperienced fishermen,and should probably be called catching instead of fishing. While you might not bring in the big ones, you'll most likely spend the whole day bringing up snapper, grouper, trigger fish, and a barracuda if you're lucky!

Below is a picture of our guide, Jeff, with a yellow tail.

We also had guests spend a day deep sea fishing, which meant we had another night of sashimi! If you spend a day deep sea fishing, you might not catch as many fish, but what you do catch will be worth the wait! Trolling fifteen miles off the shore means you wait a little bit longer for a bight, but you can expect Wahoo, Mahi Mahi, Marlin, and other pelagics. 

Below is Jeff again with the Wahoo that provided us with Sashimi.

Bonefishing is more of a hunt than reef or deep sea. For a day of bonefishing, we'll take you out to the flats, where one of our guides will point out the fish, and tell you how to place your bait or fly in the right position. While most people enjoy fly fishing for bones, plenty of people still prefer using a spinning reel and live bait. Even though there's not enough meat on the fish to eat, bonefish are trophies because of the active hunt involved in catch.

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New Snorkel Sights From Shore

In an effort to strengthen his leg after a car accident in Hawaii,. Jeff and his son Brian have been snorkeling from the beach every day before sunset. In doing so, they have found areas of developing coral, and previously developed nurseries that have not been discovered until recently. Next time you come down, ask us where a good spot to snorkel from the shore is, and we'll be happy to show you an area you probably haven't seen yet! Check out this video that Pique made just yesterday!

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