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What’s the latest on that remote outpost camp Cargill Creek lodge owner Stanley Bain has been developing on Grassy Cay off the southern tip of Andros Island, Bahamas? Continuing subscribers will remember subscriber Ted Demopoulos’ enthusiastic report on the fishing available in this area in the December, 1993 issue (see page 7). Well, imagine our surprise when we started making some followup calls this past month, only to discover that Stanley Bain has completely d-i-s-a-p-p-e-a-r-e-d. That’s right, he and two guides from Cargill, one of them Stanley’s brother, William, simply vanished somewhere in the Atlantic this past August while lobstering aboard a 36 foot boat accompanied by two skiffs.
There are all sorts of rumors about what happened to the group, ranging from their boat being swamped by some of the heavy seas that broke across the Atlantic this hurricane season to their being ambushed by druggies or perhaps even Cubans who wanted their boats. Then there is also talk that Stanley, a wealthy Bahamian, was having money troubles. Some wags are suggesting he simply fled from his debts.
Speculation aside, the disappearance has left everyone associated with Cargill stunned and saddened. When we called out that way, we reached Sandra MacMaster, the female half of a brother and sister team that has been brought into manage the lodge. She said ownership of the lodge has devolved to Stanley’s wife, who has made it clear she wants Cargill to stay open and the Grassy Cay camp to come fully on stream.
"We have guests at Cargill right now," MacMaster said, indicating all was going smoothly. "And we’re accepting bookings for Grassy Cay this spring."
Chip Bates (*) of Angler Adventures (*), one of Cargill’s major agents, confirmed most of what MacMaster said, but had a different understanding of when Grassy Cay would open. He said he had been told the first guests would be going into Grassy Cay at the end of December. At press time, we had not been able to sort out just which view is right. We hope to have a writer at Cargill and perhaps at Grassy Cay soon.
In the meantime, clients headed toward either lodge should take the unusual events that have occurred out that way under advisement. It wouldn’t be surprising if there were some minor hiccups as this organization gets back on its feet. As for Grassy Cay, the lodge out that way is reported to be quite attractive. The fishing is said to be superb. Bates says he booked 30 people into Grassy Cay last April and every one of them re booked for this year. He’s very bullish on the future of the camp.
One drawback of Grassy Cay is the bath water in the lodge. It often has a sulphur smell to it, we are told, and can even be brackish at times. Also, all power at the camp is supplied by a generator, which is switched off at some point each night. Getting to the lodge from Cargill is also a bit of a journey. It takes about 2 1/2 hours, and the ride can be rough. The payoff, of course, is superb, unpressured fishing. More details as we receive them…. – Don Causey.