Bluewater's December Newsletter

Home ::  Newsletter

The Bahamas
December 1998

With more than 700 islands and cays starting just 50 miles off the Florida coast, the Bahamas are one of the most popular foreign cruising grounds for North American skippers.

In this newsletter we'll offer you a brief introduction to cruising the Bahamas and recommend some of Bluewater's most popular cruising guides and charts for doing just that. Bear in mind that planning a Bahamas cruise can be a little overwhelming if you've never been there, so feel free to call and ask for help. Bluewater's U.S. toll free number is 1-800-942-2583.

The Bahamas islands are spread over almost 90,000 square miles of ocean, and many Bahamas cruisers will tell you that these islands offer some of the best cruising anywhere in the world. The natives are friendly, and they speak English - after their own fashion. And the scenery is spectacular.

The Spanish gave the Bahamas their name, gran baja mar - meaning roughly "great shallow sea." And aptly-named it is - mostly shallow banks of limestone, coral and sand, with coral reefs just offshore. Depths average less than 30 feet over much of the Bahamas, and the water is gin clear.

The islands and cays (always pronounced "keys") are low-lying, and only rarely will you see a hill as high as 100 feet. That means that most of the islands look very much alike, and it’s easy for the first-time cruiser to be confused.

Thanks to GPS and new paper and electronic charts, however, more and more people aboard yachts are cruising the Bahamas. In 1998, more than 20,000 vessels - most of them yachts - cleared into the Bahamas.

It can get crowded in the most popular spots, but there are plenty of isolated anchorages for those who like to get away from it all.

Crossing the Gulf Stream

While the Bahama islands may be nearby, keep in mind that you have to cross a significant body of water to get there: the Gulf Stream. On a calm day, the Gulf Stream can be a delight - flat seas, ocean swells and clear blue water that’ll make you feel like you’re about a million miles offshore.

But catch the Gulf Stream in the wrong conditions and you’ll live to regret it - that’s a promise. It can make your life miserable. Or end it.

The wrong conditions are, basically, winds from the north. The reason is simple: when the wind has a northerly component (NW, N, or NE), it’s blowing against the Gulf Stream which normally flows from south to north at three to five knots. Wind against current builds up very large seas - sometimes up to 20 feet or more. And the waves are big, square and ugly.

The longer and harder is blows from the north, the bigger and nastier the seas. But even a sustained 10 to 15 knots from the north can create seas you don’t want to be out in. Listen to the radio for weather. But take a word of advice from someone who’s crossed the Gulf Stream many times: before you set out, go over to the beach and spend five minutes looking out at the ocean. Not just the waters in close, but the offshore waters. If you can see white water and large "pointed" waves on the horizon, settle back and enjoy another snug day in port - secure in the knowledge that you made the right choice.

After it’s been blowing hard from the north, give the stream a day or two to settle down. Again, talk a walk to the beach and look for yourself. You’ll see when the big offshore waves are gone.

The slower your boat, the more effect the Gulf Stream will have on your progress. Remember, if the Gulf Stream averages three knots - a pretty good average - in a six-knot boat you’ll move one mile to the north for every two miles you make good to the east. In a nine-knot boat, it’ll be one mile to the north for every 3 miles east. In a 20-knot boat, it’s one mile north for every 6.6 miles east.

Our best advice - keep the Gulf Stream in mind and plan your trip carefully. If your boat is slow, leave from a port considerably to the south of your Bahamas destination, and be sure to use the cross-track error (XTE) feature of your GPS to help make certain you stay right on the rhumb line.

Many sailors leaving for Cat Cay or Bimini, for example, leave from Miami or points south to get a good slant on the Gulf Stream. Those leaving for West End or Grand Bahama often leave from Fort Lauderdale or farther south.

Where to go

We will not try to tell you everywhere you can go. That takes a book, and Bluewater offers several cruising guides devoted to doing just that. We will, however, mention a few of the most popular cruising areas.

Bimini
If you have just a few days, you can jump over to Bimini and have all the romance of a Bahamas experience. You can clear customs and immigration in Bimini.

Keep in mind that Bimini is one of the most-visited of all the Bahamas islands, and it tends to be a hangout mostly for sportfishermen.

Bimini is literally only 50 miles across the Gulf Stream, so you can get there in a few hours in a fast boat. Even a slowpoke of a cruising sailboat can easily make it overnight in most conditions.

Sportfishermen love Bimini, but lots of cruising sailors will tell you to give it a miss. The anchorage is often crowded, the current runs through at a very fast pace, and local small boats are both fast and reckless. Many cruisers contend that Bimini is not really a Bahamas experience.

Cat Cay
A few miles south of Bimini is Cat Cay, the province of the exclusive (and private) Cat Cay Club. While you can use the marina (for a charge) to clear customs and immigration, and as a non-member you can also use a limited range of facilities at the club, Cat Cay really exists for club members and others are not made to feel welcome.

The Berry Islands
Close to 100 miles to the east lie the Berry Islands. From Chubb Cay at their southern end to Great Stirrup Cay at their northern terminus, this chain of islands has much to offer. With the right cruising guides and charts, you’ll find lots of anchorages and good diving. But keep in mind that many anchorages in the Berry Islands can be rolly, especially in strong easterlies.

Facilities in the Berry Islands are limited, but you will find marinas where you can get fuel and very basic provisions.

Nassau, New Providence
Nassau, on New Providence island, is the capital of the Bahamas - with all the good and bad that implies. There’s more crime in Nassau than elsewhere in the Bahamas, and both dinghies and outboards have been known to disappear. We advise keeping yours under lock and key at all times in Nassau.

You can anchor out in Nassau harbor, but many yachties believe Nassau is the place to take a slip in a marina. Marinas range from the fancy new one at Atlantis on Paradise Island ($3.00 per foot) to those along the road to the west of the original Paradise Island bridge, which cost considerably less.

Nassau is the best place in the Bahamas for provisioning. Here you’ll find most of the same foods you can find in Florida, along with many engine and marine hardware spares. Prices vary from 20% to 100% higher than Florida.

From Nassau, make your choice - south to the Exumas, north to the Abacos or east to Eleuthera.

Exuma Cays
If it’s wintertime, the best choice often is heading south to the Exumas. Beginning with an easy daysail from Nassau, the Exuma Cays offer nearly 100 nautical miles of small islands and cays and some of the Bahamas’ most spectacular scenery and diving.

Perhaps the biggest advantage of the Exumas in winter is that the strong cold fronts which pass over Florida and the northern and western Bahamas have often lost their punch by the time they get to the southern Exumas. The operative word, however, is often - not always!

You can spend an easy month gunkholing along the Exumas. On the way, you’ll find small settlements of mostly black Bahamians who will go out of their way to make you feel welcome in their islands. Provisions, fuel and good anchorages are all available, though facilities are often very limited.

George Town in Elizabeth Harbour on Great Exuma is the southern terminus for many cruisers. It’s at the tail-end of the Exuma chain, and there’s always a party going in George Town. It might be on the boat next to you, or at the Peace and Plenty Hotel, or at the Red Shanks Yacht and Tennis Club south of the town. Finding a party is never a problem in Elizabeth Harbor.

Finding a place to anchor, however, can sometimes be a problem. With more than 600 yachts tucked into the harbor at the peak cruising season in the spring, many of the most protected spots are taken early by cruisers who plan to stay the whole winter and spring, and who lay spiderwebs of anchor rodes, commuting by dinghy to do their business, their partying and their shopping.

Provisioning in George Town is easy, but you’ll want to do your shopping each week right after "de mail boat done reach" (arrives) with the goodies. You’ll find a good selection of fresh fruits and veggies in the markets, and spare parts and other necessities can be sent to you via UPS. Of course, George Town boasts its own international airport, so you can take care of your crew changes there as hundreds of boats do every year.

Springtime brings fewer cold fronts ("northers") to the Exumas, and two terrific regattas: the cruising boat regatta and the Out Island Regatta.

Eleuthera
If you’re heading north from the Exumas, going by way of Eleuthera might be the most direct route. Your cruising guide will give you the information you need to enjoy this distinctive area.

Eleuthera is not among the most popular cruising destinations because the geography of the island offers challenges that don’t interest most yachtsmen: shallow waters on the inside and difficult reefs on the outside, few hospitable harbors, and what one cruising guide calls "fierce tides."

Even so, cruisers who visit Eleuthera often go back many times because the people are so friendly and the scenery is so unusual. We recommend it after you’ve sampled the Exumas, the Abacos and the Berry Islands.

Abaco
Because Abaco is actually farther north than Fort Lauderdale and cold fronts coming through the area still have plenty of teeth in the winter, we recommend Abaco as a fall, spring and summer cruising area. Yet plenty of cruisers winter there every year.

Abaco stretches from Hole in the Wall at the southern tip of Great Abaco Island to Walkers Cay over 125 miles to the northwest. For the most part, southern Abaco is a steep coast with no harbors. But an easy reach in most weather from North Eleuthera is the Hub of Abaco: Marsh Harbour, Man O War Cay, and Hopetown. This is where most Abaconians live.

Bluewater’s owners, Milt and Judy Baker, keep going back to Abaco most every summer because, as they put it, "it’s so easy."

"The waters are protected, the anchorages are easy for the most part, and you have your choice of dozens of anchorages in Abaco," Milt says. "Or you can be in a different marina every night if that’s your cup of tea."

While the Exumas are inhabited mostly by black Bahamians descended from former American slaves, the Hub of Abaco is inhabited mostly by white Bahamians. Many are the descendants of English loyalists who left America and moved to the Bahamas at the time of the Revolutionary War.

Provisioning in Abaco is the best in the Bahamas outside Nassau, and daily UPS and FedEx service are available in Marsh Harbour. Abaco has two airports with regularly scheduled flights every day.

Baker’s favorite anchorages are well to the north of the Marsh Harbour area: Baker’s Bay (named for another Baker), Green Turtle Cay, Powell Cay, and points north.

Your own favorite place
This introduction has not dealt with some of the best the Bahamas has to offer: Grand Bahama, Rum Cay, the Jumento Cays, San Salvador, Conception Island, and Long Island, just to name a few. They’re all covered in the cruising guides Bluewater sells, and each has its own fans.

If we’ve failed to mention your own particular favorite here, by all means e-mail us ( editor@bluewaterweb.com ) and tell us about it. Where appropriate, we’ll do our best to include what you say in our next electronic newsletter.

Charts and cruising guides
With so many available resources planning a Bahamas cruise can be intimidating. We recommend that you start by first deciding where in the Bahamas you want to go, then plan the route by which you’ll get there. Your needs for cruising guides and charts will then begin to fall into place. The charts and cruising guides shown here are the ones we recommend most frequently.

Bahamas Cruising Guide
by Mathew Wilson

One of the newest cruising guides that covers the Bahamas came about because Mathew "Tony" Wilson got angry.

He was angry because he was cruising in the Bahamas with only one cruising guide aboard his boat and it didn't do the job. In his judgment, it was old fashioned, hard to use, and badly out of date. He was appalled that it didn't even acknowledge the existence of Loran or GPS.

When he got home, he formed a small company, bought a suitable vessel, and put together a team to begin research for a new guide. The result is the Bahamas Cruising Guide. With new color sketch charts, color on almost every page, hundreds of on-site GPS waypoints, and new sailing directions for all of the Bahamas, it's a very new, very modern guide.

Itineraries
For new Bahamas cruisers, there are recommendations for islands closest to the U.S., islands most accessible by air services, islands suitable for short cruises, even islands with pretty towns and settlements. There are specific recommendations for trips of a week to 10 days, two weeks, a month, or more.

Yellow pages
A top feature is the guide's detailed "yellow pages." For each series of islands and cays, the yellow pages give all the details, including phone numbers, on marinas, marine services, other services such as banks and clinics, shopping, restaurants, accommodations, sports, getting around, and "things to do." Included in these sections are color street maps for all the major towns and settlements.

The Bahamas Cruising Guide also has four detailed reference sections.

Waypoint catalog
This is a five page listing of over 400 on-site GPS waypoints for key harbors, cuts and turns throughout the Bahamas.

Sailing directions
The blue pages cover navigation, seamanship, and preparation for cruising in the Bahamas. Here you'll find checklists for departing and entering ports, float plans, advice on anchors and anchoring, weather, radio and other communications.

Local history
The green pages cover local history, wildlife, fishing and diving.

Technicalities
The buff pages cover infrastructure and government. Here you'll find the information that experienced Bahamas cruisers take years to discover, information about credit cards, electricity, garbage, mail, cell phone service, customs, pets aboard, flag etiquette, Bahamian holidays and special events.

The Central & Southern Bahamas Guide
On and Off the Beaten Path
by Steven J. Pavlidis

This huge guide offers the most detailed sketch charts and best inside information available for many islands and cays. Includes navigational advice, info on facilities ashore, over 200 on-site GPS waypoints, 132 detailed sketch charts, and photos.

On the Beaten Path
Part 1 covers the Biminis, Andros, the Berry Islands, Nassau and New Providence, Eleuthera, Little San Salvador, Cat Island, Long Island, Conception Island, Rum Cay and San Salvador.

Off the Beaten Path
Part 2 focuses on the Jumentos, Crooked and Acklins Islands, Samana, the Plana Cays, Mayaguana, Inagua and Hogsty Reef. Paperback

The Yachtsman's Guide to the Bahamas 1999
Edited by Meredith Fields

Consider for a moment the Bahamas navigator of a quarter century ago. Cruising the Bahamas then was bittersweet, for the anchorages and cays were far less crowded than today, but navigating the islands could be perilous, especially for the inexperienced.

There was a single cruising guide, and the government charts were so shy of detail any competent navigator knew better than to trust them. There was no GPS back then. Loran receivers were the size of a desk and cost more than many small yachts.

In the 60's and 70's, if you wanted a cruising guide to the Bahamas you used "Kline's," as Yachtsman's Guide to the Bahamas was then known. Harry Kline was the editor and his name was synonymous with cruising the Bahamas in those years.

Harry Kline remained editor for 25 years. While living aboard and cruising, he surveyed all of the Bahama islands with a leadline and a dingy. He sounded sounded the cays and anchorages one by one, wrote sailing directions, and drew sketch charts in pen and ink.

"Back then, sailing in the Bahamas was truly 'going foreign'," Kline said recently. "It was a real adventure, and I did my best to convey the excitement of that in the guide."

Although you won't find the name Harry Kline anywhere in the 1999 edition of the Yachtsman's Guide to the Bahamas, the charts he drew are still there, as are many of the sailing directions. The guide continues to sell well. It endures because experienced Bahamas cruisers trust it. It's always been there and it provides the sailing directions and sketch charts you need to cruise the Bahamas the old fashioned way - without GPS.

Cruising Guide to Abaco 1999
by Steve Dodge

From its crude start nine years ago as a small boater's guide to Abaco, this has grown into a highly respected Abaco cruising guide, the only one currently dedicated to this area. (A new guide, The Abaco Guide, is nearing publication.) There are few yachts cruising in Abaco without a copy aboard.

The 34 annually-updated charts of Abaco in this guide include new hydrographic data from surveys by the author. Those of us who cruise Abaco swear by them.

This best-selling guide provides you with navigational advice on getting to and cruising in the popular Abaco chain in the northern Bahamas. It offers color aerial photos, reliable on-site GPS waypoints, annual tide tables, lots of helpful advertising from local companies, a magazine feature section, and "yellow pages" for Abaco. It's also one of the best bargains around.

The Abaco Guide
by Steven J. Pavlidis

The publisher reports that this guide covers the entire Abaco chain as well as Grand Bahama and the Bight (backside) of Abaco. Approximately 50 detailed color sketch charts, GPS waypoints, piloting instructions and photos covering approaches, routes, anchorages, and dive sites. Includes a new route into the Bight of Abaco from the north. Publication is expected early in 1999. Price to be determined.

Exuma Guide
A Cruising Guide to the Exuma Cays
by Steven J. Pavlidis

The only cruising guide dedicated to the Exumas, the second edition features 55 improved black and white sketch charts and detailed sailing directions for cruising from Ship Channel Cay to George Town and beyond. Detailed sketch charts, proper soundings, easy-to-follow sailing directions and good historical background.

Turks & Caicos Guide
by Steven J. Pavlidis

The first ever in-depth cruising guide to focus on the entire Turks & Caicos region, including Puerto Plata and Luperon on the north cost of the Dominican Republic. The book offers over 30 detailed color sketch charts, GPS waypoints,  piloting directions covering approaches, routes, anchorages and dive sites. The sketch charts provide close-up views in much greater detail than standard government charts. Publication is expected in January, 1999.

Bahamas & Caribbean Pilot's Guide
by Pilot Publications

This guide is aimed squarely at those who fly their own aircraft to the Bahamas. Although not technically a cruising guide, the Pilot's Guide can also be useful in planning crew changes or dealing with medical emergencies. All new, full color aerial photos and air navigational advice. It covers all operational air strips in the Bahamas, Turks & Caicos, Haiti, Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

Nautical charts

Entire Bahamas
Maptech ChartKit Region 9, The Bahamas, is the most complete chart package available from any source for all of the Bahamas. Includes custom charts and full-color reproductions of all the U.S. government charts for the Bahamas and the Turks & Caicos Islands. A total of 88 pages of color charts and photos (worth well over $400 if purchased individually). Features color aerial photography of popular anchorages and GPS waypoint information

The complete DMA (NIMA) chart catalog for the Bahamas is available online. Each chart's area of coverage is graphically represented and the chart's scale indicated.

Abacos & Grand Bahama
by Steve Dodge

Far more detailed and accurate than those issued by the government, this is the only chart you'll need to cruise in Abaco. Includes an overview from Walkers Cay and Great Sale Cay to Cherokee Sound, 14 plans showing the approaches to Abaco, plus all the popular cuts, routes, cays, harbor and anchorages in Abaco. Nearly 60 on-site GPS waypoints are shown. The Cruising Guide to Abaco is the companion volume, also by Steve Dodge.

Near Bahamas
The Explorer Chartbook Near Bahamas by Monty and Sara Lewis is the best coverage for Bimini, the Berry Islands, Grand Bahama, the Bight (backside) of Abaco, Andros and New Providence (Nassau). A favorite of Bluewater customers, these two-color charts are among the most accurate ever produced. Based on the author's extensive surveys, they offer greater detail and more soundings than government charts. Includes overviews, small- and medium-sized charts for route planning, and large-scale charts for navigation, plus detailed plans of settlements, anchorages and harbors. Twenty-four two-sided charts (48 total), tide tables and navigational information.

Exumas
The best set of charts for the Exuma Cays is the Explorer Chartbook Exumas by Monty and Sara Lewis. Quality characteristic of the Explorer chartbook series. Twenty-five two-sided charts (50 total) plus comprehensive cruising information, waypoints, services and facilities for the Exumas, and tide tables.

Turks & Caicos TC001
The most complete chart coverage for the Turks & Caicos is provided by Turks & Caicos Overall, Wavey Line Publishing.  Detailed soundings based on new, non-government surveys and on-site GPS waypoints for all key area. Includes sailing directions, compass courses and detailed coverage of Sandbore Channel, Providenciales, West Caicos, Sand Cay, French Cay, Salt Cay and Grand Turk.

Providenciales TC002
The most detailed chart available for the Provo area of the Turks & Caicos Islands.

Electronic charts

Maptech ChartPack
In our opinion, the best coverage of the Bahamas in raster chart format is Maptech's ChartPack MCP-7, The Bahamas, which includes all DMA (NIMA) charts for the island chain plus...

• Abacos charts by Steve Dodge
• Exuma charts by Monty and Sara Lewis
• Turks & Caicos charts by Wavey Line Productions

Maptech's ChartKit ECK-9, The Bahamas & Bermuda, doesn't include the private charts in ChartPack MCP-7, however, it does include all DMA (NIMA) charts of both the Bahamas and Bermuda.

C-Map
C-Map's vector charts come in two formats.  The Standard cartridges operate on dedicated plotters from Apelco, Autohelm, Cetrek, Datamarine, Echotec, Hummingbird, JRC, Lowrance, Magellan, Raytheon, Robertson-Shipmate, Simrad, Sitex, Standard Communications, VDO and Vision. The tiny C-Map NT cartridges offer more information than the Standard but are compatible only with the newer generation of plotters such as the Raytheon 611T or 620 and the Magellan 6000 or 6500.

C-Map Standard C-Map Standard J129, Bahamas, is a large scale chart with few details, largely used for cruising through the Bahamas enroute to other areas.

C-Map Standard J135, Bahamas Islands North, extends from Andros Island in the south to Little Bahama Bank in the north, Eleuthera Island in the east to Key West. Includes New Providence (Nassau).

C-Map Standard J136, Bahama Islands South, duplicates some of the coverage of J135. It extends from the Berry Islands south to Ragged Islands including the Exumas, Cat Cay, Rum Cay and Conception.

C-Map Standard J146, Great Bahama Bank to Windward Passage, extends from Andros Island to Cuba, including Ragged Island, the Jumetos, and Old Bahama Channel.

C-Map NT
C-Map NT NAB601, Bahamas & Bimini Islands, runs from the northern end of the island chain to the Exumas.

C-Map NT NAB605, Great Bahama Bank to Windward Passage, covers the southern end of the islands including the Turks & Caicos.

C-Map NT NAB607, Bahamas & Bimini Islands, Lake Worth Inlet & Miami extends south to Key Largo (Florida Keys).

C-Map NT NAB528, Lake Worth Inlet to Dry Tortugas, includes Key West and Bimini.

WWW Links
Links to other sites that offer content of interest to Bahamas cruisers.

The travel guide from the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, with information on a vast array of activities and locations.
www.interknowledge.com/bahamas/index.html

Abaco in the Bahamas, a site that includes the Abaco community message board and the Abaco Journal online.
http://oii.net/

Travel Health Online's Bahamas Summary Profile - health precautions, risk analysis and official health data.
http://www.tripprep.com/country/sp12.html

Site for Bahamasair, the national airlines of the Bahamas, with flight schedules and tourist information.
http://www.bahamasair.com/

A useful calendar of Abacos events is maintained at About the Abacos, a commercial site.
http://www.abacos.com/

The U.S. government's consular sheet and travel warnings on the Bahamas.
http://travel.state.gov/bahamas.html

Home page of the Port Lucaya marina.
http://www.portlucaya.com/marina/index.html

The CIA Fact Book on the Bahamas - statistics on geography, people, government, etc.
http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/bf.html

Privacy policy
Our promise not to abuse your confidence.

We respect your privacy. We'll never sell, trade, or disclose any personal information you offer us, including your email address. To remove yourself from Bluewater's mailing list, simply send blank email to subscription@bluewaterweb.com with the word "remove" in the subject line. We'll mail you nothing further.