Bimini 2015 - July 6th to 11th

[Bruce]

Why?

They make great souvenirs, a great reminder every time you open your wallet. I was wondering if anyone else had brought theirs home.

People are asking about dates. So "Admiral" @justason, when are we going, sir?

 

[upperdeck]

Sorry I've been out of touch on the board lately. This thing called life has consumed loads of my time.

By no means does this trip have to center around my schedule. The dates I'm considering are because I intend to bring my family along this time and their last day of school is June 10th.

 

[justason]

They make great souvenirs, a great reminder every time you open your wallet. I was wondering if anyone else had brought theirs home.

People are asking about dates. So "Admiral" @justason, when are we going?

Reminder? I watch the bimini vids every day!!!
I havent been following this thread much. I just captured the jun 14 date. I would support something about the same time as last year.

That said i'm not sure we're goin at this point in time. I hope to bring my brother which will help $$. We'll see

 

[Bruce]

By no means does this trip have to center around my schedule. The dates I'm considering are because I intend to bring my family along this time and their last day of school is June 10th.

Please note the title of "Admiral" above. We are following your lead, sir!

 

[Chris-MS]

I meant Freeport. Not Nassau. My bad. I was wondering about Ft. Lauderdale to Bimini, Bimini to Freeport. Is that a realistic option?

 

[Bruce]

I meant Freeport. Not Nassau. My bad. I was wondering about Ft. Lauderdale to Bimini, Bimini to Freeport. Is that a realistic option?

At 67 miles Freeport is not too far. I believe @jupperdeck headed that way fishing last year. We ran 1o to 15 miles north east of North Bimini looking for dolphins last year and found the water to be pretty smooth.

 

[justason]

We took a cruise to Nassau and freeport xmas 2013.......I cant see myself ever returning to Nassau..

Freeport was "ok". from the port to the beach area was a 20+ min buss-ride....then it had t-shirts to offer. We took a boat to a reef to snorkel....yawn......Bimini is substantially better than anything offered there, specially after a 134 mile round trip.....bottom line...wicked commercialized

If ya'lls are looking to put miles on the boat go further east as an organized group.........maybe its me (like my therapist says)......but i think Bimini itself is a GREAT destination.......in another year or two the cruise ship ports at Bimini will be complete and the hotel finished, this paradise will fall to commercialism like the others.....At that time I'll find new spots, till then...

 

[Chris-MS]

Thanks for you helpful insight! I have no knowledge of the area. Never been, but we hope to make it to Bimini this spring with you guys!

 

[robert843]

We took a cruise to Nassau and freeport xmas 2013.......I cant see myself ever returning to Nassau..

Freeport was "ok". from the port to the beach area was a 20+ min buss-ride....then it had t-shirts to offer. We took a boat to a reef to snorkel....yawn......Bimini is substantially better than anything offered there, specially after a 134 mile round trip.....bottom line...wicked commercialized

If ya'lls are looking to put miles on the boat go further east as an organized group.........maybe its me (like my therapist says)......but i think Bimini itself is a GREAT destination.......in another year or two the cruise ship ports at Bimini will be complete and the hotel finished, this paradise will fall to commercialism like the others.....At that time I'll find new spots, till then...

I have read a lot of the same things I spoke to some friends that went about 2 months ago they said the casino and resort where open on the North Island and that it was already starting to change over there especially with a cruise ship running daily from Miami to Bimini already they said the people said on the island with in the next few years it will be nothing like it was.

 

[Chris-MS]

Bahamas Boating Fling: Bimini
Wed, June 17, 2015 - Thu, June 18, 2015
Found at http://www.bahamas.com/node/724

Would this boating fling event cause us any problems, if we travel at the aforementioned dates?

 

[upperdeck]

Bahamas Boating Fling: Bimini
Wed, June 17, 2015 - Thu, June 18, 2015
Found at http://www.bahamas.com/node/724

Would this boating fling event cause us any problems, if we travel at the aforementioned dates?

No, as long as we get our reservations in early in 2015. They usually don't stay at Bimini Sands either.

 

[Chris-MS]

Okay.... Some of this might be my mistake. We are doing everything that we can do to make the trip from FL to Bimini with you guys. Timing is our concern. Traveling outside of Bimini excites me. But we can not go far outside of the island. I will have a 10 and 8 year old with us and their safety is my major concern.

On a side note,.. I am aware of the Big Game Shark (tiger) Dive experience. But are sharks a concern for beach goers? A concern for diving in locations that are popular to most?

 

[Andy S]

Okay.... Some of this might be my mistake. We are doing everything that we can do to make the trip from FL to Bimini with you guys. Timing is our concern. Traveling outside of Bimini excites me. But we can not go far outside of the island. I will have a 10 and 8 year old with us and their safety is my major concern.

On a side note,.. I am aware of the Big Game Shark (tiger) Dive experience. But are sharks a concern for beach goers? A concern for diving in locations that are popular to most?

Sharks have not been a concern in the past. We have seen nurse sharks at Honeymoon Harbour and the plane wreck but they left after a couple of boats showed up. The Big Game Shark experience is done at the Big Game marina on North Bimini. In 2011 (the first year of the group trip) @upperdeck and my boat went out to the Sapona at the night to chum for sharks and did not find any. Later what we learned from some locals is that the sharks seem hangout in the marinas, especially later in the day. They like to eat the fish scraps after the boats come back to the marina and fillet their catch.

 

[Bruce]

But are sharks a concern for beach goers?

Chris, we took our four and seven year olds so safety was and will be a big concern for us as well. We only saw one shark during our trip. It moved away when I walked toward it.

Before going I researched shark attacks and found that only seven have been recorded in Bimini since 1895. The risk of being attacked by a shark is very low.

As for trips beyond Bimini, if they happen someday my guess is that only a small subset of those going to Bimini would want to extend further into the Bahamas. For us to travel further it would need to be with a group of well prepared boats and almost perfect water.

This will be a trip that your family will enjoy remembering for the rest of their lives!

 

[Bruce]

I left out the link to the shark attack data
http://www.sharkattackdata.com/place/bahamas

This is for the entire Bahamas. You can scroll through and pick out the 7 in Bimini. Two of those were provoked by shark researchers.

 

[Greg M]

Not to pile on over shark attacks but.... Statistically you are in more danger driving to the marina than being attacked by a shark. Far more danger. More people die from cows every year than from sharks.

I've dove since 95, all over the world. Have seen all sorts of sharks. Be aware they are there, don't try to entice them and beyond them being curious they aren't a danger.

 

[Julian]

Not to pile on over shark attacks but.... Statistically you are in more danger driving to the marina than being attacked by a shark. Far more danger. More people die from cows every year than from sharks.

I've dove since 95, all over the world. Have seen all sorts of sharks. Be aware they are there, don't try to entice them and beyond them being curious they aren't a danger.

Ditto....and don't spear fish! Also, nurse sharks are harmless-got some great close ups of a nurse shark while snorkeling in the Turks a few weeks ago.

 

[kthrash]

any updates to the dates? I am ready to pull the trigger!!

 

[Bruce]

We spent the afternoon watching Bimini videos with friends and family. Our kids kept asking to see them again.

 

[Chris-MS]

We are in planning mode. I am going to put new tires on the boat trailer this month. We have our passports. Boat should be good for the winter. Need to double check insurance coverage. Need to purchase BoatTow coverage for trip. What else do I need to be considering at this time?