Big Majors Cay - The Exhumas

[waterboy]

I think I'd leave a cigar smouldering on the fuel line...hug her one more time....and...sniffle...swim away

I saw that in a movie once i think

 

[Bruce]

@Bruce. did I add that up right..435 miles one way or are the legs duplicated (zoomed)in those first images

I posted several optional routes. The first map shows an entire 226 mile route from Bimini to Big Major Cay.

 

[robert843]

You have more open water experience than me, you lead I would follow. My only reservation, the Tongue of the Ocean on a perfect day isn't a quick trip for our size of boats. Have a cousin with a 55' boat in tampa and hes made the trip several times and he dreads that part.

perfect conditions, leave 6am hit bimini @ 8? hit customs and refuel at least an hour I would imagine for multiple boats. 9 to 1 to Chub. refuel boats, an hour. 2 hours across tongue. doable under ideal conditions. I do have a concern for the boat and everything loaded on it overnighting in Nassau. Bimini, Chub, Staniel, not so much. thoughts?

I have thought of this trip many times and will do it at some point. I have to agree i have thought of doing it many ways staying in Nassau has its up sides and ease of finding reasonable lodging wouldn't be bad but the more I thought about it I had the same concerns it is the only place on the trip i would not feel comfortable leaving a boat docked overnight. It just seems its the most likely location that items would be stolen from your boat or the whole boat disappear.

 

[Greg M]

You are talking about Bimini right? Customs and refuel in an hour That was us last year waiting for customs. Good luck with that... You'll be lucky to be back on the water by noon.

with 3 or 4 boats shouldn't be near as bad... 17 show up, get in line LOL

Speaking of which, has anyone tried, or can you, call ahead and let Bimini Customs know a group is inbound? Would it help?

 

[Bruce]

@Greg M, last year we had ten boats in our group. @justason had called ahead and made arrangements for customs to be at Bimini Sands and obtained all the paperwork for us to complete in advance. When we arrived we were bussed to the airport to clear customs. We sat outside for around an hour while the customs officials had lunch and others came over from the North Island. It took several hours for our group to clear customs. The amount of paperwork and pace at which it was completed was crazy.

But it was way better than going to Big Game Club to pay for docking that is inconvenient for boats of our size then walking to customs while leaving our families on the boats at Big Game Club.

 

[Greg M]

damn.......just....damn Bruce lol

Was doing a bit of looking on Exuma for fuel or emergency "go here for fast help" places.

From Nassau going south:

Norman's Cay: airstrip - McDuff's??- Norman's Cay Beach Club
Highborne Cay: Marina - Fuel - Ice - Food - Internets http://www.highbournecaybahamas.com/the-marina.php
Wax Cay: Restraunt/Bar - Harbor w/ water and power (no fuel) http://waxcay.com/index.html
Warderick Wells: Home of Exuma Park HQ - emergiency help - Ice - Water - Limited Food (no fuel) http://www.bahamascruisersguide.com/page75/page19/page19.html
Compass Cay: Water - power - showers - laundry - marina (no fuel) - limited food - beer soda ice http://www.compasscaymarina.com/
Sampson Cay: I put it on the list because it used to have a hell of a marina - no more went total private island last year
Staniel Cay: Complete everything - fuel food amenities airport'ish repair service (general type)

pretty promising amount of places to see go utilize just in case. I would imagine it would be realistic to assume that any place that has a marina, in a pinch you could beg/buy a few gallons of fuel, might cost you a ton, but could get enough to get to a fuel dock. At least if there is an emergency you have several goto places to run to.

 

[Bruce]

@Greg M, another interesting part of Bimini 2014 was that the Boston Whaler group that left right before we arrived cleaned the island out of fuel and food. Big Game Club did not have fuel until Tuesday evening and Bimini Sands was empty until Friday. There were boats waiting in line for days at Big Game Club and I believe the French yacht at Bimini Sands was docked until fuel arrived. @Tyler had arrived early on Saturday and let the rest of us know there was no fuel before we left Miami. So we certainly would need to check ahead for fuel supplies.

 

[robert843]

I would expect it would take a few hours at customs in Bimini to clear. If you guys are serious about this though let me know I may be interested. It would definitely have to be some spectacular weather for me to go but if it worked out I would possibly be interested. Worst case is we prep for Exumas and wind up just staying in Bimini.

 

[Greg M]

seeing as how im in Denver right now and its 8..... not 80.... 8! this trip needs to happen soon! lol

 

[eastcoaster]

This would be an amazing trip. I was on Staniel Cay last year and the exumas are awesome. We did visit the pigs or should I say hogs. These guys are big and aggressive if they think you have food in the boat. We were feeding them and had one guy try to climb in our whaler.Not really sure why these guys are the attraction they are and if you think you would like to swim with the pigs just know they like to deficate in the water. Be aware that accommodations on Staniel Cay are limited to a few cottages at the yacht club and they are usually booked a year ahead. There are a few other places for rent but you would need to bring your own food or eat at the yacht club. There is a food store there but availability can be very limited depending on when the last supply boat arrived. I think the only place on the island to purchase liquor is through the yacht club which has a sort of closet off the bar where you can choose from a limited selection and pay at the bar. Everything here is $$

 

[whaler7626]

@eastcoaster I would say its more about the adventure than anything, sure accommodations are sparse or expensive but it's the experience! Just being able to say you took your boat from FL to almost the Caribbean is awesome.

Anyone up for FL to USVI by Yamaha? haha jk jk.

Also, if anyone has reservations about this trip, just see that youtube video series, one guy took a jet ski!

 

[Greg M]

@eastcoaster I would say its more about the adventure than anything, sure accommodations are sparse or expensive but it's the experience! Just being able to say you took your boat from FL to almost the Caribbean is awesome.

Anyone up for FL to USVI by Yamaha? haha jk jk.

Also, if anyone has reservations about this trip, just see that youtube video series, one guy took a jet ski!

this time of year, especially now that im getting older, the cold weather is really starting to affect me - physically AND mentally. The cold just hurts now and I just get.... pissy... this time of year. never have before. Then I stumbled upon Kevin and Corrie's vids. I will bet $$ Ive watched them at least 30 or 40 times. For years our plan was to retire to Mexico, Cozumel to be exact. We even got so far as to meet with a broker, look at undeveloped land down by Palancar and working to purchase a few acres. Then a resort chain bought anything you could build on beachfront. No worries, Costa Rica is developing, lets keep an eye on it.

Always looked past the Bahamas, expensive. But after seeing the vids, its time to do some recon and see what it would take to make the trip. Im not obsessed, but unless no one will push on or the weather hates us, we're going to make it happen.

 

[whaler7626]

this time of year, especially now that im getting older, the cold weather is really starting to affect me - physically AND mentally. The cold just hurts now and I just get.... pissy... this time of year. never have before. Then I stumbled upon Kevin and Corrie's vids. I will bet $$ Ive watched them at least 30 or 40 times. For years our plan was to retire to Mexico, Cozumel to be exact. We even got so far as to meet with a broker, look at undeveloped land down by Palancar and working to purchase a few acres. Then a resort chain bought anything you could build on beachfront. No worries, Costa Rica is developing, lets keep an eye on it.

Always looked past the Bahamas, expensive. But after seeing the vids, its time to do some recon and see what it would take to make the trip. Im not obsessed, but unless no one will push on or the weather hates us, we're going to make it happen.

That is awesome to hear man, I totally agree, I think we (those in support) could put together a pretty concrete plan that would detail almost everything and show how it's not as crazy as it seems. Its just island hopping, like going to Bimini. I also think getting the financials of the trip on the table will be important too.

 

[Greg M]

bored, its cold and raining here, dreary as hell.....

Day 1: Ft.L/Miami - Bimini, fuel/customs, then head to north Andros gas/stay or finish at Andros yacht club? (185miles in a day Bruce? is this stupid/crazy/doable with good weather or yes to all?)
Day 2: Andros yacht club, to south Andros. Digg's Hill/Bluff Settlement/Congo/Moxey's Landing along the way as possible stops/ect. (65miles) Deep Creek Settlement gas up, turn left and head east to Sandy Cays and on to Staniel (70mile run 135 total)
Day 3/4/5: Stay in staniel cay, see the pigs and play in thunderbolt cave. Island explore for a few days
Day 5: back the way we came or north to Nassau then Chub
Day 6: back the way we came or Chub to Bimini to Ft.L

 

[Andy S]

Cindy and I spent the past weekend with our good friends (Anne & Mike) at a townhouse they are renting in downtown Savannah, GA. Since they have been on 2 Bimini trips with us, of course the topic of the Bimini trip and this extended trip to Exuma came up. And not surprising both couples are extremely interested in doing the Exuma trip in 2016.

Our initial thought is to have 3 or 4 travel days each way with 3 or 4 days hanging out time which will make the combined trip between 9 and 12 days. For us the key to this trip is flexibility; time in between legs, time at legs, and where we go. As we are all well aware of the weather/waves will be what controls this trip. We still have a lot of planning to work on but it looks like we are off to a good start.

Below are some stopping point that others have mentioned pinned all on one map. I got the miles from another boating forum that was planning this trip and I have not verified them. Also, I believe these are the same stopping points that the Bahama tourism uses on their guided boating fling trips.
A-B, Bahia Mar in Fort Lauderdale to Bimini (60 miles)
B-C, Bimini to Chub Cay, Berry Island (80 miles)
C-D, Berry Island to Nassau (50 miles)
D-E, Nassau to Exuma (75 miles)

 

[Bruce]

Andy,

Using Navionics I found B - C to be 90 miles and Nassau (Altantis) to Big Majors as 83.3. The differences are likely due to different start and end points. I believe I started and ended B-C in harbors with fuel.

I have an alternative perspective on the travel time to and from Exhuma. I am not sure what is the best way to travel. But the more days that are spent traveling to and from Exhuma the more that we load and unload our boats and the more food that we need to carry. Traveling light and buying food in Nassau on both legs of the trip can help with these issues. FoodStore2Go.com could have food waiting in Nassau. Certainly there are lots and lots of great places to explore between Bimini and the Exhumas.

 

[Andy S]

Andy,

Using Navionics I found B - C to be 90 miles and Nassau (Altantis) to Big Majors as 83.3. The differences are likely due to different start and end points. I believe I started and ended B-C in harbors with fuel.

I have an alternative perspective on the travel time to and from Exhuma. I am not sure what is the best way to travel. But the more days that are spent traveling to and from Exhuma the more that we load and unload our boats and the more food that we need to carry. Traveling light and buying food in Nassau on both legs of the trip can help with these issues. FoodStore2Go.com could have food waiting in Nassau. Certainly there are lots and lots of great places to explore between Bimini and the Exhumas.

The one thing about path B-C is even though our boats draw such little water, we still would have to be very careful navigating through there, most charts show the depth between 1 and 10 feet. During the 2013 Bimini trip we meet some guys at one of the concho shack on North Bimini that took their PWC's from Miami to Exuma and back. On the way back to Bimini they all got stuck on a sandbar going that route, one guy hurt his arm so bad he could not ride from Bimini to Miami, not sure how he and his PWC made it back to the states. It took them over an hour to push their PWC's backwards off the sandbar to get to deep enough water, the tide was going out as they hit the sandbar. Then they had to navigate around the sandbar which was a couple of miles wide. Also, I'm not sure on which direction they were heading, coming or going, but from Nassau to Exuma the waves got so bad that when PWC's where in opposite side of a wave (both in the trough), they could not see each other. They told us they weren't sure what cause the rough seas, there were no visible storms.

Our group is all in favor of pushing as far as we can each day depending on weather/sea conditions. We are also in favor of doing what the group decides. However, if weather permits we would not be opposed to spending a little time at each stop enjoying what it has to offer because we are not sure if we will ever make it back on our boat.

Just food for thought to put in the blender during the planning process.

 

[Bruce]

@andy07sx230h, did you talk to @primedoc about his experience? He turned back due to rough seas. I believe it was between Chub Cay and Nassau. @primedoc, if you are around we would love to learn from your experience.

 

[Andy S]

@andy07sx230h, did you talk to @primedoc about his experience? He turned back due to rough seas. I believe it was between Chub Cay and Nassau. @primedoc, if you are around we would love to learn from your experience.

I did talk to him a little bit about them encountering rough seas and I thought they ended going north toward Abaco but I'm not 100% on that.

 

[Bruce]

Googleing led me to this post http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f71/bimini-to-chub-cay-help-23428.html that discusses "chart passage lines" between Bimini and Chub Cay. It sounds like there must be a clear and frequently used path between the two.

I need to caveat my posts in this thread with the reality that The Exhumas are on our to visit list but with the kids on board it may be several years before we venture beyond Bimini.