Bahamas, island hopping in a small boat?

[Lynx]

My plans are looking good to cross to the Bahamas in Early Nov 07 for the season. Talking to people here in Marathon, It would be best to spend the first season in Abacos and not go south in a small boat as the MacGregor 26M and stay away from South Andros.

I was wanting to go down to Gorge Town to stay away from storms and a little warmer.

Any advice for a Male singlehander (still looking for a first mate) first season cruise in the Bahamas?

[skylark]

I have always heard that Hope Town is the hopping place for cruisers.

Ain't never been there...

If you are looking for females, go to a backpacker destination, and post ads in backpacker hotels: Wanted Vegetarian Crew.

[Frank]

This reply coming to you from "ManJack Cay Abacos".....from Allens/Pensacola down to Little Harbour ( Hope Town incl) it RULES !!!!!!!!!!!

[Frank]

IMHO...do NOT buy too much "stuff".A good VHF with a GREAT antenna and you will get forcasts every 8.15 AM on cruisers net on ch. 68..There is wifi in many ereas to pickup Miami weather (noaa) and ' Barometer Bob.com' for the Abacos. As long as you have 'wind direction', you can pick routes/anchorages.Get the cruising guide/chart book..LOTS of info. I use a $99 garmin gps and the explorer chart book exclusively!! Have a plotter but don't use it.Do get THEE BIGGEST/BEST anchor you are comfortable with!!   THEE single most important item you will buy by far !! Next is a good dingy. My new inflateable rows way better than the old one and is much drier in a chop. Nice to get some exercise too. Mask,fins and snorkel a must!!....and if room..a wet suit top to stay out longer. A few disposable underwater cameras and you are in !!. The wind BLOWS here most all winter....expect 15 to 40 knot stuff. I have dble reefing main and a reef in the jib. I honestly did not have the Genny up this year or last BUT was often reefed down!! Don't over spend and just get over here !!! The only big deal is crossing. I've had fron 'flat calm' to 14fters. Be patient and your crossing will be fine. PM me if specific questions.

[Cmdr Pete]

If you are looking for females, go to a backpacker destination, and post ads in backpacker hotels: Wanted Vegetarian Crew.

Hah! Good one

"Must love cats"

[skylark]

Seriously, there was a guy able to get young female crew a number of times using this method.  There are a lot of backpacker females that want to travel cheap and are looking for adventure.

(Looks around to see if the wife is going to slap him for this post)

[BobW]

Seriously, Latitude 38 has featured a young (30 something) guy with a Columbia 34 cruising the Pacific who has been very successful in finding young women to sail with him.  He is enjoying the cruising life!  ;D

[Bill NH]

I'd head for the Exumas.  You'll miss more of those US cold fronts that regularly trail thru the Abacos, and you can do much of your travelling along the lee side of the chain.  Georgetown is a great base to sail out of and return to, with many cruisers doing the same.  In fact, some times it gets so much like a small town back home that you gotta get away and explore for a while!

[Lynx]

Frank - How much is the mooring buoys in Abaco?

[Frank]

Green turtle= $10 per night  ,  Hope town = $15 per night and up BUT has weekly rates , Little harbour= $15 per night or weekly rate  Marsh Harbour is GREAT holding-no moorings , then there are all the anchorages for free or marinas . Many marinas have a deal where by your slip fee goes as a credit to their resterant OR fuel etc so if you need items or a few resterant meals it becomes free. When Time gets closer I can give you a list of good anchorages etc if you give me a route....have fun planning ;-)

[Lynx]

Frank - I will.

I am still questioning weather G-Town or Abaco's. You are from Canada but I have lived in the USA gulf states most of my live and I do not like the cold of the fronts comming through. From my understand, with Abaco's being less than 140 miles from Centeran Florida, that the weather is about the same when the fronts come through. When I was living in Fl this was about every week in the winter with 2 days out of 7 cold and Strong winds in the fronts. About the same there?

The hard to answer question - How "bad" is it to cope? Of course "bad" is a relative term.

[Frank]

George Town is OFTEN discribed as "day care for adults"...honest. It is BUSY,cramped,hectic...BUT if you crave social life there is always something going on. Many parties,organized volleyball,organized 'walk abouts' and events of all kinds.You will meet a ton of people. A great many 'cruisers?' rush there and stay all winter.The thought of crowded anchorages,low islands with little protection from the wind and strong tidal currents that reverse with the tide and fewer natural anchorages all add up to stress in my book. The Abacos is cooler..you are correct.Last year I had 2 rain days,2 strong wind days (40knt +) but all but 2 nights slept with the hatch and companionway open with one blanket.Days were high 70's to low 80's.The rare 'cold' day was closer to 70.The water IS cooler.swimming with no wetsuit is 'refreshing' (remember the Sienfeld episode on shrinkage) but when Judy and I snorkeled with only our wetsuit uppers on we always got out tired not cold. If you have the luxury of time I strongly suggest you cross to the WestEnd and go through the Abacos E and down to Eluthra and the Exumas. Allow 3 weeks (more if possible)to give yourself some explore time in the Abacos before making Little Harbour to head south. Then you can form your own opinions.I met many people last year enroute who prefer the Abacos and only one that preferred the Exumas. Depends on what type of cruising and what activities you enjoy.Bottom line ...do both..you decide :-)

[Lynx]

Frank - thanks for the advice. I will have the Luxury of time. Good to here about the weather. I had thought that it was worse having lived on the west coast of Fl for years.

Sounds like you are having way too much fun. Keep it up.

Regards, James M/S Lynx

[Frank]

Nope....I'm back at work now...Jubilee is on the hard at Green Turtle.The 'too much fun' stuff is over for a little while, BUT ...june is a trailorsailor Ottawa river cruise,then a North Channel cruise, then off to Greece for a 'ship' type cruise. :-)..But for now its back to work :-(    I should note that with my 'cruising budget' empty, the Greece cruise is a trip Judy won at work.She asked if I'd like to go....I had to think for .0000000000001 of a second first, then yelled YES.

[AdriftAtSea]

Nope....I'm back at work now...Jubilee is on the hard at Green Turtle.The 'too much fun' stuff is over for a little while, BUT ...june is a trailorsailor Ottawa river cruise,then a North Channel cruise, then off to Greece for a 'ship' type cruise. :-)..But for now its back to work :-(    I should note that with my 'cruising budget' empty, the Greece cruise is a trip Judy won at work.She asked if I'd like to go....I had to think for .0000000000001 of a second first, then yelled YES.

You had to think to answer that... I'm so disappointed in you.. ;)

[Lynx]

Thanks for the advice, I will be keeping the destination open for a while.

Has anybody had additional charges using their credit cards in the Bahamas?

I was supprised on my recent charges from Canada and Amsterdam.

[Anton]

Reviving the thread.  As repairs/upgrades on Wind Dancer progress, I've been thinking about taking a "shakedown cruise" down to the Keys or the Bahamas after hurricane season.

  Then a while ago I was talking to my 73yo mother on the phone; last year she "skipped out" on Christmas and went to Molokai...she intends to do the same this year, but doesn't like traveling alone.  So I suggested, half joking, she ought to come with me to the Bahamas...to my shock she ACCEPTED...yikes! She's actually serious!

FYI my 73yo Mom is is great health AND her right mind (imagine Judge Judy with an Austrian accent and you've got her likeness AND her personality spot on).

So of course it adds a different dimension to "boat upgrades"...making a picky Austrian woman comfortable on a cruise aboard a 27' sailboat?...Yikes again.

If it's up to me, I'd like to stay away from party places and island hop off the beaten path, do some fishing...her idea of fun is give me a quiet beach and an iced drink and go away...lol.  That's as much of a plan as I've got so far.

[AdriftAtSea]

LOL... be careful what you wish for... Congrats and prepping the boat should be interesting...

[Lynx]

The weather history for a crossing is near 100% from 1 Nov till 18 Nov. After than you many not cross until Jan. This year it was too rough for a small boat to cross After Nov 20 through most of the winter season.   

Where to go, Your choice. Make sure that you take your mother out for some 3 day or more trips before you go and check out the passport issues, dinghy etc.

There is a lot of single older men cruising, you may get rid of her soon enough.

[atomvoyager]

We've also enjoyed cruising the Abacos, ending up for a spell in Marsh Harbour for provisioning. But you will have some cold and windy days there in winter. After sailing the Abacos you probably want to go south to Exumas. You may even find crew in Georgetown since there are so many boats going in and out of there and crew sometimes jumps ship if given the chance of finding another boat. Only a one day sail east of there is Cat Island and Conception Island - great places to get away from the crowds. You can anchor up one of the mangrove creeks or Smith Bay on Cat Island when a norther comes through, depending on your draft.

James B