I am writing this blog and will add our travel day to the Bahamas on as an update tomorrow because we will be traveling eight hours and will be tired when we arrive. So will post today and will update the same post when we have completed the crossing tomorrow late afternoon.
Day 9
Spent a lay day in North Lake Worth cleaning and prepping the boat for the crossing. Not too exciting!
Since it is such a boring day - blog wise, I decided to regale you with some Bahamian geography!
Here goes -
The Bahamas are a collection of over 700 islands or cays which sit atop a plateau just off the east coast of Florida. The islands stretch from West Palm Beach to the north to just 30 miles from Cuba at their southernmost point, covering over 500 miles.
The cays are low lying with few hills over 100 feet. These cays have a limestone base which is worn by wind and water and honey-combed with caves.
The waters surrounding the Bahamas vary from the Little Bahama and Great Bahama Banks which are 10 feet deep to the ocean passages which are thousands of feet deep. These waters provide for rich fishing lots of snorkeling and diving sites. No wonder the Bahamas are so popular with boaters!
Below is a chart of the Bahamas and below that a map which shows the inlet we will leave from - Lake Worth, and West End on Grand Bahama Island, our arrival point.
We will attempt the 56 mile crossing from Lake Worth Inlet to West End on Grand Bahama Island. Will begin our travels heading a bit south of due east because about 15-20 miles out we must cross the Gulf Stream (about 25 miles wide) which will push us north with its 2-4 knot current. If all goes as planned, we will arrive at West End in about 8 hours. Of course all this depends on the winds and waves. Wish us good travels!!!
I will add photos and more description tomorrow after we arrive.
Day 10.
We pulled up our anchor to find the shackle turned onto itself. Took Bill 20 minutes to straighten the chain and shackle. Leaving the anchorage we proceeded south and around Peanut Island into the pass at Port of Rivera. There were some awfully big boats in the harbor and lots of anchored boats!
Turning east we headed out the pass and turned so our compass read 115 degrees. We are now off to the Bahamas, traveling at about 7.5 knots
It is a clear sunny day with light winds and some ocean swell. Perfect for cruising.
The water was such a deep blue. Beautiful!
These are my notes from the trip crossing to the Bahamas.
First hour of travel - We can still see the larger condos on the beach. Passing large freighters bound for the port. Bill and I took turns driving the boat.
Second hour - Can still barely see the buildings on the mainland. We are in 1250 feet of water with only small swells. We passed a 280 foot yacht returning to Florida. Too much boat for me!
Third hour- Lost sight of land and entered the Gulf Stream with depths up to 1788 feet deep.
Fourth hour - Still in the Gulf Stream doing 8.5 knots. Thanks Gulf Stream for giving us a bump in speed.
Fifth hour- Still in the Gulf Stream and now doing 9.2 knots.
Sixth hour- We turned more easterly to take advantage of the current in the Gulf Stream. Now traveling at 10.5 knots.
Seventh hour - Ten miles from Grand Bahama Island we could see the shore and several low buildings.
Yeah, Land Ho!!
At 3:00 pulled into Old Bahama Bay Marina on Grand Bahama Island. Several sailboats and a catamaran came in just after us. Busy marina.
We got to the Bahamas safely, cleared Customs and fueled up before going to our slip at Old Bahama Bay Marina . Here is a shot of Bill putting up the Bahamas Courtesy Flag to show we cleared customs.
After dinner, will walk the small beach at the resort. The water colors are amazing.
