The Bahamas
New Providence Island and Great Bahama Bank
March 10th & 11th, 2017
We left the Whale and Bird Cay anchorage and almost immediately were in 9,900 feet of water. That's a lot of water! Matt was really hoping something could break because the 2,700 feet of water he swam in over the Gulf Stream wasn't deep or scary enough.
Imagine our excitement when we caught a HUGE Mahi-Mahi. The fish didn't want to be dinner, and on the fourth jump out of the water our line snapped and we lost the lure. We didn't exactly know how to land and take care of a fish that size; we were almost relieved!
We arrived at West Bay on New Providence Island and were blown away at how pretty it was! New Providence is the main island, home to Nassau, and I had just assumed the whole island was industrial. The water was divine and there was a National Trust park with beach access for dog walking, right in the anchorage.
We were up early the next morning to travel across the Great Bahama Bank to Highbourne Cay, our landing point in the Exumas. Initially disappointed that there was no wind to sail by, we were soon amazed by the flat calm water. We were literally counting starfish and ripples of sand, for 47 miles!
Matt flew the drone while we motored to practice landing it while moving at 6 knots. It's pretty tricky, but Matt's a pro.
The water was so spectacular we couldn't resist stopping the engines and having a drift swim party in the middle of nowhere.
It's shallow, especially compared to the 9,900 feet of water we saw the day before. We had mostly 15 feet, with a few 8 foot depths. At low tide, you really have to look out for large coral heads that could damage the keels. We didn't see anything too big - and those we saw were easy to spot on this crazy clear day.
Our route: two completely different bodies of water, one after the other. What larks!
Do you like to fish? Any tips on how to actually reel the fish in? (Maybe we should replace Matt's grandfather's 50 year old line made for river fly fishing?)
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| 9,900 feet deep! That's like 2 miles straight down! |
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| West Bay Anchorage |
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| West Bay anchorage at sunset, New Providence Island |
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| Counting Starfish off the bow |
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| Matt flying the drone underway |
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| Jump! |
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| Coral heads, Grand Bahama Banks |
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| Shadow in the sand |
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| Our Route: Berry Islands to New Providence to Highbourne Cay |
2 comments
We used to fish for snapper in New Zealand where you didn't need a license. David would go out in the dinghy, drop his line amongst the mussel farms, get a bite within seconds, and reel in dinner. It was great!
ReplyDeleteStephanie @ SV CAMBRIA
Wow, that sounds really awesome!
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