Category: Sailing

Boating Around The Berry Islands

We’ve been in The Bahamas over a week and most of it has been spent enjoying the beautiful weather and clear waters boating the Berry Islands.

Great Harbor Cay

Though adjacent to a cruise line-owned island and home to an airport, Great Harbor Cay feels remote. A great introduction to the Berry Islands for us, we spent 3 nights anchored here. The island is occupied by only 350 or so people, and all of those we interacted with were warm and open; two different people gave us rides. We spent an afternoon traversing the island and the town of Bullocks Harbor by foot, visiting a couple of restaurants, a stunning beach, the marina, and the grocery store.

Colorful town of Great Harbor Cay, Berry Islands, Bahamas
Colorful town of Great Harbor Cay
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Welcome to The Bahamas

You know when you are trying to get away for a holiday or long weekend and everything takes so much longer than it should? That was us trying to get to Bahamas last Saturday, only our problem wasn’t traffic, it was the Gulf Stream.

Longer Than Expected

We figured the 40 nautical mile (nm, or knot) trip would take us 8 or so hours. Nope. With the wind at our front and the gulf stream pushing us north, we had to give up on sailing and turn on the engine. We discovered that the engine overheats when we go too fast. That 8 hours took 12. We cut it short and stopped north of our destination and anchored in the dark. But we made it to Bahamas in one piece! Success!

Our route from Miami to Bimini
Our route from Miami to Bimini
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Blue Water Sailing

Six months ago, we started looking for a boat. Three months ago, we officially bought Sava. Two months ago, we flew down to Florida and moved onto our boat. We’ve gotten used to her, learned how she works and kitted her out with the things we need for our life and journeys on board. Tomorrow is another new experience for all of us: our first “blue water sailing” trip. Destination: The Bahamas.

New Experience: Blue Water Sailing

This is not our longest trip. The sails to, from, and within The Florida Keys were further distance and tomorrow’s should take less time. What sets it apart for us as sailors is that we will not have sight of land for a few hours tomorrow. It is a bit scary but we’ve built up to this and are taking baby steps. We aren’t trying to cross an ocean here, but the Gulf Stream, which has its own set of issues, like pushing us away from where we want to be.

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