First Trip Bimini Late June 2024

A

alybarger

New Member
Nov 4, 2023
7
Boat Info
2004 26' Sundancer
Engines
6.2 L Mercruiser
I'm from Ohio and plan on shooting the gap to Bimini and beyond. Like the title says, wife and I are planning on going late June of 2024. I'm curious if anyone else plans on going or would like to go. This would be my first travel to the islands and going with someone who has done this trip before would be a huge benefit. Is there a club or group that anyone knows that I could possibly join to travel with. A lot of what I see is for center consoles that cruise at 40knots, and that's not what my boat is capable of doing. Thank you in advance.
 
Www.Bahamas.com/boating

Come join us… Not sure which ones I am running yet but you will have experience captains on all of them. Great way to get there safely and learn the in’s and out’s of the Bahamas.

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Thank you for passing on the information. I will definitely look into the options provided.
 
alybarger said:
Thank you for passing on the information. I will definitely look into the options provided.
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Hello Alybarger, I'm looking to return to Bimini and make the crossing in June (2204)
as well. The Flings, I've experienced and is a good way to make the crossing in safe numbers. The only draw back is that the trips are short. There's a lot that goes into preparation for such a trip nd often requires a "trip before the trip" when towing a boat for 8 to 10 hours or more, depending on where you departing. Therefore, I began going and extending my stay to make it worth the effort. I can send additional information if needed. Take Care.
 
Esquire said:
Hello Alybarger, I'm looking to return to Bimini and make the crossing in June (2204)
as well. The Flings, I've experienced and is a good way to make the crossing in safe numbers. The only draw back is that the trips are short. There's a lot that goes into preparation for such a trip nd often requires a "trip before the trip" when towing a boat for 8 to 10 hours or more, depending on where you departing. Therefore, I began going and extending my stay to make it worth the effort. I can send additional information if needed. Take Care.
Click to expand...
Sounds good.
 
Esquire said:
Hello Alybarger, I'm looking to return to Bimini and make the crossing in June (2204)
as well. The Flings, I've experienced and is a good way to make the crossing in safe numbers. The only draw back is that the trips are short. There's a lot that goes into preparation for such a trip nd often requires a "trip before the trip" when towing a boat for 8 to 10 hours or more, depending on where you departing. Therefore, I began going and extending my stay to make it worth the effort. I can send additional information if needed. Take Care.
Click to expand...
Sounds good.
 
alybarger said:
Getting things lined up for the trip in June. Do you know when you'd be going? Possible islands you plan on going too? Possible Duration of your trip?
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When you say "visiting other islands" what are you looking to do? Keep in mind your boats range is critical in that equation. Do you know it's range as other islands are hours of run time away to get deeper into the Bahamas.
 
My boat holds 84 gallons of fuel and I burn about 13 gallons an hour running around 20 knots. I am not one to test my fuel burn ratio and pull into the gas dock on fumes. Bimini will be the first stop. Looking at google maps and Lawrence I see a few smaller islands as options to run further west. Big question is am I able to get fuel at some of the smaller islands. As far as visiting the other islands, seeing the island, snorkeling, possibly scuba diving, fishing, etc.
 
alybarger said:
My boat holds 84 gallons of fuel and I burn about 13 gallons an hour running around 20 knots. I am not one to test my fuel burn ratio and pull into the gas dock on fumes. Bimini will be the first stop. Looking at google maps and Lawrence I see a few smaller islands as options to run further west. Big question is am I able to get fuel at some of the smaller islands. As far as visiting the other islands, seeing the island, snorkeling, possibly scuba diving, fishing, etc.
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Possible islands west maybe, Lignumvitae Cay or South Stirrup Cay. Plan is to be out on the water for 2-4 weeks and just seeing what the options are for other islands that are reachable.
 
alybarger said:
Possible islands west maybe, Lignumvitae Cay or South Stirrup Cay. Plan is to be out on the water for 2-4 weeks and just seeing what the options are for other islands that are reachable.
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Ok first to get there you have to get across the bank to Chub from Bimini which is 80nm and will take you about 4 hours running at 20 knots. Chub has fuel, Great Stirrup Cay is a private island and no fuel nor can you go on that island. Harbor Cay has fuel but very limited. Are you planning on staying on your boat or hotels? Either way you are going to be pushing the limits of your fuel capacity on your boat. I would carry some extra fuel as the just in case is common in the bahamas. How loaded will your boat be? How many traveling with you? Being your first trip I would highly recommend you travel with a group of experienced navigators in the bahamas. Your boat has the capacity to do the Bahamas but you need to really plan due to your fuel capacity. And Safety wise only having one engine you should not travel alone. I would highly recommend you change your dates and join us on our Extended Bahamas Boating Fling to Eleuthera this year July 9th - 19th. We will have 15-20 boats that will be traveling together for 10 days to some great destinations. This will get your some huge experience in the Bahamas and allow you to safely experience boating in the Bahamas. A lot of our group will extend their trip on the back end of the fling and stay longer in the Berry's (Chub Cay) or Bimini which would probably be best for you also.

Lastly what is the condition of your boat? I don't mean this is a bad way but I see lots of people want to come down and go on these big adventures to end up having issues and a huge tow bill to get home. Crossing oceans and banks in 90+ degrees weather is no joke. Your boat will be stressed running for 4-5 hours straight on plane fully loaded. Have you ever or do you regularly run your boat in the ocean for that distance? These are things to take into consideration. Being broken down "over there" is not fun. There is no West Marine, takes weeks sometime to get parts and mechanics are... well limited to say the least. You have to travel with lots of spares and be ready to deal with situations that can ruin your vacation. You are asking a lot for your first adventure if you are going to tackle this alone. You might just want to plan a 10 day trip to Bimini as your first adventure as there is plenty to do there for a week or so by boat doing day trips to the small islands around there but returning at night to Bimini to sleep and refuel.
 
On a nice weekend there's a lot of traffic between Ft Lauderdale and Bimini - someone always within VHF range for a lending hand or relay back for a tow (worst case) or to buddy over.
Conversely, that stretch of water on the banks to Chub is a lot of nothing and not a lot of traffic - comparatively.
With all that said the Berrys are some really nice places to cruise and hang out. Not a lot of people. Not a lot of services either. Chub has fuel and Great Harbor has fuel. No service, that comes out of either Nassau or Freeport.
 
ocgrant said:
Ok first to get there you have to get across the bank to Chub from Bimini which is 80nm and will take you about 4 hours running at 20 knots. Chub has fuel, Great Stirrup Cay is a private island and no fuel nor can you go on that island. Harbor Cay has fuel but very limited. Are you planning on staying on your boat or hotels? Either way you are going to be pushing the limits of your fuel capacity on your boat. I would carry some extra fuel as the just in case is common in the bahamas. How loaded will your boat be? How many traveling with you? Being your first trip I would highly recommend you travel with a group of experienced navigators in the bahamas. Your boat has the capacity to do the Bahamas but you need to really plan due to your fuel capacity. And Safety wise only having one engine you should not travel alone. I would highly recommend you change your dates and join us on our Extended Bahamas Boating Fling to Eleuthera this year July 9th - 19th. We will have 15-20 boats that will be traveling together for 10 days to some great destinations. This will get your some huge experience in the Bahamas and allow you to safely experience boating in the Bahamas. A lot of our group will extend their trip on the back end of the fling and stay longer in the Berry's (Chub Cay) or Bimini which would probably be best for you also.

Lastly what is the condition of your boat? I don't mean this is a bad way but I see lots of people want to come down and go on these big adventures to end up having issues and a huge tow bill to get home. Crossing oceans and banks in 90+ degrees weather is no joke. Your boat will be stressed running for 4-5 hours straight on plane fully loaded. Have you ever or do you regularly run your boat in the ocean for that distance? These are things to take into consideration. Being broken down "over there" is not fun. There is no West Marine, takes weeks sometime to get parts and mechanics are... well limited to say the least. You have to travel with lots of spares and be ready to deal with situations that can ruin your vacation. You are asking a lot for your first adventure if you are going to tackle this alone. You might just want to plan a 10 day trip to Bimini as your first adventure as there is plenty to do there for a week or so by boat doing day trips to the small islands around there but returning at night to Bimini to sleep and refuel.
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All info is great and very much appreciated . I agree, my first time cruising the Caribbean I would feel a bit more comfortable with someone who has done this before. To answer some of your questions.... Traveling on this trip would be my wife and I, both in our early 40's, boaters and not couch potatoes. Yes we would plan on staying on the boat as much as possible and not get hotel rooms. Boat also has a generator, so hooking up to shore power every night is not a must; we are even comfortable anchoring in a cove or harbor somewhere, tying to a dock every night is not crucial. As far as boat condition..... I'd like to say that I take care of my boat better than most boaters. All items that need replaced on regular intervals get replaced, anything that looks worn gets replaced, oil changes on a regular, etc. I have a good friend that is a OEM boat mechanic and he comes and helps with anything that I am not comfortable doing or if I need hooked up to a computer for diagnostic work. With a pack of boats or not, I would also feel more comfortable having a boat with twins, but that would require a wider beamed boat and I'm at my legal width now. This will be my first time with this boat in the ocean. However, I have ran this boat for many hours and spent many nights on the boat. I really appreciate your help and insight and would love to discuss the trip further with you. As far as changing dates to travel with you........ I am a fireman and in Ohio and ????? getting time of in the summer is a whole different worm hole to travel down. Again, I appreciate the help and knowledge that you are offering, going with another person who has done this before would make me feel more comfortable.
 
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