September is my favorite month on the Chesapeake Bay and the Mid-Atlantic for several reasons: Most summer vacationers have departed; the weather is cooler and more comfortable and the fall colors make it a great time to cruise and to fish.
If you like seafood, you’ll love the Maryland Seafood Festival. The 50th annual seafood festival is September 9th and 10th at Sandy Point State Park in Annapolis. The tented beach event offers delicious seafood dishes, interactive cooking demonstrations, and cook-off competitions, along with maritime-related exhibits, contests and family fun. Local craft beer and wine will be available. Throw in the live music, sand soccer, and fireworks, and you have a very entertaining scene.
A portion of the festival’s proceeds goes toward local nonprofit organizations, including YMCA Camp Letts and the Foundation for Community Betterment. Tickets are available online and at the door. The park’s large marina has six finger piers for temporary day-use docking on a first come, first-served basis. visitmaryland.org
While the majority of yachtsmen enter The Bahamas through Bimini, Cat Cay or simply clear in at West End and cruise on to the Abacos, Grand Bahama Island is a great place to spend a few days or a whole season—or even to own a second home.
Cruising to Grand Bahama and then on to Moore’s Island and Sandy Point is a wonderful way to enter The Bahamas if you plan to visit north Eleuthera or Nassau-—or cruise from Sandy Point around Hole in the Wall to Schooner Bay, Cherokee and Little Harbour. Coming from Florida, clear Customs at Old Bahama Bay (West End) and stay a while to explore the area. On Sandy Cay, Keith and Linda Cooper now have eco tours for diving, fishing and birding. weefca.com
If you need work done on your boat, Bradford Marine in Freeport is an excellent, full-service yard and a safe place to leave your boat if you fly home for a while.
In Lucaya, stay at Port Lucaya Marina or the Grand Bahama Yacht Club, where you’ll want to buy fuel as prices are usually the lowest in The Bahamas. portlucayamarina.com; grandbahamayachtclub.com
The Port Lucaya Marketplace has shopping, entertainment and several restaurants. Go to Zorba’s for Bahamian breakfast or lunch, Cappuccino’s for excellent Italian dinners, and Flying Fish for haute cuisine. UNEXSO runs a famous dive operation near the marina and the Dolphin Experience further down the waterway. unexso.com
Grand Bahama’s three national parks—The Rand Nature Center, the Lucayan National Park, and Peterson Cay—are well worth a visit. Go to the Bahamas National Trust website for more information. bnt.bs
Moore’s Island
Moore’s Island (Mores Island for the locals) does not cater to tourists but is a useful anchorage on your way along the southern edge of the bank or a good stop going north or south across the Bight of Abaco. There is decent holding in grass off Hard Bargain; go into the northern creek if there is a cold front but be sure to check the entrance and the creek by dinghy before venturing in. Two important things you must do when on Moore’s Island: visit Mrs. Jones for some fresh baked bread, and take your boat or your dinghy out to Lily Cay, where the shelling and snorkeling are outstanding—there is always a good chance of spearing a hogfish.
Abaco Park Warden Marcus Davis helps with Sea Turtle Research.
Sandy Point
Sandy Point is one of my favorite anchorages. It’s also a fun place to visit by road from further north in Abaco. Whether you come by land or sea, enjoy a couple of sundowners and a delicious supper at Nancy’s Sea Side Inn (242-366-4120) or the Sunset Bar and Grill (242-699-0249) while watching the sunset light up the sky.
The anchorage is only protected from the east, but if a cold front approaches go up the creek north of the settlement if you draw 5′ or less. Anchor bow or stern, or tie up to the government dock among the fishing boats. The local people will help you find your way into the unmarked creek and help you moor your boat.
Diesel, gas, and free water are available at Lightbourne Marina, where there is a good grocery store. It’s also a great spot to fish and snorkel for conch. While in southern Abaco visit the Abaco National Park, home of the Bahama parrot. Call Marcus Davis, Park Warden for information and a tour; (242) 367-6310.
Back in business
Staniel Cay Airport re-opened to air traffic in mid-November after months of closure for refurbishment that led to a newly paved runway 3,000-foot long and 75-foot wide. Safety concerns prompted the Department of Civil Aviation and the Ministry of Works to close the airport in April 2015.
Navigation notes:
The Grand Lucayan Waterway is still in very good condition. The Sir Charles Hayward Yacht Club (242-727-7245), just inside the southern entrance, has been refurbished and now has a growing youth program and a few slips for visiting yachts. Going all the way through the waterway is lovely, and you can look for property to purchase as you go. The lowest bridge has a 27.3-foot clearance. If you have a draft of 5′ or less, go out through the well-marked Dover Sound channel on the tide—the high tide is about 2 hours later than on the south shore. Proceed up to Mangrove Cay, Great Sale Cay and on to the Abacos. If you are towing a speedboat it is possible to explore Hawksbill Creek and Water Cay. The bonefishing on the north side is as good as anywhere in The Bahamas. The east end of Grand Bahama is seldom visited, and there are no detailed charts of the area. But a shallow draft vessel can get into Deep Water Cay (deepwatercay.com) and go gunkholing in the cays to the southeast with a little help from the local fishermen. The snorkeling and fishing are spectacular.
Words and photos by Stephen Connett, Southern Boating Magazine January 2016
The Bahamas Reef Environment Educational Foundation (BREEF) has recently established a spectacular Coral Reef Sculpture Garden just off Clifton Bluff in southwest New Providence (25–00.5N/77–33.0W). If you stay at Albany or Lyford Cay or anchor in West Bay, it is an easy dinghy ride to the Garden in settled weather.
BREEF calls the garden “a perfect fusion of art, education and marine conservation.” It will promote the growth of new coral, provide fish habitats and relieve some of the pressure on the natural reefs in the area. The garden is already a regular dive site for Stuart Cove.
The impressive sculptures by local and international artists are all built of concrete, which provide a substrate for new coral. Scattered around the artwork are reef balls which are excellent artificial habitats for fish. The garden is in about 20 feet of water so is easily seen from the surface while snorkeling. breef.org
Sandy Point, Abaco Some additions to the cruising life are just plain fun. Brad and Ceril, residents of Abaco, have built a floating bar in Sandy Point. In the summer months their barge is anchored just off the beach and has a small raft on a line that gets people back and forth from shore. The bar supplies a basic choice of beverages out of a cooler, and music is provided from a boom box plugged into a car battery. There is room around the barge to tie up your dinghy. From personal experience, drinking a cold beer in the midsummer heat while semi-submerged on the edge of the barge is delightful.
Aids to Navigation The list of aids to navigation that are malfunctioning, abandoned, or missing continues to grow, so it is best not to rely on any of them. Gone are the days when you could depend on Great Isaac and Great Stirrup lights to guide you down the Northwest Providence Channel. The government simply hasn’t the money for maintenance. Thankfully, modern charts and electronics compensate for the loss of reliable buoys and lights. Be sure your paper and electronic charts are up-to-date and your GPS and radar are functioning properly—it is advisable to have a backup GPS. If you are not an experienced navigator you might consider traveling only in daylight, and it is never a bad idea to call ahead to a marina and ask for local knowledge and advice.
Cape Eleuthera Marina The facility now sports a new swimming pool, the beach has been enlarged, docks are still in excellent condition, Pascal’s restaurant is open at the T-dock, and the staff are as helpful as ever. The showers and laundry are air-conditioned and clean, and the store has a good supply of snacks, liquor and bait. An added plus, the fuel dock never seems to run out of diesel and gas.
Westerly winds cause a miserable surge in the marina, but the staff will try to place you in one of the slips with minimal movement. Regardless, you will be safe even if you are in a slip with a lot of surge, and you will be happy when the wind clocks around to the east and sad to leave.
For fresh Bahamian food call ahead to Sheryl’s Inn (242-334-8111) in Deep Creek for supper. Sheryl’s does not serve alcohol but you can bring your own or go across the road to Friendly Bob’s bar and liquor store and carry beverages back to Sheryl’s.
Stone Crab Fishery, Eleuthera A stone crab company is now operating in the Bight of Eleuthera. Bahama Biters (bahamabiters.com) has invested in hundreds of stone crab pots so Styrofoam buoys are everywhere. Keep a good lookout wherever you go in the Bight, and if you run at night know that you might snag a buoy.
Staniel Cay, Exumas The Staniel Cay Yacht Club building has just finished a major upgrade. The kitchen, dining room, gift shop, and restrooms are completely rebuilt. The new dining room is lovely, overlooks the channel and is open to the fresh air or air-conditioned when that is more comfortable. There is a new chef with a good menu and prices are fair. The restaurant is open for lunch and there are two seatings for supper—reservations are strongly recommended. Breakfast is still served in the old dining room, which has been redone. For those who relished the sailors’ charm and controlled chaos of the old club, the bar has only replaced overhead lights and is still as cheerful as ever. Local residents and cruisers still engage in lively conversation and consumption of beverages and bar food.
It’s gift-giving time and the new Coastal Art Maps designed by owner Joseph S. Tarella are one idea likely to please frequenters of the Chesapeake Bay. The hand-drawn maps offer a unique colorful perspective of the “Great Shellfish Bay” and its natural environs. Tarella has released the first 3 of a projected 10 maps depicting the bay: the area from Havre de Grace to Middle River, Middle River to Sandy Point, and Sandy Point to Herring Bay. Each map is oriented horizontally to illuminate the contrast between the densely populated western shore and the sparser, more bucolic, eastern shore.
Tarella, an architect by trade, uses pen-and-ink and watercolor washes on vellum, which give his maps a tactile quality. He started mapmaking as a hobby after he built a house on Long Beach Island and couldn’t find any maps of the area that he liked. Friends and family asked for copies and his labor of love evolved from there. The first three Chesapeake Bay maps were launched in September and another group is expected to be available in the spring. coastalartmaps.com
Sailors participating in J World’s Coastal Navigation Seminar in Annapolis. The next seminar is on December 13th from 9AM to 4PM. Photo: J World
Winter Seminars
Winter in the Mid-Atlantic region is a perfect time to pick up new boating knowledge and perhaps, plan a long-distance cruise for warmer temperatures. Maritime museums, yacht clubs, professional training companies, and groups like the U.S. Powerboat Squadrons are some of organizations that host educational events. J World in Annapolis hosts a Coastal Navigation Seminar from 9AM to 4PM on December 13th, a comprehensive classroom course on coastal navigation and piloting. The curriculum covers charts and features, compass errors, plotting, triangulation, dead reckoning, route planning, tides, current vectors, aids to navigation, and an introduction to electronic navigation. The course text will be U.S. Sailing’s Coastal Navigation book. It’s an ideal course for anyone who wants to develop a solid foundation in navigation principles. The course includes U.S. Sailing certification if qualified. jworldannapolis.com
Time to fish
The 2015 version of the Maryland Fishing Challenge is under way. The free, year-round tournament is sponsored by the Department of Natural Resources and partners, and offers cash and prizes for anglers that reel in citation-worthy fish. Each September qualifying anglers meet at Sandy Point State Park for the finale party held in conjunction with the Maryland Seafood Festival. At this year’s final event, over $70,000 in cash and prizes were awarded. The grand-prize winner was Pennsylvania resident Rick Snider, who collected a boat-motor-trailer package from Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats. Bobby Gibson of Church Hill, Maryland, won an all-expense-paid fishing trip to The Bahamas. If you register a citation-size fish from Maryland waters from now until next Labor Day, you too will be invited to Annapolis next year. dnr2.maryland.gov
By Christopher Knauss, Southern Boating December 2014
