SpaceCoaster wrote:Tom,
What advice do you have for folks going over there? What was your favorite location(s)? Any issues to watch for? I heard rumors that dirty fuel could be a problem. Is dockage pricey? or would you recommend anchoring? Jorge
Favorites depend on what you like. Elbow Cay is in the heart of everything, and would probably be the choice if I was renting a house. Manjack and Powell Cays are isolated and beautiful. We were glad to get out of the Hub of Abaco and into the more isolated islands in the north.
Issues mostly involve shallow water and anchoring. There are no markers and no defined channels. You have to be able to read the water and have a good GPS / Chartnav. But the GPS can be a little off, so being able to read the water is the more important.
Anchoring is problematic. The bottom in most of that region consists of 3” of sand and grass over marl. My 22lb Delta would not penetrate the marl. We looked for sandy patches or went elsewhere. I thought about trying the Fortress in it, but didn’t have another opportunity when I made that decision. At any rate, we always dove on the anchor to be sure it dug in. In some places, we did put out both anchors.
Fuel is generally ok if you buy it from places that sell a lot. Conch Inn, Marsh Harbor fuels the Moorings Charters and the Man-O-War Ferry. The marinas that cater to the sportfishermen are also probably ok. We bought 100 gallons at Green Turtle that might not have been wonderful. We were producing more black smoke than normal, but if might have just been the difference in the way their fuel burns. At any rate, I changed fuel filters 4 times.
Dockage ranged from $1.00 per foot (plus 10.00 for electric plus .30/gallon water plus 3.00 per shower) in the out islands to an eye popping $2.60 per foot, minimum 42 feet (plus 12 for electric plus 10 for water) at West End, where we were stuck an extra day.
For mid-trip provisioning, you should go to Marsh Harbour. We stayed at the Conch Inn because it is central, but a strong front came through while we were there. We’d have been better off with the Sportfishing crowd at Boat Harbour. We did stay with the sporties at Sea Spray Marina on Elbow, and I came to the conclusion that these guys know where to stay. On the other hand, I definitely liked the island feel of Black Sound marina in New Plymouth.
