Most of the boats that are here are sailboats and are here for the winter. I would guess that about half are from Canada with a few from Europe and the rest from the USA. During the peak of the winter season there has been as many as 100 boats in this harbor but the economy has taken its toll here so numbers have been down the last few years. There is very little agriculture or manufacturing in the Bahamas so their major revenue source is tourism and therefore they have really felt the economic downturn. Of course I am in the Abacos which is less developed than the major tourist ports of Nassau or Free Port. I'm not really into water parks and tourist traps so the Abacos really fits my style. Marinas are about half the cost of similar marinas in Florida and are very nice with swimming pools and restaurants on site. Marsh Harbor has many restaurants and shops along with two large supermarkets.
In the Abacos you can sail to a different island every few days so in a few hours you can experience a whole different flavor of the Bahamas. The second largest coral reef in the world is here so snorkeling and diving are major activities along with all types of ocean fishing. The temperatures here average 70's during the day and 60's during the night. If you are looking for very warm weather you should probably go the the southern Bahamas but I find these temps "just right".
If you come without your own boat there are ferries that provide regular service to most of the populated islands. You can also rent sailboats (Moorings and Sun Sail) or power boats here in Marsh Harbor. I have included a short slide show of powerboats near me in an attempt to make John's day ;>)
Thanks for the pictures, no big Yachts? We did get the six inches of snow but it stayed warm, 20 degrees, compared to below 0 temperatures expected for next week. It will be a little warmer by end of week then snow again on new years eve, How are your GPS charts working, I would assume that with so much traffic down there they would be pretty good. Do a lot of people use this port like you use cornucopia as a place to House boat between chances to get down there? Do they leave them in the water or do they have dry dock storage?
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas
John and Oba
Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteSounds like you are having a real Minnesota winter and I am looking forward to seeing some of it in January when I fly home for a few weeks.
The GPS charts are very good and accurate. All of the Bahamas is very shallow (like 10 ft or less) so the charts must be very accurate so you can follow channels deep enough for your boat. On the other hand, if you should sink you could just stand on top of your boat and wave at someone for help ;>)
I haven't been here long enough to get a good feel for the situation year around but it appears that right now most the boats in the marina are just here for the winter. Out of 70 slips about 10 appear to be filled with year around boats. Right now there seems to be more transient boats in marinas than anchored out and I suspect that is because slip rates are so reasonable. There is dry dock storage on the other side of the island but it appears that most leave their boat in the water.