South Bimini

“Ain’t no time zone here”, smiled a Bimini local. It’s true. This place is really special and we’re falling more in love every day.

An excursion from North Bimini to South Bimini introduced us to the tranquility and magic of the south island. Eco-tour guide Grant met us at the dock.

He and his girlfriend Katie have established an Activity Centre at the Bimini Sands Resort encouraging eco-explorations and a Nature Trail introducing tourists and locals to wildlife of the island including the Bimini Boa, a rare and beautiful snake.

Later that afternoon, Sean, the manager of the Bimini Biological Station, or, “Sharklab”, explained the work of the centre.

Their research includes tagging lemon sharks and studies of the Bimini shark population by marine academics assisted by a team of volunteers.

The shark pen tour had been at low tide, a few hours before. Our appetite was whetted. We wanted to know more about this island.

The next day Seraphim motored down to South Bimini.

After leaving the Bimini Bay Resort and Marina we learnt of the destruction building the resort had wrought upon the mangroves, essential nurseries for marine life. When the dredgers fail to use “curtains”, silt from the construction clogs up the sea grass beds, home to juvenile fish, shrimp, lobster and conch so important to Bimini fisherman and restaurants. Bahamian politicians with incentives from the developers  allowed the original site to grow almost out of control until pressure from international environmentalists forced a preservation order on East Bimini which means no resort golf course but the survival of indigenous wild life.

Even at high tide with slow rolling three foot waves, the shifting sand bars make the entrance to the Bimini Sands marina on South Bimini, a heart-in-mouth experience.

But once in, it’s great. Fishing off the dock, a swimming pool two minutes from the boat, a stunning beach five minutes away plus the other resort site the Bimini Beach Club and Mackey’s Bar.

It is a marina for cruisers rather than a boat park for weekend hoppers from Miami.  First on the to-do list was laundry, epic laundry.

The scores of nappies loaded in Fort Lauderdale for James were running low. Small’s, the only grocery on South Bimini did not carry them.  The supply boats bringing goods from Fort Lauderdale and Nassau arrive on Thursday. So Friday morning was a good time to cross back to North Bimini on the water taxi for essentials. Brown bread and parmesan rolls ordered from Tammy at Taste of Heaven Bakery, re-victualed and nappied up, we headed back to the ferry/water taxi. I was relieved that new friends Linda and Chrissie golf carted us to and from the dock. It’s a comparatively short walk but in 90 degrees on a dusty road with children it can become a task. Especially after one of my meltdowns when I sob that it’s all too much and want to go home. John ducks and dives through these monthly crises til an hour or so later the sun is shining in paradise, physically and metaphorically.

The mundane was forgotten when Jim the assistant manager of the Shark Lab waded out with us to the pen where young sharks were swimming. Jim fished out a lemon and then a nurse shark describing their characteristics, life style and idiosyncrasies. Touching these creatures was thrill for Jack and James. When John commented that they felt like sandpaper, Jim told that “back in the day”, sailors used their skins to sand the decks.  Jim has worked, voluntarily, at the lab for almost three years since he graduated.

On Saturday, Jim was fishing for bone fish off the beach, on his day off, at the Bimini Beach Club. On the horizon is the wreck of the Sapona, on the edge of the Bahama Banks. She was a concrete vessel used for hooch. Numerous schooners were sunk on the Banks in the hurricane of 1926.

Inside Mackey’s Sand Bar there is sand on the floor and on the wall photographs of Bimini in the 20s – 50s including the harbor full of schooners, proof that the island thrived during Prohibition.

The phrase the Real McCoy comes from those spirited days when Bill McCoy was known for his undiluted liquor. Predictably there are photos of the famous writer and big game fisher with quotes from his work. Being on a Hemingway Island I messed with long sentences linked by “and” with the odd comma but after a few breathless goes, let it go.

It’s a bus or taxi to the Bimni Beach. Tony who sometimes drives a bus for the Bimini Sands, has eight children from four girlfriends. He looks after the children during the day and escapes to the bus in the evening and Sundays.

On our trips into Alice Town we met various taxi drivers. The tram was not as reliable as we had hoped so we spent more than we had hoped on taxis. $20 return.  The best taxi is Milton or Scooper Taxi. Someone smashed one of the other taxi drivers windows.  Our concern over a taxi war turned to amusement when we heard from a South Bimini taxi that our windowless friend  is a “lover”. It was probably the fury of a scorned girlfriend. The taxi driver grinned over the “lover”. “I tell him man you got to slow down, but he don’t do dat”.

Easter in Bimini

Bimini celebrated Easter with song and dance. Jack’s first Easter egg hunt of three was around the large swimming pool in the marina. In Alice Town there was a Junkanoo Carnival.  The tourist officer at the Ministry of Tourism told me Junkanoo was on Friday and Saturday, and pointedly, church on Sunday.

The Anglican Church is one of eight on this seven mile long by half mile wide island. The congregation turned out in their Easter Service Best.

After a two hour Easter Service (a stretch for us let alone James), the children were given Easter baskets for a sedate egg hunt around the Church yard.

Later new cruising friends from San San joined Jack and James for a crazier egg scamper around the marina playground followed by lunch beside the infinity pool whilst the children splashed in the cold water. A delightful day.

On the beach and the boat we marvel at the colours of the sea. From palest turquoise it moves through the spectrum to azul and cyan in the deeper water of the Gulf stream. A phenomena known as the Bimini Colour Change.  It’s how I imagine the stairway to heaven.

Islands in the stream

BIMINI, Bahamas

The Bahamas are so close and yet utterly different to the States in all ways.  Less than 50 miles from Florida across the Gulfstream, Bimini has a strange captivating charm.

Bimini claims to be the sports fishing capital of the world. These tiny islands on the edge of the Gulfstream and The Bahama Banks have attracted sports fisherman for decades.

Six hundred pound fish which fight for hours such as Marlin and Sailfish team just off these “Islands in the Stream”. Ernest Hemingway’s book was based on his three seasons here between 1935 – 37.  The house he first describes, The Anchorage, still exists as a hotel attached to the Bimini Blue Water Marina where we stayed on our arrival to the “Gateway of the Bahamas”.

Two days later another cold front passed through providing a good opportunity to catch rain water to fill the tanks, one of Jack’s favourite games.

The small Bimini museum is a fascinating guide to the colourful history of the island. There are pictures of the rich Americans who made homes here and attracted royal, wealthy and famous guests. Hemingway and one of his four wives, Pauline, are photographed with Baron and Baroness von Blixen of “Out of Africa” notoriety.  The photographs taken in the 1930s show fit hunters and their ladies who have no hips and long legs. The real boom time was during Prohibition when Bimini harbour was littered with liquor cases. The ultimate booze cruise, when schooners from Europe loaded with alcohol anchored in the harbour, unloaded and fast boats (rum runners) sped the illegal drink across to the US.

The north island is seven miles long and almost a half a mile wide at one point. A beach runs along the Atlantic side. Jack and James played with new friends during a cruisers gathering outside Shelley’s beach bar in Alice Town.

An evening of indulging in Shelly’s conch fritters, up-and-down island banter, the magnificent sunset and driftwood bonfire. CJ’s, next door was John’s breakfast sandwich venue.

Bimini’s main islands are North and South Bimini. North Bimini has two faces, the village of Alice Town for island life, and at the other end of the island Bimini Bay Resort and Marina.

As with many islands golf carts are the vehicle of choice. During our $40 worth of golf cart rental we discovered the Resort and Marina.  John’s careful questioning elicited the useful information that although it is $3 a foot per day, it is $1.20 per foot if you stay a week, not many people know that.

Even though it is a minimum of 40 feet, it was still the same price as Alice Town but includes restaurants, (selling grouper fingers – mmm), an infinity pool, uber pool, children’s pool (pee pool), children’s playground, children’s play room and non-stop WIFI.  We headed up the new deep channel cut through the shallows for a week on Wahoo Pontoon. Now we have the best of both worlds. A $6 tram driven by Humphrey or $10 taxi with Max takes us back to Alice Town, through the villages of Porgy Bay and Bailey Town. I window shop at the expensive Bimini Bay shop fronts but we head to Alice Town to shop.

Tamy runs the Taste of Home bakery, a green building where she sells many goodies. Our favourite are her Parmesan and Garlic rolls.

Just before Easter the local school sold hot cross buns. A pupil, Paulette showed us through the school grounds to the Bimini mummies working hard over the buns.

They were delicious, and literally hot.

One of our most charming father and sons moments occurred when John made a coconut sailboat for the boys, and accompanied by happy squeals set it afloat.

This Easter weekend our tranquil resort has become Miami in the Stream. One of scores of sports fishing boasts powering into the marina was 900 horse power Down Time. It took just 1 hour 20 minutes to reach Bimini from Miami, top speed is 55 knots with  a cruising speed of 33 knots.  Seraphim’s 50 horse power and sail took eight hours with our cruising speed of 7 knots. Sleigh riding down a big wave our top speed is 12 knots.

We’re off to see Junkanoo, the local Carnival in Alice Town.
There are at least eight churches to choose from.  Wishing you all a Happy Easter.

In the Bahamas

After a long, long wait for the right weather, and more waiting we crossed the Gulf stream to Bimini in the Bahamas. Two small islands famous for big game fishing and Hemingway. We are loving it here. More of Bimini sunsets and bonfires soon.

Florida part 3...still on the dock

Here we are still on the dock at the New River Marina
Fort Lauderdale, on Riverwalk, one of the most picturesque
spots in the area.

Now we have dock fever. Three weeks longer than we intended,
seven weeks since we arrived. But it’s been an eventful time…

On Sunday 17th January a day of high winds and strong current on the New River saw the Jungle Queen crash and scrape down the side of a luxury yacht.

I was taking photos of the boys playing on the dock when I saw the large tourist boat coming towards us. Seraphim is on the curve into the river bend. The Jungle Queen misjudged the wind and current, just missed us, lost it on the bend and crashed down the side of the next yacht. Massive fenders burst. The Jungle Queen then crunched a smaller cruising yacht before pushing off from it and heading down river. I renamed her the “Bungle Queen“. Even ho hummed new lyrics to Abba’s Dancing Queen, for all of a minute. “Bungle Queen crashing its way down New River, Watch that Queen, smash that boat flying around the bend ….”

Another out of the ordinary experience fell on a night late in December as we arrived home with two sleeping children. The police were out in force with a helicopter, boats and cars, and were joined by the Coastguard launch who caused a massive wake.  All hunting a “dead guy”. Ooo’rah. Just what I wanted for a late bed time - the noise of a helicopter, glaring floodlights and Seraphim bouncing on the dock. A fight between two hobos had gone bad. One flipped the other over a bridge further up stream and the swift current disposed of him.

Lets back up to December 26th when we had a Wonderful Life moment. A fire hydrant. An empty pavement, and a young man kneeling, holding a girl’s ring finger. Can only mean one thing. “He’s proposing”, I squealed. John spun the car and we caught up  just outside the Church by the Sea. Yes, Will had indeed just proposed to Tiffany.  I asked why there, on the pavement? Will shrugged colouring from pink to puce. The “joy-full” couple were not surprisingly bemused by these eccentric Brits curious about spontaneous gestures which would change their lives. We wish them well.

Boxing Day was a day to hit the sales in the Malls. Fort Lauderdale’s upmarket Galleria Mall with Macys and Neiman Marcus, (otherwise known as Needless Mark Up) was a far more pleasant experience than the heaving scrum we encountered at Sawrgrass Mills, designer discount shops.

Excursions with Eileen, John’s mother visiting during the Holidays, included our beach playground near Eileen‘s hotel, the playground at the Church by the sea, Miami South Beach and the Miami Sea Aquarium with an orca, dolphins, manatees, a pirate playground and a fair ground. The Ferris wheel gave an excellent view of downtown Miami..

After Eileen returned to the UK we returned from our time out to the life of fixing Seraphim, and what a lot there is to do. The cockpit tent was taken off making us feel like a yacht again, not a caravan.
Part of the reason the Seraphims are burning savings on the dock is that another and another and another thing needs fixing, also, it’s easy. The tenacious rootlets start growing as the lines are tied to the dock.  No in and out of dinghy, just onto the dock. No life jackets on and off.  No bags of rubbish, bags of stuff, in and out of the dinghy, just into a rubbish bin onshore. Electricity and easy access is conducive to landlubberly-ness.  Also, although the outside temperatures were cold in mid January, the water was 70 degrees. It is warmer up the river because it is shallow and not open to the ocean.

Balancing boat maintenance, yacht broking, writing articles, oh, and everyday domestics including children and school is a real stretch for us. If the children are more naughty than usual we threaten them with “Dockwise home”.  The most workable childcare arrangement is when John and I  take turns, as at home. However, 24/7 childcare for over a year is wearing.

Fortunately we have some excellent playgrounds nearby  plus the Museum of Science and Discovery which after 5 hours of non-stop play is reasonable at $29 for an adult and two children. I also saw the spectacular James Cameron blockbuster, “Avatar” at the AutoNation IMAX cinema next to the Museum. On the other end of the cinematic scale was the family outing to “Alvin and the Chipmunks”  at the fifteen screen drive In.

On a literally freezing Saturday casting around for warm child friendly fun, John headed for the local movie house and Alvin, again. The boys literally danced in the aisles. (We avoid attractions and museums at weekends, too full, too mad.) The Riverfront flea pit rescued us again with “The Tooth Fairy“.

Whilst John had a day of WIFI and electronic nitty gritty, the excellent Miami Children’s Museum and I, entertained the boys. $36, £12 each was steep but you pays-for what-you-gets, and six hours of top quality “play”, was worth it.  Miami and Port Discovery in Baltimore come joint first out of ten for children’s museums on the US east coast. In our order of preference: Wilmington North Carolina,  Fort Lauderdale (2 visits) Charleston, Portsmouth, Manhattan, Annapolis and South Myrtle Beach.
Young At Art, in Davie near Fort Lauderdale, provided a palate (sic) of arts and crafts for children.


It’s not just the comfortable dock, it’s the city. Marina Mile provides all kind of facilities such as West Marine, the vast Sailorman New and Used Marine Store, WIFI experts, Diesel experts, and all kinds of experts to do with all kinds of boats. 
Then there are the cinemas, shopping malls, Starbucks and Publix all in the area. All things lovely but lubberly. Enough already, it was time to get off the dock.

 Returning the hire car is the best way to re-focus on setting off. We have returned four hire cars so far. I have provisioned for the Bahamas six times, so far.
Some hours when John is up to his elbows in grease, oil and/or ugly bilge gunge I watch the boys play fire trucks or trains or just let off steam, on the dock. Ditto, if John is working on “topsides“, (the deck), they play beside him, on the dock. Several locals walking their dogs or toddlers stop to chat “forcing” John to take a break.

And we were ready to go. When yet another !?!!ing thing needed fixing.

31st January. And another, and another. Seven false starts.

Re-commissioning  the watermaker involved waiting for a new part to be couriered from Trinidad. It arrived. It broke. John searched out another in Marina Mile.
Then it was the loo pump out system which five years ago, we now discovered, had been installed back to front, and required new parts and contortionist tricks by John.
The wind generator and the stereo both died on the same day. It was not just a matter of buying a new wind generator. John checked three times with the sales guy that the new generator would fit on our existing pole. Yes, three times he said it would. No, after wasting an evening try to make it fit it did not. A great deal of time (and hire car costs) is wasted in such buy, fit, not fit, return exercises.

And whilst John was extending our US Cruising Permit the customs officer pointed out that the Ship’s Register Certificate for Seraphim is up in May.  Phone calls and Fedex to the Register of Ships in the UK, and a wait. It did not help that the receptionist at the Registry of Ships left the $55 Fedex envelope gathering dust when it arrived in UK.

I wonder if we’ll ever ever get off this dock. But, as ever with these times of stress and challenge an angel is sent. This time in the form of Jennifer who lives in the huge apartment block next to the boat. Jennifer used to live on a boat and understands our travails in the valley of boat maintenance, and children, and etc ….. So she, her washing machine, top floor swimming pool and games with her little boy Andrew and husband Paul have saved us. That and the odd outing such as the deafening ride on an airboat over the Everglades at the Sawgrass Recreation Area. It is home to various creatures such as black panthers, wolves, a cougar and alligators.

A trip down memory lane took us to lunch at the Seawatch in Lauderdale on Sea, a fine restaurant where John had dined with his father seventeen years ago. After an outstanding seafood lunch the boys played on the beach away from the water line which was littered with Portuguese Men of War.

 The Result of the Week was found in the Annual Nautical Flea Market (think a small Beaulieu Boat Jumble) in the form of a fold up bicycle to replace one of ours which had given up to rust.
So, we wait for the return of our Ships Register Certificate, say goodbye to our wedding present wind generator, fit the second new wind generator and see what next.