travel to the carribean

[rardoin]

Originally Posted by BandB

Sorry but Bahamas are 5,300 sq miles and Caribbean is 106,000 sq miles.

Bahamas could easily be tucked into a corner of the Caribbean.

I presume Group9 was referring to land mass. ?? Windward and Leeward islands.

[BandB]

Originally Posted by rardoin

I presume Group9 was referring to land mass. ??

Regardless, no comparison.

[Group9]

Originally Posted by BandB

Sorry but Bahamas are 5,300 sq miles and Caribbean is 106,000 sq miles.

Bahamas could easily be tucked into a corner of the Caribbean.

I’m sorry, I’m just not looking for a fight. Go look somewhere else.

[BandB]

Originally Posted by Group9

I’m sorry, I’m just not looking for a fight. Go look somewhere else.

Not fighting, just don't want to give the OP a misimpression so retrieved facts. Didn't argue at all with the rest of your post or your opinions offered. Perhaps you were intending the comparison to a certain part of the Caribbean or a few islands. If so, that would be clearer.

[charlesamilton]

my travel dreams seem to be changing to the loop, then the keys,then to the bahamas, that doesn't sound so bad now does it. Interesting hearing all the different perspectives but a common thread seems to be throughout. I still have New England to discover this summer, Newport, Block, Nantucket, New York harbor, the sound, Mystic, Watch Hill, MV, the cape, hey maybe Ill just stay here and save some diesel !

[diver dave]

Emotionally, the beginning of the "Caribbean" starts for the SE bound vessels beyond "Chicken Harbour" AKA Georgetown Exuma.

[BandB]

Originally Posted by diver dave

Emotionally, the beginning of the "Caribbean" starts for the SE bound vessels beyond "Chicken Harbour" AKA Georgetown Exuma.

So true and for many Turks and Caicos are sort of the jumping off spot as they cross from the Atlantic to the Caribbean, often with first stop in the Caribbean being the Dominican Republic.

The Lucayan Archipelago consists of the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Now, all this is getting to the Eastern Caribbean. The Western Caribbean is reached primarily two ways. One is from the Eastern. The other is from Key West or Cuba. Cuba is actually in the Northern Caribbean.

[Hippocampus]

Many sailors land in Antigua or like the ARC St.Lucia when crossing east to west.

Many get to western Caribbean from west coast via the Panama Canal. Know folks who went windwards, ABCs, San Bas. With the craziness on the mainland coast in recent years people are concerned about pirates around the ABCs but Bonnair still has great appeal for those who dive. So folks continue to go that way. There’s a separate gyre in the southern Caribbean Sea. Easier to go south portion of it when heading west. The Spanish used the north portion to transport their gold which may explain in part why some islands are Spanish speaking and others English. Of course the outliers are the Danes and Portuguese.

[bumpkin]

Originally Posted by LsaissLai

The best month to travel will depend on your route and where you want to go, but generally speaking, the best time to cruise the Caribbean is from December to April. There are a few different routes you can take when cruising to the Caribbean, but the most popular route is from Florida to the Bahamas. This route is popular because it is relatively short, and there are many islands to explore in the Bahamas. You can find many other exciting routes to explore at https://www.freetour.com/. I always make all my trip plan with the information from there.

Hello Lsaisslai always good to see new people.

I'm currently in Florida and docked next to a motor boater, recommending going in May and staying until storm activity starts to pick up. He says any earlier and the wind blows too much.

I hate to go against local knowledge, but it sounds too warm then. I'm planning to bump across in January for a month or so.

Mike

[mvweebles]

Caribbean is a pretty large body of water. Maybe be a bit more specific in trip endpoints? Trip from Tampa to Roatan bears little resemblance to trip from Ft Lauderdale to Puerto Rico; yet both are roughly similar distances.

Also, Pilot Charts are a good starting place for research. May is a good month for the passage, but butts-up against Hurricane season pretty quickly.

Peter

[Mike Lowthian]

Ahoy. I don't post much but have to put my 2 cents in. Had a 42 Ocean Alexander for a long time and circumnavigated the Caribbean - south from Cuba, across to Mexico and gunk holed all the way to Venezuela. Crossed over to Grenada and turned north hitting every island in the way back to the Bahamas. took a long time, 2 or 3 months at a time over 10 years. Best time of my life! Don't listen to all the nay sayers. Most have never done it. Load up on charts and the right cruising guides. Watch for the right weather. Stay away from the open ocean as much as you can and go for it. You will not regret it. Good luck.

[SailorGreg]

Originally Posted by charlesamilton

my travel dreams seem to be changing to the loop, then the keys,then to the bahamas, that doesn't sound so bad now does it. Interesting hearing all the different perspectives but a common thread seems to be throughout. I still have New England to discover this summer, Newport, Block, Nantucket, New York harbor, the sound, Mystic, Watch Hill, MV, the cape, hey maybe Ill just stay here and save some diesel !

Sounds like a a better plan. Yes you could get to the Caribbean in that boat, probably. But once you got there I don’t think you would enjoy it all that much. Better in a much bigger power boat or a sailboat.
After three seasons in the Caribbean ( sailing) and seven in the Bahamas, mostly power, and many, many trips through Maine and New England, I suspect that of all the options you mention, the least compatible with your boat, and most difficult to get to, is the Caribbean.
First off, the Caribbean can be really crowded in season. Take a look at Marine Traffic. For many areas, anchoring space is limited to the edges of shelfs and drop offs, so congested. Read Hippocampus stuff carefully. You might spend a month at one island before it is safe for you to make the short passage in open water to the next island.
One quick example, We were on a heavy ocean going sailboat and used 6’ seas and 25 knots as the go/ no go for travel between high sided islands. If the forecast said 6 and 25, we would expect 10’ and gusting 35-40 in the compression zone. And that is normal trade winds conditions. Think 10’ short period, on the beam. In your boat. Survivable, yes, enjoyable, I don’t think so.
After our third season in the Caribbean we came back through the Bahamas. Loved it. Wouldn’t even consider going back to the Caribbean. The water in the Bahamas is incredibly clear. You can anchor most anywhere, often by yourself. Still, plenty of challenges here. Cold fronts come once a week or so, provisioning can be a challenge, and you really need a water maker. You will be on your own for repairs, etc.
We are SCUBA qualified and dove quite a bit in the Caribbean. But the snorkeling in the Bahamas is outstanding. No tanks needed. On todays snorkel trip we saw three nurse sharks, one curious reef shark, got up close to many turtles, had a spotted eagle ray swim underneath us, all six feet of him. Cool. Typical day.
You might enjoy our blog: mvprivateer.com. Lots of Bahamas stuff, as well as ways to get there .
Greg

[Sealife]

Bahamas had way too many sharks for me when spearfishing. The water was also too cold, I like 80°F. There is a larger cruising community and BASRA. Once you leave there, you are kind of self sufficient. We found the harder it is too get to, the more rewarding it was. I would highly recommend a water maker, if not for money, it is very convenient and takes away any questions about quality. Fuel capacity and range is important further down island and especially in Western Caribbean because of availability and more importantly quality.

[Sealife]

I will also add: bring absolutely everything you will need. It is either extremely expensive or of poor quality in our experience.

[Hippocampus]

Have not done the thornless path. Have done passage between Newport to Antigua or BVI a dozen. Have done every island except Barbuda and Saba in the entire chain several times . Even forgetting passage and doing the thornless path wouldn’t do this on 36’SD hull. Inter island travel can be nasty due to compression zones.

[charlesamilton]

I am preparing for the loop then the bahamas, f the carribean, my newbiness will take his sweet gb where it is most happy and that makes me happy!!

[slowgoesit]

Good on you! The loop will make a hellava shakedown cruise for your boat!

[cardude01]

Originally Posted by charlesamilton

I am preparing for the loop then the bahamas, f the carribean, my newbiness will take his sweet gb where it is most happy and that makes me happy!!

Great idea. The Bahamas are awesome. I could cruise there forever.

[mvweebles]

Originally Posted by charlesamilton

I am preparing for the loop then the bahamas, f the carribean, my newbiness will take his sweet gb where it is most happy and that makes me happy!!

We are preparing to head south from Ensenada, MX, south of San Diego. While my wife has a fair amount of experience (to use a skiing analogy, she's a "Blue" slope cruiser), she is worried about unknown, or difficult conditions. So we will make decisions along the way based on the knowledge and experience we've developed at the time of the decision, not before.

By the time you need to make a decision whether to explore the Caribbean or not, you will know so much more than you do now. No sense muddling your thinking with 'what-ifs' until then. Hard part is shoving-off. After that, decisions are easy.

Peter

[Hippocampus]

Timing for many is determined by insurance. Being in the hurricane zone june 1 to nov1 is expensive. We either did the salty Dawg rally to/from Newport RI (sometime via Hampton Va) or went south of 10S to not violate the terms of insurance.
If you are on your own boat there’s no viable reason to stay in any island where cruise ships land or there are charter boat fleets. It’s a totally different experience if you avoid those overcrowded places. You also get to avoid those down for just one week so feel the need to stay drunk, obnoxious, loud and disobey rules of the road. They feel the need to pack it in so some ruin the experience for others. Sure most people are considerate but there’s also a few bad eggs anywhere you go.
Where the island isn’t totaled dependent upon tourist dollars the culture is different and in many respect more pleasant. Think it’s fine to travel through the leewards as they do have much to offer but generally a one and done thing. Whereas you can fully enjoy hanging out in the windwards for years and years.