Trawler Forum - View Single Post

Hippocampus · 12-12-2021, 11:47 AM

C sounds like you have your head on straight. So will go beyond B&Bs and my prior polite posts. Don’t think at this time nor in the future you and your boat should do the Caribbean. Have cruised the Caribbean seeing every country except Barbados.
The leewards aren’t what they were. Way too commercialized. Might as well stay in Miami. Other than the National park St. John’s ain’t much. PR has some nice spots like Calubria but in general is a pass. The windwards are better. Still some reefs that are alive and fish to see. Still some fairly empty spaces. Our rule over 8 years evolved to avoid any country that had cruise ships or charter fleets. Don’t know you and what you like but if it’s natural beauty and peace and harmony it’s gotten more difficult to find.
Still a lot of the Bahamas is undeveloped. The Bahamas aren’t part of the Caribbean for the cruiser. The Bahamas are flat. The Caribbean islands are mountainous. The surrounding waters of the Caribbean islands are very deep very rapidly. This makes a huge difference when cruising. Weather on the Atlantic side v Caribbean ocean side of the Caribbean islands is hugely different. Seastate between the mountainous Caribbean islands is strikingly different. There’s even underwater active volcanoes like kick em genny to avoid. Although you hug the leeward coast traveling behind an island you often go miles to seaward between islands to avoid compression zones or refraction areas. These are beam seas so uncomfortable and even dangerous. There’s funneling of the winds between mountains on a particular island and downdrafts at other spots. In short you need a stout strong seaboat to comfortably cruise . Don’t think you’re on a suitable vessel even if you secure the local knowledge to avoid the usual hotspots.
The Bahamas are different than the Caribbean. No mountains and skinny water. Weather is very seasonal. Not as much hyperlocal weather. No north swell and no searching to find a safe spot for the amount of chain you carry. Just as beautiful in some ways but very different than the Caribbean. Think the Bahamas are in your reach and can be done safely. If you want to see St.John rent a room and a Jeep.

12-12-2021, 11:47 AM	#12
Hippocampus Guru City: Newport, R.I. Vessel Name: Hippocampus Vessel Model: Nordic Tug 42 Join Date: Jul 2020 Posts: 3,043	C sounds like you have your head on straight. So will go beyond B&Bs and my prior polite posts. Don’t think at this time nor in the future you and your boat should do the Caribbean. Have cruised the Caribbean seeing every country except Barbados. The leewards aren’t what they were. Way too commercialized. Might as well stay in Miami. Other than the National park St. John’s ain’t much. PR has some nice spots like Calubria but in general is a pass. The windwards are better. Still some reefs that are alive and fish to see. Still some fairly empty spaces. Our rule over 8 years evolved to avoid any country that had cruise ships or charter fleets. Don’t know you and what you like but if it’s natural beauty and peace and harmony it’s gotten more difficult to find. Still a lot of the Bahamas is undeveloped. The Bahamas aren’t part of the Caribbean for the cruiser. The Bahamas are flat. The Caribbean islands are mountainous. The surrounding waters of the Caribbean islands are very deep very rapidly. This makes a huge difference when cruising. Weather on the Atlantic side v Caribbean ocean side of the Caribbean islands is hugely different. Seastate between the mountainous Caribbean islands is strikingly different. There’s even underwater active volcanoes like kick em genny to avoid. Although you hug the leeward coast traveling behind an island you often go miles to seaward between islands to avoid compression zones or refraction areas. These are beam seas so uncomfortable and even dangerous. There’s funneling of the winds between mountains on a particular island and downdrafts at other spots. In short you need a stout strong seaboat to comfortably cruise . Don’t think you’re on a suitable vessel even if you secure the local knowledge to avoid the usual hotspots. The Bahamas are different than the Caribbean. No mountains and skinny water. Weather is very seasonal. Not as much hyperlocal weather. No north swell and no searching to find a safe spot for the amount of chain you carry. Just as beautiful in some ways but very different than the Caribbean. Think the Bahamas are in your reach and can be done safely. If you want to see St.John rent a room and a Jeep.