Meandering Magees: Bimini

Sunday, April 1, 2018
143 miles to Bimini

We are in the Bahamas. On our OWN boat! I’m so excited I just had to start with that.

We left Marathon at 7:30 Saturday morning and entered the Bimini harbor at 2:15. About 10:15, the water started getting a little snippy with us. (how’s that for a nautical term?). We figured we were about in the middle of the Gulf Stream. That only lasted an hour and the ocean got calmed down for a really comfortable ride into Bimini. We were 45 minutes from the harbor when we brought True North to a stop. All foreign boats (and that is what we are here) have to fly a quarantine flag until the boat and crew are cleared by Bahamian Customs and Immigration. We needed to hoist our yellow flag, and I had visions of September 2016 when we bobbed in Lake Michigan while I climbed on the hardtop to lower our antennas. This was easier. I just unzipped the isinglass on the flybridge and was able to ziptie the flag to the antenna.

Once in the harbor, we could see the marina – Bimini Blue Water Marina – but couldn’t get any staff to answer our calls on the radio. We finally got close enough that we saw a guy in a blue shirt at the end of a dock and assumed that was where we were suppose to go.

Only the captain is allowed to get off the boat, and that is to go to the Customs and Immigration offices (2 separate buildings on Bimini). Everyone else has to stay on the boat until the clearing process is complete. We had our paperwork all printed and filled out (4 pages) to speed up the process. And since we are over 35 feet in length, our fee to be in the Bahamas for 90 days is $300 (cash only). That is good for up to 4 people and includes fishing licenses for all aboard.

At the beginning of our Loop, Greg established himself as the captain of True North when he put a label on Mike’s Yeti that said “True North” and a label on his identical Yeti that said “Captain”. So it was Greg who walked the several blocks carrying the folder with the paperwork, cash and passports to clear customs. Shortly after he left, Mike and I realized he probably wasn’t the person to send as he would stop and talk to every fisherman along the way! Fortunately, he was only gone about 35 minutes.

Everyone comments on how clear the water is here. You have to experience it up close to really understand it. Coming in, we could see bottom in 39 ft. of water. At our dock, we can see the sandy bottom perfectly, including all the critters! (see pictures below).

We discovered it was Homecoming weekend in Bimini. Our first clue was the loud music blaring from the street outside the marina. Homecoming here is not quite like back home, where it revolves around school graduates. On this weekend, everyone who is from Bimini and now lives elsewhere (other islands, the U.S., Europe, etc) comes home and it is a weekend long party. If Key West is laid back, the Bahamas cranks that up a notch!

We got a look at another marina close by – the Bimini Big Game Club – as we went to the bar/restaurant there to watch the first half of the Michigan-Loyola basketball game.

We realized that our Blue Water marina is the Motel 6 and the Big Game Club is the Marriott. That would be my doing. I made the reservation and went for the less expensive dockage. Ok. . . the cheapest. Most of the other marinas we will be staying at look to be nicer (a.k.a more expensive), so we are good with our 2 nights at Blue Water. The dock hand here knows his stuff and is quite pleasant. The power is excellent (that is a big thing for us), and there is even a small pool so Greg can do his arm therapy.

Fixing a loose handle on the boat took up most of Easter Sunday afternoon, followed by some time at the beautiful beach. I know I will be using that phrase “beautiful beach” often while blogging about the Bahamas, but it is an accurate description.

Late afternoon another Looper boat, Loofah III docked behind us. We only had a phone conversation with them back in Marathon so it was nice to meet Art and Sue in person.

Mike was up on the flybridge and saw a parade coming down the street. He told me to hustle out there with my camera. The local Baptist church does an annual Easter parade. Heading one way down the street, the small band played “This Little Light of Mine”, with the walkers and golf cart riders singing along. On the way back, the sounds of “Majesty . . . worship His majesty” stirred my soul. An appropriate feeling on Easter.

We plan to head to Great Harbour Cay (pronounced “key”) in the Berry Islands on Monday morning.

Can I say it one more time – we are in the Bahamas. On our OWN boat!!