The Bahamas And Florida
Before I even get started I am well aware of the fact this is armchair sailor territory and I will probably have more dislikes than likes writing about my sailing experiences here based my dealings with some of the community, however I am writing this from MY perspective, our experiences and our travels from the southernmost Bahamas to Florida. A foreigner sailing here for the first time not knowing what to expect.
The Bahamas is just incredibly beautiful and up until this point (December 2022) our favorite cruising grounds. St Martin is our favorite island, but the sailing is not as good in my opinion. Saint Martin has pretty strong winds constantly (upwards of 25 knots) and definitely gets wind chop and swells from up North. The Bahamas offers something while not perfect, completely different.
Searching for a place to start is tough so I thought I’d give my outlying synopsis of weather and time of year to sail in these parts.
Truthfully the die-hard will tell you that you can sail here all year round. I have my reservations which I’ll get into below but let’s pretend you want to be out of the Bahamas for hurricane season. This pretty much means you’ll have to leave in June (cutting it fine) and return in November.
We left end of May this year (2022) and started seeing a dramatic shift in conditions since we arrived just 2 months prior. The wind was fairly consistent the entire time however the squalls (rain storms) were becoming more frequent and lightning and thunder were pretty aggressive.
Now we’ve been caught in our fair share of squalls all through the passages we’ve done but the lightning and thunder change the game.
These squalls come in quick and last a few hours. The wind generally changes directions 360 degrees for the duration of them (not good at anchor unless it’s really dug in – good holding) and the lightning is generally all around us.
For us I can see the next season window being from the beginning of November through to the end of June (or somewhere in June) to be in the Bahamas. The rest of the time the USA East coast is the place we’ll be keeping Caribbean Soul. Again everyone has an opinion and the choice of just exactly where you go and how you do it is up to you.
Unless your air draft (distance from waterline to mast top) is less than 64 feet you’re not able to traverse the ITC very much so it means a sail north past Cape Hatteras to the Chesapeake Bay.
You can of course haul your boat out anywhere along the USA East Coast or stay in a marina there if your insurance will cover you. It’s a good idea to consider the potential of any storm damage and if you really want to go through this roll of the dice and then fighting with subcontractors to fix any damage. My opinion – haul out and enjoy land life for a while OR float around the Chesapeake if you can afford to be cruising all year.
For us if we owned a Catamaran we may consider the Chesapeake route as its easier to work at anchor when mostly flat, but as long as we have monohull and work is necessity for us we will likely haul out in Florida and do some land exploring during hurricane season.
The Bahamas is a big island chain and the best / warmest / most protected place to be is further south in the winter months.
Most people won’t venture further south than St Georges / Elizabeth Harbor in the Exumas due to the wind direction becoming more predominantly a beat but Long Island and further South could be warmer, more out of the way of most Northerlies (winter storms and their effects) and definitely less crowded (if you don’t have kids this is a good thing).
To leave The USA East Coast October / November while the weather is still warm is a gamble against hurricane season ending but also a great time for large weather windows to cross the Gulf Stream.
Once across and checked in to the Bahamas a slow sail as far south as you’re willing to go for the colder months would be planned.
Towards the end of spring / beginning of summer a plan to head north through the Bahamas with weather is easily achievable and fun. Depending on where you’re heading to for hurricane season again would determine your launch from the Bahamas to the USA east coast.
This is what we and many people call the Bahamas circuit and a great way to spend most of your time.
It’s also going to be Caribbean Souls journey for the next few seasons.
