Keeping a boat in Nassau: Hurricanes?

[Rdubs]

Hi everyone
Hope you are doing well.
I have a 46' sailboat that, due to the limited amounts of time I am able to take off work, I am considering keeping in Nassau. So we can fly in, jump on and be ~60 miles from nice places to sail to and explore. Found a pretty nice marina on the Southeast portion of the island, protected in a small harbor. But, not sure what the conventional wisdom is concerning hurricane season. Do most folks who keep their boats there just leave them and hope for the best, or do people move their boats somewhere else out of the way when the season starts, or something else?
Many thanks,
'Dubs

[Shrew]

Originally Posted by Rdubs

Hi everyone
Hope you are doing well.
I have a 46' sailboat that, due to the limited amounts of time I am able to take off work, I am considering keeping in Nassau. So we can fly in, jump on and be ~60 miles from nice places to sail to and explore. Found a pretty nice marina on the Southeast portion of the island, protected in a small harbor. But, not sure what the conventional wisdom is concerning hurricane season. Do most folks who keep their boats there just leave them and hope for the best, or do people move their boats somewhere else out of the way when the season starts, or something else?
Many thanks,
'Dubs

Out of the way would be Grenada or New England. The latter is still susceptible in Late Sept-October, just not as common as Florida or SC.

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by Rdubs

Hi everyone
Hope you are doing well.
I have a 46' sailboat that, due to the limited amounts of time I am able to take off work, I am considering keeping in Nassau. So we can fly in, jump on and be ~60 miles from nice places to sail to and explore. Found a pretty nice marina on the Southeast portion of the island, protected in a small harbor. But, not sure what the conventional wisdom is concerning hurricane season. Do most folks who keep their boats there just leave them and hope for the best, or do people move their boats somewhere else out of the way when the season starts, or something else?
Many thanks,
'Dubs

Check with your insurer first. Palm Cay seems secure but with a hurricane all bets are off.

[Tingum]

Abaco Yacht Service on GTC in Abaco has one of the best tie down systems anywhere. Not as convenient flight wise as Nassau but who in the right minds wants to go to Nassau?

[GordMay]

Palm Cay Marina

[Rdubs]

Yes, Palm Cay is it, but how does it fair in a hurricane? More specifically, how do the boats fare?

[akprb]

If it gets a direct hit like Chub Cay did a few years ago it is toast, simple as that.

Short of taking her down to Trinidad (Grenada had Ivan) or up to New England you are just rolling the dice. I've had ours go through Matthew and Irma, Florida for one and Emerald Bay Marina on Great Exuma for the other. Did fine both times with just some dock rash on the port side.

Check with your insurance, BoatUS covered us in the Bahamas at little expense and when you leave for that part of the year take down your canvas and jib, double up your lines and knock on wood.

[Lowcountry]

The Bahamas are a magnet for hurricanes. Those islands are affected by them virtually every year. If I had to leave my boat in the Bahamas for hurricane season, I would haul her out, strap her down and remove every bit of windage that I could. I wouldn't consider leaving her in the water for a second, but that's just me.

[mitgroup]

Nassau is in the hurricane zone as insurance regards it. Therefore before you make any decisions to leave your boat south in summer, check your cover and ask your insurer what they will and will not cover. A lot of boat owners doing what you want to do take their boats to Trinidad which is south of the “hurricane belt”. Check out Chaguaramas. If you choose to leave it on the hard, again ask your insurer for guidance.

[Windship60]

We had our boat in Hurricane hole on Paradise Island during Mathew a couple of years ago which was a direct hit. Apparently it was the worst storm since 1960 is what we were told. All the boats in the marina were fine except for minor damage to those who left canvas up or the sport fishing boats with the outriggers. Atlantis is the safest and is first come, first serve during a hurricane. I also have heard that Palm Cay fared OK from some of the boaters I have talked to. We have had our boat in Nassau now for the last 3-4 years, enjoy not having to cross the gulf stream every time family and friends come down. If you have a yearly lease then a number of marina rates are decent a $1/foot/day.
For sure, make sure your insurance company is OK with the location.

[TBW]

In Nassau now. No place around here you are going to hide if a hurricane comes. All kinds of places around the islands not rebuilt or trying to rebuild from "last" hurricane. Previously mentioned Chub Cay is beautiful. But it was really torn up in 2016. Many millions in rebuild from very deep pockets owner. Look at all of the insurance companies that have completely pulled out the entire state of Florida - for houses; never mind a boat. You would have to have something you can walk away from.

[Scaramanga F25]

I have used Abaco Yacht Services for my 41 footer a few years during summers. On the hard. Strip it down. They have one piece cradles at max beam.
Good labour rates and anti-fouling paint. Fly into Marsh Harbour. Ferry to Green Turtle Key, Give them a call a day before arrival and it will be in the water ready to go. The big plus is the much better sailing ground.

[Lowcountry]

Originally Posted by Scaramanga F25

I have used Abaco Yacht Services for my 41 footer a few years during summers. On the hard. Strip it down. They have one piece cradles at max beam.
Good labour rates and anti-fouling paint. Fly into Marsh Harbour. Ferry to Green Turtle Key, Give them a call a day before arrival and it will be in the water ready to go. The big plus is the much better sailing ground.

I've thought about storing my next boat here. I'd try to keep her in the water on a ball from mid-November until July 3 or so, then haul out at Abaco Yacht Services (or Marsh Harbour Boatyard) and strip her down to reduce windage. My main concern would be whether or not I could actually get into Black Sound. What is the draft of your vessel? Do you think that with proper timing a boat drawing 5'6" could make it into Black Sound and over to the lift at Abaco Yacht Services?

[Scaramanga F25]

You will not have a problem getting into black sound with 5' 6" draft.

[Cheechako]

How long will you stay each visit? Be aware that often it takes 1-2 days of work getting the boat ready to go after sitting a while. That marina looks as protected as you are going to get. You could move the boat on the hard for July-November. Or do that in Florida