Abacos Report

[newlazydays]

I just spent a month in the Abacos. My boat was sunk in Hurricane Dorian and I returned to re-float the boat and get rid of it. The following is the latest that I both observed and heard whilst I was there. Things can change by the day but to the best of my knowledge the following is correct as of March 1 2020.

Feel free to correct me if you know better.

The eye of the storm was about 20 miles across covering from somewhere just north of Green Turtle Cay to about Lynyard Cay. Outside the eye the damage is far less than inside.

GreenTurtle Cay. The dinghy dock is gone. The big public dock is OK and RO water can be obtained there. Only one boat survived in Black Sound, and even that one was damaged. White Sound took a pounding. The Green Turtle Club has fuel and some dockage. The club itself is supposed to open soon. Bluff House Marina was pretty well wiped out. The bar etc is closed. Some moorings are available. You cannot clear in at Green Turtle. Suggest you do that at West End if coming round the top of Grand Bahama. Power has been restored on Green Turtle.

Treasure Cay. Treasure Cay was totally trashed. Many of the hotel rooms and condos are being ripped down, The marina is trashed. Moorings are available in the bay. There are still some sunken boats in the marina yet to be removed. There is one very small store opening for basic food. The supermarket is a heap of rubble. RO water is available but you will have to use containers and lug it to the boat. The fuel dock is open but badly damaged. Florence’s Coffee Shop and Bakery opened about a week ago. Lots of trash and rubble about the place but slow progress is being made. There is no power on as yet..

Leisure Lee. The Morrings boats are scattered inland and one catamaran even made its way over the road and now lies upside down in the bush.

Marsh Harbour. A real disaster area. The Mud has been scraped clean and a fence put round it. Standard Hardware is gone. Ace is trading but in limited fashion. There are some sunken boats in the bay and both the Conch Inn and the Gibroom exist no more. The light at the entrance to the harbour is gone. The Bahamas Defence Force is camped by the Public Dock. The dock itself still in need of repair. Dinghy to the inside end and use the concrete steps. You can clear in at Marsh Harbour. Maxwells is up and running. Many other businesses are still closed. There is still no power.

Elbow Cay. Hope Town took a pounding. The lighthouse still stands. Lighthouse Marina trashed but fuel is available to small boats. The other marina also damaged but looks like work is progressing to get it up to scratch again. Captain Jacks trashed. The Harbour Lodge badly damaged. The bar is closed and the pool too. Not sure if Lowes is open. I was there on a Sunday. I think the coffee shop might be closed as well.

I didn’t get down to Tahiti Beach or Lubbers Quarters but I believe Lubbers took a ponding as well.

Man o War. Lots of boats up on Dickies Cay, plus a couple of boats sunk in the anchorage. Edwins Boat Yard open for business. The ice cream shop flourishes. You can eat at the restaurant next door. The power people are working on restoring power…..but no word on when that might happen. The old wooden schooner The William H. Albury was sunk but has been re-floated. The Old Sail Shop is gone.

Great Guana. Lots of damage. Nippers gone but being rebuilt. Grabbers flattened but work progressing to re-estabish. Both marinas badly damaged. Fuel available at Orchid Bay. (I think) I saw Troy’s dive boat, so I guess he is in business.

Bakers Bay. Didn’t get there.

I took a road trip down to Little Harbour which seemed to have escaped major injury. Interestingly as you drive south you quite suddenly come out of the dead tree zone into green trees again. A very defined line.

The road between Marsh Harbour and Treasure Cay was badly pot holed but when coming down today most of the holes have been filled in.


The Abacos badly needs patronage again, so don't be put of with a few setbacks. The water is still great, there are plenty of crayfish and the breeze makes for some great sailing!

[GeoPowers]

Thank you for this. We’re slowly headed northbound from Eleuthera and were wondering where aid was most needed. Plan on staying at least a few weeks.

[overextendedfp]

Originally Posted by newlazydays

I just spent a month in the Abacos. My boat was sunk in Hurricane Dorian and I returned to re-float the boat and get rid of it. The following is the latest that I both observed and heard whilst I was there. Things can change by the day but to the best of my knowledge the following is correct as of March 1 2020.

Feel free to correct me if you know better.

The eye of the storm was about 20 miles across covering from somewhere just north of Green Turtle Cay to about Lynyard Cay. Outside the eye the damage is far less than inside.

GreenTurtle Cay. The dinghy dock is gone. The big public dock is OK and RO water can be obtained there. Only one boat survived in Black Sound, and even that one was damaged. White Sound took a pounding. The Green Turtle Club has fuel and some dockage. The club itself is supposed to open soon. Bluff House Marina was pretty well wiped out. The bar etc is closed. Some moorings are available. You cannot clear in at Green Turtle. Suggest you do that at West End if coming round the top of Grand Bahama. Power has been restored on Green Turtle.

Treasure Cay. Treasure Cay was totally trashed. Many of the hotel rooms and condos are being ripped down, The marina is trashed. Moorings are available in the bay. There are still some sunken boats in the marina yet to be removed. There is one very small store opening for basic food. The supermarket is a heap of rubble. RO water is available but you will have to use containers and lug it to the boat. The fuel dock is open but badly damaged. Florence’s Coffee Shop and Bakery opened about a week ago. Lots of trash and rubble about the place but slow progress is being made. There is no power on as yet..

Leisure Lee. The Morrings boats are scattered inland and one catamaran even made its way over the road and now lies upside down in the bush.

Marsh Harbour. A real disaster area. The Mud has been scraped clean and a fence put round it. Standard Hardware is gone. Ace is trading but in limited fashion. There are some sunken boats in the bay and both the Conch Inn and the Gibroom exist no more. The light at the entrance to the harbour is gone. The Bahamas Defence Force is camped by the Public Dock. The dock itself still in need of repair. Dinghy to the inside end and use the concrete steps. You can clear in at Marsh Harbour. Maxwells is up and running. Many other businesses are still closed. There is still no power.

Elbow Cay. Hope Town took a pounding. The lighthouse still stands. Lighthouse Marina trashed but fuel is available to small boats. The other marina also damaged but looks like work is progressing to get it up to scratch again. Captain Jacks trashed. The Harbour Lodge badly damaged. The bar is closed and the pool too. Not sure if Lowes is open. I was there on a Sunday. I think the coffee shop might be closed as well.

I didn’t get down to Tahiti Beach or Lubbers Quarters but I believe Lubbers took a ponding as well.

Man o War. Lots of boats up on Dickies Cay, plus a couple of boats sunk in the anchorage. Edwins Boat Yard open for business. The ice cream shop flourishes. You can eat at the restaurant next door. The power people are working on restoring power…..but no word on when that might happen. The old wooden schooner The William H. Albury was sunk but has been re-floated. The Old Sail Shop is gone.

Great Guana. Lots of damage. Nippers gone but being rebuilt. Grabbers flattened but work progressing to re-estabish. Both marinas badly damaged. Fuel available at Orchid Bay. (I think) I saw Troy’s dive boat, so I guess he is in business.

Bakers Bay. Didn’t get there.

I took a road trip down to Little Harbour which seemed to have escaped major injury. Interestingly as you drive south you quite suddenly come out of the dead tree zone into green trees again. A very defined line.

The road between Marsh Harbour and Treasure Cay was badly pot holed but when coming down today most of the holes have been filled in.


The Abacos badly needs patronage again, so don't be put of with a few setbacks. The water is still great, there are plenty of crayfish and the breeze makes for some great sailing!

Question for you on the boats and such that are sunk is anybody marking them with any type of float so that if somebody does go over there they won't run over something underwater.... That would be my main concern

[kcj]

Thx for update.

Any report on btc cell service in the abacos?

Best

[a64pilot]

I was all over the Abaco’s, I didn’t see a single sink boat that wasn’t at a dock or otherwise very obvious, saw nothing in the water except one piece of roofing tin in the water off of Green Turtle.
Cell phone service was the same as last year, there were one or two temporary cell towers set up, but they worked fine.
I also saw no difference in depths anywhere, no channels silted in or anything, now that surprised me the most cause in Fl for every Hurricane it changes channels, opens some and closes others.

However of course the Bahamas are now closed and will not allow any boats to enter.

[steamgoat]

BTC is ok ALIV is the preferred service. I am in Green Turtle on BTC.

[kcj]

Thanks for info! Hope to be passing thru in a couple of weeks...

[newlazydays]

"Question for you on the boats and such that are sunk is anybody marking them with any type of float so that if somebody does go over there they won't run over something underwater.... That would be my main concern."



The boats I saw sunk were in Marsh Harbour and the channel between Man O War and Dickies Cay......Man o War Harbour. You can easily see them in daylight.


Note, my original posting was March 1......it's over a month later now and I am thousands of miles from the Bahamas. Hopefully people visiting will up date my information as it changes.

[hpeer]

Question:

Do the charts remain sufficiently accurate to run from Green Turtle to Marsh?
Also from Green Turtle back across the bank?
How is the channel into Green Turtle? We are 6-1/2’ and were restricted to the top half of the tide in 2016.

How did you make out with your boat?

[newlazydays]

It would help if you mentioned your draft. However I crossed the bank from Treasure Cay to Green Turtle in a friend's Trader.....4.5 feet ......no problem and I have often done the same trip in my boat with 5.5 feet near high tide and touched once. Watch the swell coming in though Whale Cay. The charts are fine for getting around. I don't think much has changed.

[hpeer]

Yes, we are 6-1/2’. Six and one half feet draft.

[a64pilot]

Getting past the first marker or two is the trick to Green Turtle, if you can do that the rest is easy.
With a draft of 6’6” I wouldn’t try until a couple of hours before high tide, I have seen at least one boat go aground on a rising tide that just had to wait a few hours and then go on.
The trick of course is to not try it on a falling tide, and I won’t do it at high tide either, I want to be in a rising tide.
We are taking Black sound? Keep to the right, right by where it says sign is the shallowest point.
If white Sound, best to call Donny and write his instructions down

[a64pilot]

I would not attempt Don’t rock passage, just too easy to go around the Whale, why temp fate?

[newlazydays]

At 6.5 feet draft I would not go through Don't Rock passage. Go round the Whale. I never understood people's fear of this short trip into the ocean. I have done it dozens of times, even once in a "rage". If there is any sort of onshore wind give the Whale a wide berth and make sure your engine is operable. Note that nearly all the poles that used to mark the channel into Baker's Bay are gone.

[hpeer]

All I am trying to find out is if the marked channels are still there. I’ve been in and out of Whale and Green Turtle. I’m just asking if it is the same or shallower or deeper than before the hurricane.

What I hear you saying is the Green Turtle entrance has not changed. And also your experience is the charts are still pretty accurate.