Bahamas

[lornec]

Has anyone been to the Bahamas in a Ranger Tug? Is it doable ?
It would be fun to cruise the Abacos once you got across the gulf stream.

 

[trailertrawlerkismet]

Although we have not been to the Abacos in our Ranger Tug we have been in our last boat (40' trawler) 2 times. With that said I feel it would be very doable under proper conditions, I repeat proper conditions. The most ideal weather and water conditions are found March and after but in all crossings you never want to go when there is a north wind and perferrably 24 to 48 hours after a north wind from any direction (NNW, NNW or N) has ended. The reason has to do with the Gulf Stream and its swift movement to the north against a north wind and the waves this can create. So when going follow this first and foremost and the waters will be your friend. The further you wait into the spring and early summer the more you'll find favorable windows for crossing. I'd also advise leaving from a southerly location, such as Ft Lauderdale, and head to the West End....this way you're going with the Gulf Stream. Going with a buddy boat adds a level of safety for a crossing. Lastly give yourself plenty of time and don't have a schedule. We had to wait in Florida for 7 or 8 days on our first trip for a good weather window and this can happen on a return trip as well. Bottom line would be to plan for 6 to 8 weeks so you can enjoy the Abacos without having to be concerned about getting to and from and if you don't have weather/water issues then you can shorten your stay.

 

[abcandjrc]

Take a look at this thread, too. I commented on some of our experiences.

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=2268

Part of the answer to your question depends on which Ranger you would use. I would guess that a 21 would not be ideal even if you had it shipped to The Bahamas on a mail boat. One would just about have to stay in a marina every night and essentially live ashore from a 21. Going ashore is highly recommended, but living ashore would get "old" quickly and your pocket book would howl in just a few days. Let's face it, in a 21, stores room, and cooking and "other" facilities, are roughly like camping in a tent. Few enjoy that for more than a couple days.

(In addition to my key to pronouncing Cay, remember that The Bahamas are not in The Caribbean. They are in the Southern North Atlantic. Another common misconception.)

 

[lornec]

I would think staying on a 21 for a period of time would be the roughing it.
I would think the best one would be the 29 , I guess I should have been more specific.

 

[johnniethek]

I spent eight nights in my 21 EC in Desolation Sound this last summer. It went well, but I don't have anything to compare it with. Camping on the water is the closest analogy I can come up with.

 

[abcandjrc]

So far we have limited outselves to single nights on the 21. We could stretch that, but for the most part, that is enough to be relaxing without being enough to get feeling cramped. Living aboard for 8 years kind of filled the need for that (I think....... but I sure miss it). And I sure miss The Bahamas.

Stowage of food on such a small boat is tough if you carry any significant amount of other gear. We have fishing gear, tools, first aid kit, an inflatable stowed in the lazarette, lots of life jackets, and etc., etc. Unless you limit yourself to canned or boxed meals you have to eat ashore or at least provision every few days.

And what with BPH and such, for us a Porta-potti starts getting into the red zone pretty quickly. I know the claim that that is what the rail is for, but statistically, most boating fatalities are due to falling in the drink while doing that. And for half of us, it is a lot more difficult to pull off, at least with any dignity.

One advantage of a larger boat is that you can carry more stores with you into The Bahamas. You soon learn what is practical to stow vs. what is expensive there. And you find all sorts of odd places to stow tp or paper towels and such. We used to joke about eating our way through the waterline as the trip progressed. And on each of the three trips we made, the waterline was farther under the water on departure than it had ever been before. (But not as far under as the folks we sent off from Fairhope, Alabama, in a Nor'Sea 27 bound for New Zealand! And they made it. The Bahamas would have been just a short hop for them.)

Water, with sufficient tankage, is not a real problem. Some places have free water, most (10 or 12 years ago) was about a nickle a gallon. But even at what I believe was the highest we ever paid at a quarter a gallon, it does not come close to the cost of operating a watermaker. Once in a while you even get lucky and someone with a 400 gallon/day watermaker will fill you up for a couple beers. Just look for large cruisers which wash their decks daily. :lol:

 

[JerryE]

Going to the Abacos in a 2009 Ranger R25, the Lucky Fin, is not just doable– it has been done. captd kept many of captivated by his reports of his trip in late March 2010. Leaving from Lake Park, FL (just inland from Singer Island, West Palm Beach) took much study of the weather and three attempts over a week until the wind went calm with 2 foot seas. The west tip of Grand Bahama island, called West End, was his destination to touch for customs and I measure the trip at 65 miles as the crow flies on Map Quest. The trip took about 6.5 hours having left at 1:30 AM; he didn't note his speed but we can infer he averaged around 10 miles per hour.

Darrell (from Montana, BTW) was kind enough to describe his trip with a fishing buddy in the islands in posts on Tugnuts: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=813&hilit=abacos&start=150 They came back from West End to Florida on 04/20/10; capd reports its only 55.5 miles to Palm Beach by his reckoning, which I think I'd take even over Map Quest, since he actually made the trip. How many potential Ranger buyers have asked about discomfort on a 25-29 foot boat for a couple, on this bulletin board? Well, note that captd had spent about 4 months about the Lucky Fin, his R25, by this point. His wife, Dee, was often with him (although not on this trip) and I have never read a word suggesting they felt cramped in his many enjoyable posts; of course they have an RV they sometimes would use and a home base in Florida to rest up between voyages. Additionally, capdt keeps more gear on his ocean cruiser than the Coast Guard, check out his photo album. Frank of Ainokea commented the Lucky Fin looked a bit of the vagabond coming down the St. Johns River with five (5) anchors hanging off his rails! 😉

On the way back to Palm Beach he hit 8-10 foot swells ("the Gulf Stream was like driving through mountains") but he had enough sea room between waves to to maintain control. Their gps found them "surfing" at 18.1 knots; they made it back in 4.5 hours! Darrell logged about 2000 miles in the winter of 2010 over which only about 100 miles was towing. He averaged 2.9 mpg with a lot of high speed running. Anybody interested in long-term cruising should read Darrell's posts, as well as others on this site. This message is a bit of a tribute to Darrell as reading over his adventures on Tugnuts ultimately helped me make the decision to buy a Ranger. I'm saddened that he has had to stop cruising, but I hope he inspires others to tell their tales of travel on Tugnuts and/or personal blogs. Reading these stories can help us get through the winter and is probably the best marketing Fluid Motion could ask for.