Round the clock deck watch seems to be the only answer to such a bold thief. Nassau is the capital and largest city of the Bahamas. It lies on the island of New Providence, with neighboring Paradise Island accessible via Nassau Harbor bridges.
Boat thieves have been busy in Nassau riding paddle boards up to docked vessels and stealing everything of value. The local police and BASRA calls the perp “Spider-Man” and always seems to give the constables the slip.
In Marsh Harbour last night, boat thieves hit a large catamaran motor yacht making off with their large RIB while yacht has docked at Harbourview Marina. All yachties are advised lock their tenders and tow-behinds and keep a lookout in the dark of night. John Wampler www.yachtaide.com
The problem of thieves of boarding boats from the water, usually by the swim platform, and robbing boats at night while their owners are aboard, is a years-old, common event in Nassau. We used to regularly use the Nassau Harbor Club, which is conveniently located across from an excellent shopping center, including a Solomon’s Fresh Market. We no longer dock there, because of repeated reports of such incidents. Last year, friends of ours had their boat boarded at night, and the thief made his way through the boat, including the stateroom where they were sleeping. The thief cleaned out their wallets and purse. When our friend reported it to the police, he learned the Hatteras docked next to them had the same thing happen to them the night before! This problem is not limited to the Nassau Harbour Club, and recent reports indicate it is getting even worse throughout the harbour. The use of paddle boards is a new twist. It’s difficult not to conclude that the police and some marina owners really don’t seem all that interested in fixing the problem. After our friend woke up and chased the thief out of his boat (they did lose their money and credit cards), our friend went up to find the night watchman asleep in an alcove where he couldn’t possibly see anything – apparently a common situation during prior robberies. A reliable source told us that the police know the one particular thief, who has been arrested multiple times, jailed and released. Sometimes going to Nassau is a necessity, for provisioning, meeting guests, picking up parts or repairs. (Is there any other reason to go there?) Last year we decided to try the Bay Street Marina, and found the security to be first rate. Gates to each dock are locked at night. There were guards on duty 24/7; I observed them frequently walking the docks all through the night, which is critical since the robbers come from the water and not the land. Bay Street has brand new docks, a professional staff, a couple of good restaurants on site, and a pool. They can arrange for a shuttle to Solomon’s Market. It’s the place we recommend now. It’s more expensive than some other places, but you get……. And we do keep all the doors locked anyway. Greg Allard
BoatUS remains the premiere advocate for boaters and boating safety on all waters and SSECN is proud to have BoatUS as a SPONSOR!
(L) Capt. Lee Sykes receives the “Volunteer of the Year” award from (R) CCA NC Executive Director David Sneed.
NEWS From BoatUS Boat Owners Association of The United States 880 S. Pickett St., Alexandria, VA 22304 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Press Contact: D. Scott Croft, 703-461-2864, SCroft@BoatUS.com
Coastal Conservation Association North Carolina Names TowBoatUS Capt. Lee Sykes Volunteer of the Year “Chapter Would Remain A Vibrant Voice for Coastal Fisheries Conservation”
RALEIGH, NC, April 18, 2016 – At its recent annual meeting, the State Board of Directors for the Coastal Conservation Association North Carolina (CCA NC) named local on water towing Captain and TowBoatUS Beaufort owner Lee Sykes “Volunteer of the Year.”
An advocate for coastal fisheries and owner of a local 24-hour on water recreational boat towing and assistance company, Sykes is the CCA NC President of the Crystal Coast Chapter and is credited with “Revitalizing this chapter and bringing it back as a significant contributor to our efforts in North Carolina,” said Chapter Member and CCA NC Board Member Bert Owens. The chapter is one of 13 in North Carolina. “He was determined that the Crystal Coast Chapter would remain a vibrant voice for coastal fisheries conservation in North Carolina.”
“I’m honored to have been selected,” Said Sykes. “I’m out on our waters nearly every day and believe that everyone needs to do their part. I’ve always wanted to ensure that my own child will continue to have a vibrant fishery for her generation, and our coastal waters continue to provide a quality fishing experience that doesn’t diminish.”
Part of a nationwide network of 300 locations and over 600 towboats, Sykes’ TowBoatUS business is North Carolina’s largest, providing 24-hour on water towing assistance and soft ungrounding services to recreational boaters, much like a reliable auto club. It also offers salvage services. In addition to Beaufort, Sykes’ additional TowBoatUS locations include Swansboro, Jordon Lake, Falls Lake, Sharon Harris Lake, Gaston Lake, Kerr Lake, Smith Mountain Lake VA, and most recently High Rock Lake. For more visit BoatUS.com/beaufort.
CCA and its state-chapter network are engaged in hundreds of local, state and national programs and projects related to marine conservation, including initiating scientific studies, funding marine science scholarships, building artificial reefs, creating finfish hatcheries, initiating hydrologic and contaminant studies, monitoring the quality and quantity of freshwater inflows, supporting local marine law enforcement and more. For more visit www.ccanc.org.
About TowBoatUS: Celebrating 50 years in 2016, Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) is the nation’s leading advocate, services and safety group for recreational boaters. We provide our over half-million members with a wide array of helpful services, including 24-hour on water towing that gets you safely home when your boat won’t, will bring you fuel if you run out, jumpstart your dead battery, or provide a gentle pull after you’ve run aground. The TowBoatUS towing fleet is North America’s largest network of towing ports with over 300 locations and over 600 towing assistance vessels, responding to over 70,000 requests for assistance each year. For more information go to BoatUS.com/towing.
New Pass leads directly to the Sarasota waterfront and the entrance portion between the Entrance Light and Light 7 is constantly shifting and shoaling. SSECN has long recommended that this pass not be used. See /156085 for a recent Local Notice on this area. Our thanks to BOSN4 Pauly for these updates.
All, The Coast Guard continues to do outreach to the public regarding the removal of the navigation markers in New Pass. Attached is a Port Community Information Broadcast issued by the Commander, Sector St. Petersburg. Feel free to print this out, post and share this with the community, law enforcement, and any other concerned person or groups. CWO Pauly BOSN4 Darren Pauly Aids to Navigation Officer US Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg 155 Columbia Drive Tampa FL 33606 darren.a.pauly@uscg.mil (813) 228-2191 Ext. 8184 Tampa office
Well, we’ve been asked a lot of questions, but this is a first. All of us have opinions about food aboard a vessel, but if you have experience actually feeding a hungry, sun burned, exhausted crew, let Jill hear from you!
I’m assigned a “cooking on a boat” story for a magazine. My deadline is April 20. Will you knowledgeable cruisers in the Florida KEYS help me, please? I’m supposed to answer these questions. Any replies will be helpful. Kindly add a name and maybe your boat name and roughly where you are located, e.g. Marathon, Islamorada, etc. So, here goes: How do you feed a hungry crew? How do you deal with sea sickness while preparing food? What kind of snacks are best (esp. in our humidity?!) Who cooks? Who washes up? Who uses a gimballed stoves? Is anyone still using a kerosene stove? Thank you so much for your help. Jill Zima Borski, Islamorada, 305-852-9886, jzimakeys@aol.com
Explorer Chartbooks, A SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET PARTNER, has long been the standard navigational supplement for enjoyable, informative, and safe cruising through the beautiful Bahamian waters and island visits.
Bahamas Chatter: Cruisers not welcome at Little San Salvador Cruisers not welcome at Little San Salvador Posted: 15 Apr 2016 04:06 AM PDT The following letter was received from a cruiser that recently visited Little San Salvador (AKA Half Moon Cay):
My wife and I anchored our 44’ sailing catamaran just West of the Southernmost point on the island in calm conditions on the evening of April 7. On the morning of April 8, a cruise ship arrived and anchored about 1 ½ miles NW of us. Later that morning we were shocked when a 35-40’ flybridge power boat with inboard engines came zooming right at our boat, throwing a huge wake. It past our stern no more than 50’ away, then took a sharp turn along our port side as the captain let off the throttles and let his boat settle, creating an even greater wake. We were too busy grabbing items that were going to fly off of our table and countertops to signal to them. 2 Bahamian men were on the fly bridge, and they went to a mooring that was off shore from us and served as a snorkeling spot for the cruise ship guests. The purpose of the flybridge boat was to carry the guests to that spot. We thought at first that the captain simply didn’t know the “rules of the road” in boating- that he is responsible for any damage created by his wake. At the time, we didn’t take it for what it really was; a clear message that we were not welcome here. Within the hour we decided to go exploring on our dinghy, and headed East along the shoreline, then up into the creek mentioned above. The creek led to an open bay that is nearly ½ mile wide and about 2 miles long. We were idling along enjoying the scenery when the only other boat on the bay (a small boat with 2 Bahamian crew and 2 cruise ship guests) flagged us down. One of the crew let us know that this waterway was private and that we could not be here. I argued that we were not ashore, nor were we heading ashore, we are ON THE WATER. She insisted that we must leave immediately. Their guests looked as shocked over the incident as we were. We turned and left, angered and feeling that our rights were not being respected; not on the dinghy, and certainly not on our yacht. Now, I completely understand that land can be purchased and we respect that when cruising. However, I did not realize that the OCEAN and its inlets can be owned by someone. This was not an inland lake, this was an ocean inlet! It’s no different than telling me I can’t have my boat anchored off your island, which we realized was the clear message being given by the flybridge boats rude behavior. Now we were being told in no uncertain terms by the Holland America crew that our dinghy was not allowed on “their” water. As a human being, I could certainly be wrong about the Bahamian laws, so I’m open to hearing about how areas of the ocean can be purchased by individuals or businesses for private use. But if I’m correct and that is simply absurd, then I look to hear back from Mr. Kruse. Perhaps the next edition of the Explorer chartbooks should be updated to reflect this situation and the way it is responded to.
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Comments from Cruisers (1)
pat kennedy- April 22, 2016 - 9:06 pm
Welcome to south florida. New anchoring restrictions in dade and broward countys. Thank the republican legislators, just the beginning of things to come.
Our thanks to Greg Allard for this excellent report on Grand Bahama Yacht Club.
Report from the Bahamas : Update on Grand Bahama Yacht Club, Port Lucaya – April 2016
The Grand Bahama Yacht Club is to starboard after you come through the Bell Channel into Port Lucaya. It had been closed for several years, but has now reopened. It is owned by the same company which owns the Port Lucaya Marina, which is to port after you enter the harbor. This year we used Port Lucaya as a layover on our way to the outer Family Islands, and decided to try the Grand Bahama Yacht Club again. It was an excellent experience.
Grand Bahama Yacht Club, Port Lucaya
The Yacht Club is a much quieter, more refined place than the busy and touristy Port Lucaya Marina and Marketplace. The grounds are well maintained, with large lawns. Five foot long tarpon and spotted rays regularly swam under the boat. There is a beautiful pool, with a small poolside bar and restaurant; sturdy, well-fendered concrete docks; 24 hour security; washers and (a) dryer; clean but older bathrooms and showers; good power and wi-fi. Jazz night on Thursdays, with live music. The dockmasters, Fabian and Aaron, are both just excellent, as is the entire staff. They will do – or arrange for – whatever you need to make your stay a good one. The published rates are $2.20 a foot, but if you intend to stay longer than a couple of days, we urge you to discuss with the dockmaster an outstanding monthly promotional monthly rate which runs through the end of 2016. There is a mandatory $10 a day water charge, and the electricity is metered at 60 cents per KWH. They can arrange for a reasonably priced rental car. There is an excellent Solomon’s Fresh Market about two miles away, and if you schedule with the marina ahead of time, they will take you there and pick you up.
Pool area and bar, Grand Bahama Yacht Club, Port Lucaya
This marina would, in my view, qualify as a hurricane hole; there is not much fetch in any direction, the pilings are tall and the docks are solid. Much of the shoreline is natural vegetation. They run a free boat-shuttle service (a five minute trip) over to the Port Lucaya Marina and Marketplace, where you can clear through Customs and Immigration, or visit the restaurants and shops. At the Marketplace, the nice-little-Italian-restaurant “Cappuccinos” is one of our favorites, with excellent pastas and a great early-bird special. One of the highest rated restaurants in the Bahamas – and the Carribbean, is “Flying Fish”, adjacent to the Marketplace. It is very expensive, but it was the best restaurant meal we’ve had anywhere in ten years. Some local Bahamian friends go there for happy hour and their excellent appetizers, offered most evenings.
The Customs and Immigration process at Port Lucaya is generally painless and quick, as is the case at West End/Settlement Point – on Grand Bahama. When checking into the Bahamas, don’t forget to have your Cruising Permit endorsed for fishing and for spearfishing, which does not cost anything extra.
“Meander” at the Grand Bahama Yacht Club, Port Lucaya
The Bell Channel entry, according to the dockmaster carries 6.5’ at low tide, but having been through there a number of times, I think that is a conservative estimate. We came through at dead low on April 13, 2016, and never had actual depths less than 7’ from our two carefully calibrated depth finders. The general guidance is that there is more water on the east side of the channel. In a strong onshore wind, larger waves in the entrance channel could reduces depths. The channel is clearly marked, but be sure to start your approach into Bell Channel from the small offshore white buoy, to avoid the reefs.
The fuel dock is no longer located at the Port Lucaya marina; it was moved to the Grand Bahama Yacht Club. [See Bahamas Chatter by SALTY SOUTHEST CRUISERS’ NET PARTNER Explorer Chartbooks for fuel prices. Current 4/12/2016 prices: Diesel $3.34, Gas 3.94 VAT included on both.]
We rented a car and explored the island, including the interesting Lucayan National Park with its historic upland caves, creeks and marshes full of wildlife, and beautiful beaches. You can also explore the interesting Lucayan Waterway in your dinghy. There is much more to see on Grand Bahama than we had imagined.
In our view, while they are still refurbishing and updating this facility, it is well on its way to being a five star marina.
The proposed no-wake zone is primarily around the Boca Grande Swing Bridge at GICW Statute Mile 34.5 at the northern end of Gasparilla Sound. Our thanks to the Florida Council of Yacht Clubs for this report.
Brunswick Landing Marina, a very popular facility with long term resident cruisers as well as transient cruisers, sits off the direct path of the Waterway, flanking the eastern banks of Academy Creek off Brunswick River, near the heart of downtown Brunswick, Georgia.
The marina is the best in the area, and while the facilities are some of the best on the ICW, the staff – Sherri and Cindy – are the most welcoming and “make you feel at home” people on earth. The marina is well represented by these two young ladies as anyone that has visited will attest to. Without them, it would just be another struggling marina. Jimmy Crack Corn
Windmill Harbour Marina, A SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR, is located hard by the southwesterly mouth of the Waterway’s passage south down Skull Creek, on the shores of Hilton Head Island, south of marker #27. Our thanks to Bob Miller for these kind words for one of our fine sponsors!
Just wanted to comment on the staff and marina facilities at Windmill Harbour . We kept our 43′ motor yacht there over this past winter (2015-16) and believe there is no better choice in the Hilton Head area. Very professional marina staff and pleasant location. The marina is in a gated community so it is safe and secure, and the marina is protected by a lock system which keeps the water depth constant in the marina. It is home to the South Carolina Yacht Club so many nice boats and activities. They welcome transient boaters as well as those for longer stays. One thing to be aware of is that access to stores and restaurants will require transportation as it is a residential area. Bob Miller
Port City Marina, A SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR and newly opened for business, is located along the eastern banks of the Cape Fear River, in the heart of downtown Wilmington, NC.
“Slip into Somewhere More Comfortable” The Port City Marina is a protected, deep water, full-service marina in Wilmington, North Carolina with over 200 state-of-the-art floating concrete wet slips and a full complement of first-class amenities situated in the heart of downtown. You can walk to restaurants, check out the thriving downtown art scene, or explore the boutique shops. Convenience at its finest.
Comments from Cruisers (1)
The problem of thieves of boarding boats from the water, usually by the swim platform, and robbing boats at night while their owners are aboard, is a years-old, common event in Nassau. We used to regularly use the Nassau Harbor Club, which is conveniently located across from an excellent shopping center, including a Solomon’s Fresh Market. We no longer dock there, because of repeated reports of such incidents. Last year, friends of ours had their boat boarded at night, and the thief made his way through the boat, including the stateroom where they were sleeping. The thief cleaned out their wallets and purse. When our friend reported it to the police, he learned the Hatteras docked next to them had the same thing happen to them the night before! This problem is not limited to the Nassau Harbour Club, and recent reports indicate it is getting even worse throughout the harbour. The use of paddle boards is a new twist.
It’s difficult not to conclude that the police and some marina owners really don’t seem all that interested in fixing the problem. After our friend woke up and chased the thief out of his boat (they did lose their money and credit cards), our friend went up to find the night watchman asleep in an alcove where he couldn’t possibly see anything – apparently a common situation during prior robberies. A reliable source told us that the police know the one particular thief, who has been arrested multiple times, jailed and released.
Sometimes going to Nassau is a necessity, for provisioning, meeting guests, picking up parts or repairs. (Is there any other reason to go there?) Last year we decided to try the Bay Street Marina, and found the security to be first rate. Gates to each dock are locked at night. There were guards on duty 24/7; I observed them frequently walking the docks all through the night, which is critical since the robbers come from the water and not the land. Bay Street has brand new docks, a professional staff, a couple of good restaurants on site, and a pool. They can arrange for a shuttle to Solomon’s Market. It’s the place we recommend now. It’s more expensive than some other places, but you get…….
And we do keep all the doors locked anyway.
Greg Allard