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captainKJ · 23-10-2010, 15:45

Abaco Bahamas Cruising Information

Marine Radio on a Cruising Sailboat: Radio Nets, Weather Broadcasts and Netiquette

Noonsite: Communications

Inkwell · 23-10-2010, 17:12

I have Navionics on a C120. No problems when I was in the Abacos, and Grand Bahamas islands. I also used Steve P guide and did OK. Didn't ground.

Vasco · 23-10-2010, 18:06

Watch out for the Navionics if you get any further south than Abaco. Once you get through the Fleeming Channel it can't be relied on. Errors from Ship Channel Cay to GT.

onestepcsy37 · 23-10-2010, 21:07

captainkj - wx is pretty much unavailable in the bahamas - there is no local equivalent and the antennas is south florida just reach so far....

i didn't mean to imply that channel 16 is for weather reports. but if you keep 16 on, particularly in the mornings, you will either get directed to the local cruiser net or the megayachts hailing each other to talk weather. then just 'go over' and listen in.
or get on 16 and ask 'anyone' if they have a weather report. that approach almost always works for me.

you can also get weather from zns1 at, i think, 7am and noon, on 1540kz AM radio, and on zns2 and zns3 as well.

maarty10 · 24-11-2010, 19:22

For what it's worth, when going to the Bahamas, there are some protocols; do not travel in the dark. I have done it, but it was on a run from Great Stirrup Quay to Bimini, with clear water all the way. Try to travel with the sun behind you so that you can read the water. Learn how to read the water.

dlockhart · 24-11-2010, 19:53

Gentlemans guide to passages south brought us through alot of the Turks and Bahamas and was pretty bang on. Used Van Sants co-ordinates and it passed us between coral heads with feet to spare and no troubles. Have Navionics silver charts in Ray Marine and the only place they really lacked was the Dominican Republic.

tincouch1 · 24-11-2010, 20:22

How is the cell phone reception for Verizon in the Bahamas?

captainKJ · 24-11-2010, 20:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by tincouch1

How is the cell phone reception for Verizon in the Bahamas?

What cell phone reception,,, good luck

better off buying a bahamas cell with sim,, calls to states are about 35 cents per minute,,, if you use t-mobile or at-t you end much paying MUCh more,,, sometime 3 per day just to turn the phone on and 3 per minute,,
leave your U.S. phone at home, much cheaper,,, also look at using skype or such,,, most of the time marinas only charge 10 per day for fulltime internet access on your own computer

Auspicious · 25-11-2010, 12:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by tincouch1

How is the cell phone reception for Verizon in the Bahamas?

Verizon (and Sprint) use a technology called CDMA that is not widely supported by BaTelCo. There are CDMA towers in the cruise ship and tourist areas like Nassau.

AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM, as does BaTelCo. As noted, you will spend much less if you get a local BaTelCo SIM card (and therefore a Bahamas phone number).

I have an older quad-band GSM phone I use for local SIMs throughout the world in addition to my current quad-band AT&T phone that I check every few days for voice-mail.

witchcraft · 19-12-2010, 07:44

The explorer charts are for navigation, and we used them very successfully. They will note shallow water routes, and explain what that means for draft of vessel. We also had a Garmin chartplotter with Bahamian charts, as well as our handheld gps. Binoculars, eyes, daylight navigation are all important. Weather...well as mentioned SSB to get Chris Parker, various cruisers net on the VHF, internet connections when available. Don't be afraid to ask others what they have heard. It was startling at first to realize we did not have the same level of weather reporting, but we found a way in every place we went and it became part of the life.
Go and have a good time. It is important to note that lights depicted on the charts may often not be functioning..so go in daylight.
Fair Winds
Witchcraft
P.S. wish we were going again this year

Jackp · 13-01-2011, 06:40

Does XM weather work in the Bahammas?

Captain Bill · 13-01-2011, 07:25

My old Raymaine chartplotter uses C-map NT+ cards and the Explorer charts are available in that format. I used them on my last trip and found that they were spot on for Bimini, Andros Island, the Berrys, and Grand Bahama. I can't yet speak to their accuracy in other spots, but I will next year. I sure wish Jeppesen would publish them in an RNC format so I could use them with my Coastal Explorer. The cards do not include the Explorer chart waypoints so you still need the paper charts to navigate to them. When in the Bahamas it is very important to make sure the waypoints are entered accurately. Tranposing digits even in the seconds can put you hard aground in some cases. Fortunately I did not learn this particular lesson personally.