After a little bit over a week in Bimini, we departed for the Berry Islands. There are two ways to go around Bimini in order to cross to the Berries: through the North and through the South. The Southern path has a couple of shallow spots and we were cautious about running aground, so we chose the safer option – through the North.
There is about 90 miles of ocean between Bimini and the Berries, so it was not possible for us to cross in one day. Some people overnight at Mackie Shoal, a sandy shallow patch with about 10-12 feet of depth right in the middle of the banks. We decided not to stop and sail overnight.
We left Bimini Sands at high tide, which was about noon and estimated to arrive the next morning. The wind (of course! LOL) was East, but if we waited for a better wind, we would be stuck in Bimini for another week, so we tacked for a while and motorsailed a little.
Nevertheless, we ended up sailing more Northeast than we expected and by morning found ourselves way too much North. It was our mistake. A better way would have been to tack South and reach the Bullocks Harbour and Great Harbour Cay Marina, a wonderful, protected marina on the West side of Great Harbor Cay, the biggest island of the chain.
You don’t have to go into the marina – many people anchor outside in the banks and are well protected from the Easterly winds by the island. There are stores and restaurants and a great community of sailors. We regretfully missed it. Oh well, something for the next time! But for you, my readers, I would highly recommend stopping there, to rest up and get ready for exploring the Berry Islands. It will take you a day trip to round the Stirrups and reach the Eastern side where all the cool anchorages are. We were already too much North and it made sense for us to continue to round the islands and arrive to the first available place to rest – Great Harbour.
Great Harbour
The Berry Islands consist of about 30 islands and cays, formed as a crescent. The chain is about 32 miles long and has at least 7 miles of beaches, isolated enclaves and caverns. The Northern cays are Great Stirrup Cay and Little Stirrup Cay (or Coco Cay). They belong to Cruise Companies: Norwegian and Royal Caribbean. There are bars, swimming pools, water slides and other entertainment for tourists. Behind these cays there is a large bay, called the Great Harbour – this is where we stayed for the night.
We arrived there just in time for some squalls to come and experienced bad weather for the next two days. We didn’t even have a chance to leave the boat and after the bad weather passed, left straight for the Devil’s Cay Anchorage 16 miles South of Great Harbour.
Devil’s Cay Anchorage
This is a must-do stop in the Berries. One of the amazing qualities that the Berry Islands have in our busy world is that there are not very many yachts and tourists. With most of the cruisers concentrated at Abacos and Exumas, Berry Islands still possess the feeling of wilderness and serenity. The Anchorage is nestled between Devil’s Cay, Hoffman’s Cay, White Cay and several other smaller cays.
This was that real paradise we were looking for in the Bahamas – only about five yachts when we arrived, pristine beaches, crystal clear water. The shoreline is rugged with numerous little bays and alcoves and secluded beaches. Every cruiser could have their own little personal beach if they wanted!
Next morning all the boats left to Nassau – it was a good weather window. We woke up completely alone.
Devil’s Cay Anchorage is the place where romance truly shoots through the roof. Breathtaking sunset at our today’s “private” beach, hidden path between two rocks to the “Martian – looking” Atlantic side, picnic on the sand… Due to us being completely alone, clothing was optional….
The dinghy run to the Blue Hole was escorted by a playful dolphin. Blue holes are natural phenomena, similar to cenotes in Mexico, only happening in the ocean. They are a frequent occurrence all over the Bahamas, and Hoffman’s Cay boasts its own, hidden within rocks and mangroves.
A small trail leads up to the middle of the island and ends with a cliff, overlooking a perfectly round deep blue body of water. You can jump from the cliff or follow a trail that steps through a cave to the bottom, where you can simply descend to the water and swim. People frequently dive the Blue Hole and witness untouched sea life: fish, turtles…
By the end of the day two catamarans arrived, which was actually a kind of relief. Even though being all by ourselves proved to be incredibly romantic, it was also kind of spooky at times.
After spending several days in this beautiful paradise, we left to our next destination only about 5 miles away – Little Harbour Cay.
Little Harbour Cay
If you have a small keel, it is possible to even sail inside – there is a shallow passage. But we couldn’t do it. We sailed outside and thoroughly enjoyed it. The weather was beautiful. Unfortunately, due to the size of our keel, we cannot enjoy most of the tucked away anchorages, either, but even for a 6 foot keel there are enough places to anchor.
This time we anchored behind Cabbage Cay. We tried to slowly motor as deep as we could behind the island, so be protected from currents and winds, and threw the anchor right before the depth became too iffy for us. We were also completely alone. From the Explorer Charts, we learned that there is an interesting bar on the island, called Flo’s Conch Shack. Looking around, it was hard to imagine that there could be any civilization here at all! All of the islands seemed uninhabited. The rest of the day and the next morning were spent at one of the secluded beaches. At about 4 pm we hopped into the dinghy and went to find the bar.
Flo’s Conch Shack
While we were underway, several big powerboats overtook us and disappeared behind a small island. We saw they went in the direction of where the bar was indicated on the maps, so we were sure we were on the right track to Flo’s Conch Shack.
So, right beyond the bend we saw a pretty new dock, mountains of conch shells all over the place and a small pink house on a hill. The owner was a nice gentleman named Chester Darville. The passengers of the powerboats were 17 residents of Chub Cay, the island in the Southern end of the Berries. They had some kind of a reunion, so Chester had a good day, proudly serving them countless Rum Punches – his special recipe, containing at least 5 varieties of rum!
After they left, we had a chance to chat a bit. Flo’s Conch Shack is a unique bar – Flo, the original owner, opened it many years ago and people from all over the nearby islands, including cruisers who anchored around, came to drink and share stories. Oh, if these walls could talk!
Flo passed away about 8 years ago and now the bar is run by her son Chester. He lives on the island alone. He is completely self-sufficient – he makes his own electricity with solar panels and generators, has his own septic tanks. For water besides desalinization he has a rain-catching system. On the island there are chickens, dogs and even peacocks! Really exotic! And, of course, there is his bar and restaurant, where he receives guests and loves to chat with them over a bottle of cold Kalik. Besides serving drinks, he cooks traditional Bahamian dishes for his guests and we enjoyed some fried fish with salad and rice and peas (which is in fact rice and beans).
I highly recommend to visit Flo’s Conch Shack at least once – for us it proved to be not just an evening “out” and a chance to have some fresh food (we only had canned food left), but a real Bahamian experience.
Soon it was a decent day for crossing to Nassau, so early in the morning we sailed towards New Providence Island.
On the way back from the Bahamas we made a short stop at Chub Cay in the Southern Berries and finally understood why it is called the Capital of Sport Fishing. It was a completely different experience, comparing to the deserted islands at Devil’s Cay Anchorage or Little Harbour Cay, but it helped us paint a fuller picture of this amazing island chain.
Why should you sail to the Berry Islands?
- The islands are still relatively lightly populated, so it is a unique experience of “real”, untouched Bahamas.
- There is a pretty big chance to enjoy complete privacy and being on your own at an anchorage – there are not so many cruisers there as in the other parts of the Bahamas.
- Turquoise waters and pristine beaches – since so many of the cays are uninhabited you can enjoy a lot of untouched nature and feel like a real explorer.
- Gorgeous Blue Hole and hidden trails.
- Flo’s Conch Shack, where you can meet Chester and experience stories shared by the friendly locals.
- Enjoy the camaraderie of the great cruiser’s community at Great Harbour Cay Marina.
- If you are into Sport Fishing – Chub Cay is the place for you.
Have we done all of the above? No. But even though we managed to check out only a part of what the Berry Islands have to offer, we had an unforgettable experience and a strong desire to return and catch up on everything we’ve missed!
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