Great post. Especially the last sentence.
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Walkaround or center console
- Thread starter bjorns4
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95g atl
Senior Member
Similar to you, as a kid I grew up out west in SoCal. My father did commercial fishing on the side, something 60 miles out. He had a 24' sea ray, I can barely remember as a kid (late 70's/ early 80's).
The Gulf and the Atlantic is a different beast.
I have a center console 19' carolina skiff. Able to go in shallows or slightly offshore on a great day.
Would I go to Bimini with it? Nope...unless I had a suicide mission.
You'll get a ton of opinions on here.
If you travel offshore, I believe dual motors are mandatory and size does matter in terms of length.
Good luck.
Over the years people have crossed many times in jet skis, flats boats, bay bosts, and kayaks. Tens of thousands of boats go offshore with single motors everyday around our Country. Most commercial boats have single engines. I'm not advocating crossing in non offshore boats at all, but for trips from south Florida to the Bahamas, large multi engine boats are not necessary, or unsafe. That is proven every day when the weather is decent. If someone is not from that part of the State, they have no idea how many boats make that trip on every day the weather is good, year around. It's less than an hours run in many boats, two hours or less in waaaaayyy more than that.
swamp hunter
Senior Member
Pick a nice summer morning and leave at first light.
Bimini is 47 miles. We did it in a 17 Boston Whaler a bunch of times. Sometimes it's as flat as a bass pond. Always other boats making the crossing on the same Bearing as you so no need for a buddy boat.
Bimini is 47 miles. We did it in a 17 Boston Whaler a bunch of times. Sometimes it's as flat as a bass pond. Always other boats making the crossing on the same Bearing as you so no need for a buddy boat.
95g atl
Senior Member
I'm scared to do it with my boat, 19' and single engine.
To each his own.
To each his own.
That's fine, I just don't like he posts on here telling the guy he needs a 30' plus boat, twins, he's taking his life in his hands, how many "swamped" boats they towed in, flat to 40' seas in minutes and a bunch of other bull poop. I'm almost 60, and have crossed from the West Palm area to the Bahamas well over 100 times, almost all in boats these guys said are too small. And there's plenty of folks who have done it for any more than I have. To cross safely, you need a sea worthy boat, safety gear, and common sense, and that's about it.
notnksnemor
The Great and Powerful Oz
Doc, we get it, you've done it a lot.
I'm an electrician and have terminated live wires up to 12,000 volts a lot of times.
I don't recommend others do it not knowing their skill level.
Not even a close comparison. It is dangerous to mess around with 12k bolts. It's not dangerous to cross from S Florida to the Bahamas in a boat smaller than 30'. And some of the claims from the naysayers are just bull poop. Like calm to 40' in minutes, or claiming to have towed many swamped boats in. Crossing to the Islands is way different than making a middle grounds run or a canyon run up North.
alright, you say I'm slingin CensoredCensored, however you do not know me, or my past.
I hesitated replying to keep peace but you won't let it go.
You cross from Palm Beach to Freeport on Grand Bahama island. Good for you. Anyone could do that in a dingy on a good day.
We went out from Lighthouse Point, Port Everglades or Pompano, and didn't stop at the first island we saw, we went to Eluthera and Cat Island, occasionally further south. Were there was less pressure and more fish. Besides, gramps had a brother that lived in Freetown, we spent nights there if it got rough.
We also took other boats and went all over the Caribbean on months long trips and summers.
I have actually seen 40 foot rollers in the gulfstream, during an afternoon thunderstorm we couldn't quite get away from.
I could give a rats behind less if you doubt me, however your delivery and implied tone plain suck.
As for using a sextant, it's required to know HOW to navigate for any registered vessel, and certainly for any credentials beyond a 6 pack license. Sextants and good charts are invaluable when sailing over the horizon. Sure, a compass and chronograph can be used.. If you know you WILL hit land somewhere ahead. That method has disadvantages on blue water where running tides, current velocities and wind drift are constantly changing.
If you can't understand the math, there are tables that actually take the math out of it. Your statement that I can't and probably haven't used a sextant are unfounded and wrong.
You read a lot of stuff into my posts that isn't there. No where did I say that I only crossed to GBI. I said that it was only 52 miles from Boynton. As far as it goes, Bimini is only about 45-46 miles from Port Everglades. You stated that you had seen the Stream go from fairly calm to 40' in minutes. No, you haven't. You said you had towed in many boats that had "swamped". How many is that? Two, maybe? Not broken down, you said swamped. As far as navigation, I learned dead reckoning a long time ago. If you truely believe that it is unsafe to cross to the Islands in anything less than a 35' (or whatever number you originally posted) boat, then you obviously aren't paying much attention to what goes on every day on our east coast. And has been for years and years and years. If you are uncomfortable with it, that's your business. But don't try to make someone else believe their boat isn't big enough just because you think so. Especially by posting sea stories about swamped boats and flat calm to 40' waves. Funny none of those big ole waves ever made it to shore..........
Miguel Cervantes
Jedi Master
We cruised Carnevals largest class boat last summer and coming back towards US waters crossing the gulfstream to Port Canaveral we hit a thunderstorm that tossed that boat pretty hard and had water coming over the bow in deep rolling sees. The stabilizer jets had little effect in that storm. It was slick seas up to the storm and after getting through it. This was a 130,000 ton boat that was just over 1,000 ft long. What it would have done to a boat only 30' goes without saying. This was a large thunderstorm, not an organized low pressure system.
There is credibility in both of the statements you guys are making, but Wayne is accurate in the candor of your delivery, reading into it and all.
95g atl
Senior Member
My comfort level isn't that high when it comes to the ocean. I've seen little tiny jon boats out several miles offshore. Nope, not for myself...not for many of us. Just because they "can" and "have" done it, doesn't mean it is right for everyone or safe for everyone. Most people that have experience on the water, likely don't have experience in really bad conditions. Heck, just on shore in the panhandle of FL, few years back it went from nearly calm winds to 50 mph gusts (blowing umbrella's over, tents, and had folks scrambling) in the matter of two or three minutes. Never saw anything like it. The kind of wind where it is difficult to walk.
If you read most any article, or speak with experienced comm'l fisherman, they strongly suggest dual motors if you're going a ways offshore. It's a long paddle back with a bad motor.
I guess I am a little girl scared-y cat when it comes to the ocean. It's not like a car where you can pull over and get out when the going gets rough. I've driven high performance cars on road course tracks (like road atlanta) at well over a 100 mph, passing other cars in corners, getting sideways in a corner with no control. I would not recommend anyone just hopping in their mini-van or Honda Accord and do the same thing. (remember comfort level and experience). But at least with a car... we could stop the car and get out of it presuming the weather turns bad. Not the same on the water. You'd have to ride it out.
Again, all boils down to your comfort, experience, safety, and unpredictable weather.
The last thing we want to do is get someone hurt or killed from a bad suggestion...."yeah man, take your jon boat across the Atlantic with a 3.5 Merc and two gallons of gas. You'll be fine". Ok, that's exaggerated slightly, but you should get the point.
My humble 2 mexican pesos.
I'm not going to bother answering all of the posts, but a couple general things. First, I have not one time advocated crossing in any kind of boat not safe to cross on. Where y'all come up with Jon boats is a mystery to me. I also didn't say it didn't get rough crossing, I said that it didn't go from flat to 40' in minutes. And I stand by that. It is seldom,even in hurricanes, that there are waves of that size in the Florida Straits. They don't happen in thunder storms. As I've posted several times already, crossing to the Bahamas is not like making a 50 mile run in the GOM, or a canyon trip up north. 50 miles east toward the Bahamas, you're there. 50 miles out on the others, you're still 50 miles from home. I strongly suspect most of y'all have no idea what crossing from south Florida is like. Or how big a 40' wave is. I don't, and don't want to. I do know that crossing in a single outboard, less than 35' boat is safe. It's proven on any day with decent weather. One of you made a comment that most commercial guys told him twins were a must. He obviously hasn't been abourd many commercial boats since a huge percentage of them are powered by single Diesel engines. Including the 65' bandit boat I worked on after I got out of high school. As were many other commercial boats I have been on. Any of y'all ever worked on a commercial fishing boat? I am not at all advocating crossing the stream, or for any hat matter, even leaving the dock in an unseaworthy boat of any size. Just correcting some very mistaken statements on what size is safe, and some very large embellishments on sea size, and swamped boats. I got way more than a little experience to back up what I say, several hundred Island crossings, and thousands of hours in the Atlantic and Gulf. I'm not bragging, there's plenty people that exceed my experience, but I do know a little bit about it. OP sorry we ruined your post, when you get your boat and want to make an Island trip, shoot me a pm. I can get you some excellent links on prepping for a trip over there. I can hook you up with safe trailer parking, also.
