SCUBA diving in Bimini

[US27inKS]

I took 39 of my closest friends on 5 cats from Ft Lauderdale to Bimini last week. I got a great video of 2 of them scuba diving just south of Bimini.

[US27inKS]

Fixed

[SailKing1]

Sounds like a fun trip, any more pics? Bimini is one of my favorite places, used to go there often. Diving is great, so much to see and the outer islands have some wonderful places to drop anchor for a peaceful weekend. The locals are about as nice as you'll find and the bars are a lot of fun. Sorry to see the Complete Angler burn down years back. Is the SANDBAR still standing?

[US27inKS]

The trip was a blast, but I was having camera trouble. My underwater camera wouldn't hold a charge, and my cell phone camera quit working the day before we left. I still need to unload my wife's camera. I'm trying to get other people on the trip to upload their pics to a common account.

I actually don't spend any time in the bars. We spend most of our time scuba diving, sailing, and swinging on the hook down near North Cat.

[erps]

That's pretty cool. I'd have a hard time looking at the camera with that shark over my shoulder though. My little brother and I did a couple night dives off Maui a couple years ago and had a shark come in and follow us. I had a sore neck by the time we got back to the beach.

[SloopJonB]

Originally Posted by US27inKS

I took 39 of my closest friends on 5 cats from Ft Lauderdale to Bimini last week. I got a great video of 2 of them scuba diving just south of Bimini.

I notice the filming stopped just about when they saw the shark. Are they STILL your friends?

[US27inKS]

Originally Posted by erps

That's pretty cool. I'd have a hard time looking at the camera with that shark over my shoulder though. My little brother and I did a couple night dives off Maui a couple years ago and had a shark come in and follow us. I had a sore neck by the time we got back to the beach.

The girls were both pretty clueless about the shark until I pointed him out. They both knew there were sharks in the water, but didn't know they had one cruising behind them.

Your story about sharks in Maui reminds me of my last trip there in '06. My wife and I were approached by a Great White off Makena Landing. The shark just cruised on by, so I suggested to her that we make our way to the exit. She thought a better plan would be to scale a 20 foot lava rock wall in scuba gear. We went with her plan. The old lady whose yard we ended up in said "I didn't know you could get to the sea from here". It all depends on your motivation.

[US27inKS]

More video from the same dive. Sorry, but it's unedited so there's a little time that I didn't have the camera pointed at anything.

[estopa]

Originally Posted by US27inKS

We spend most of our time scuba diving, sailing, and swinging on the hook down near North Cat.

We are 2 weeks from a hopeful trip out to Bimini. Care to share any spots of mention to dive, sail or anchor???

I can PM you my email address if you don't want to share publicly.

Thanks - George.

[US27inKS]

Originally Posted by estopa

We are 2 weeks from a hopeful trip out to Bimini. Care to share any spots of mention to dive, sail or anchor???

I can PM you my email address if you don't want to share publicly.

Thanks - George.

I don't know if you've been there before, but I'll assume you haven't so this may be more than you need.

Making landfall - The channel markers shown on the chart are mostly missing. You'll find one set of buoys marking the entrance to the channel, but no more until it's too late. Pass through the outer buoys and head straight for the entrance to the Bimini Sands. When you think you are way to close, turn left for Alice town. Follow the dark water.

There are a number of anchor buoys at dive sites along the Bimini chain. Blackbeard's used to sail out of Miami over to Bimini, and they installed and maintained the buoys. Blackbeard's hasn't been there in years, so be nice to the buoys and pendants. There's a good list of them here Bahamas Bimini Boat Diving Sites - Wall Diving and Reef Diving

One place that's not on the list is Bull Run. It was Blackbeard's spot for feeding sharks. The sharks start circling as soon as a boat shows up. We always feed the sharks after we dive just to make sure they have a reason to be there next time, so catch a few Barracuda on the way. 25º 27.780N 79º 14.692W

I like to anchor at North Cat. There is good anchorage on either side of the peninsula. I usually stay on the north side of the peninsula, but if the wind is out of the north west, go to the south side. On the north side, you can go much further in than you think. Almost to the point where you think you'll go aground. Just leave yourself enough room to swing. Also, when heading in to anchor, stay well north of the gazebo.

You can also anchor at Gun Cay. There is good holding on the inside at honeymoon harbor, but it can be a pain to get there depending on wave and tide. You're better off anchoring on the west side tucked in by the backside of honeymoon harbor. Part of the island blew out in a storm a few years back, so you can dinghy into the harbor and play with the stingrays. Take some squid.

Hope this helps.

edit: almost forgot, take a spear of some sort with you. I use a Liontamer. Shoot every Lionfish you see. If you have any sharks nearby, they should eat them. Good for the reef, and loads of fun.