Change is everywhere. As sailors and cruisers change is something we are very used to. Changing countries, anchorages, and overall changing the way we choose to live life. One may argue that living on the water is such a drastic change of lifestyle than the norm.
However, when change occurs in a sailing destination that people have been traveling to for years it’s a cause for distress.
George Town Bahamas is a beautiful cruising destination known by many, not only because of its natural beauty and the safety it provides but also because of the amazing community that thrives together.
Some would argue that the new moorings in Elizabeth Harbour have caused distress. The amount of negativity that has come forth on social media about the situation has become insane. Many people have stated they will stop coming to George Town all together, while others have said they will limit their time here. However, in this week’s boat count there was 377 boats in the harbour with the 9 year average of about 300. So whatever people are saying on social media doesn’t seem to be true so far.
Having been in George Town myself for the past few months it has definitely been a point of interest but here is what I have found personally:
The moorings are being used. Whether it is new cruisers who are not confident on anchoring or simply are used to a mooring and feel more secure, or old time cruisers who are hoping to be in the anchorages they have grown to love over the years, the moorings are definitely being used.
The Elizabeth Harbour Conservation Partnership has stated that there is to be no anchoring within the mooring field. However, from what we have seen, people are still able to anchor on the outskirts of the moorings on sand dollar beach and between the two mooring fields, Sand Dollar and Chat N Chill.
The biggest cause for debate however is what people have since called the George Town shuffle. The GT shuffle is basically when bad weather comes in, for instance a North West blow or cold front, the three main anchorages known as monument, chat n chill and sand dollar beach are not the best locations to sit this out. In the past, people would move across the harbor to Kidd Cove, Red Shanks and Goat Cay, then be able to change up their anchoring locations when the weather calms again. Simply shuffling around the harbor for the best wind protection at the given time.
Now with the new moorings people have started anchoring in places the locals on land have never seen boats anchored. As well some people choose not to move from a potential uncomfortable anchorage because they are afraid they won’t get their spot back, i.e monument anchorage. Monument anchorage is like a sardine can with so many boats anchored that they are encroaching on the channel that the large mail boats use to deliver valuable resources to the island.
Another topic of distress is they have only installed 64 moorings at sand dollar beach where they are spread out, not allowing the hundred + boats to anchor there.
Now the Elizabeth Harbour Conservation Partnership has stated that they have installed the moorings to save the seagrass, however in many people’s opinions they have gone about this the wrong way. Without showing the details of proper studies etc. They had a public meeting held back in December asking for advice and public opinion on the new moorings, when in fact they had already installed all the moorings. They sent out a few public surveys but to some it doesn’t feel like they cared what the cruising community thought of this.
The mooring balls are priced between $32-$38 per night depending on boat length and you can reserve on Dockwa. There are discounted rates for weekly, or monthly mooring. However, currently for that price you get a mooring ball and that’s about it. There are no laundry or shower facilities and up to now there is no pump out boat, although they have said they have one on island it just isn’t operational yet.
Safety of the Moorings:
The Elizabeth Harbour Conservation Partnership says the moorings they installed are 14 foot single sand screws. From the sand screw it attaches to a coupling box with a single pin, which is then attached to a shackle and the anchor line up to another shackle and the ball and pick up line. They used good quality material for this and had professional divers install them by hand.
As far as safety is concerned there has only been one incident of a mooring breaking off, luckily it was an unoccupied ball. When it was recovered by the EHCP it was pulled up into their boat and the reason it broke was the pin holding the coupling box to the sand screw had pulled out. Shortly after the EHCP stated they checked all moorings for safety.
Since then we have had a cold front come through with gusts reaching the 50 knot range and nobody broke loose from a mooring.
Whenever picking up a mooring it is always common practice to dive on your mooring to inspect it yourself. Human error can occur but if everyone does their due diligence in checking their moorings we can ensure the safety of our own vessels.
The Elizabeth Harbour Conservation Partnership has stated that the balls are only rated for vessels up to 60 feet and cannot be used in named storms or predicted winds of 39 knots sustained. This may be the largest area for concern because if a severe cold front comes with predicted winds of 39 knots plus where is everyone to go?
That brings us to the amazing community here in George Town. Between a few of the long-time visitors of George Town the cruisers have gone above and beyond and mapped out the area and shown where we can anchor and where to stay away from. The yellow being the mooring fields, red area is the mail boat channel and the blue line marking the Moriah Harbour Cay National Park. The Moriah Harbour Cay National Park prohibits anchoring except in designated places, ie. Masters Harbour and Man of War Cay for a max of 72 hours.
Change in George Town is not limited to solely the mooring ball change. There are a couple other points of interest I would like to point out:
The Exuma Yacht club is currently undergoing a very positive change, a breakwater is being created to help settle the marina in the typical easterly wind. The breakwater should make EYC a nice and calm marina right in the center of George Town. The only caution is in Kidd Cove anchorage where they have dropped the large rocks. The barge that delivers the material can only go so far into the cove so it drops its load and a smaller barge and excavator move the rocks to their final location. Some of these large boulders have been left behind so far. But again our wonderful cruising community has mapped them out and put them on Navionics so be sure to check your charts when anchoring here.
The other interesting development is on Monument Beach. A new beach club is being developed soon to be called the Coconut Club. This will be another alternative to Chat N Chill. Their website promotes a new menu as well as areas for volleyball courts, bocce ball and ping pong. We all love Chat N Chill but maybe this new beach club will offer a more hygienic destination and yet another location for cruisers and tourists to spend their time.
Overall as sailors we are used to change, but like people everywhere it can take time to get used to it. Don’t avoid George Town because of what you read on social media, the changes here are meant to improve the location and help the locals and tourists alike. George Town we love you.
What do you think about anchoring vs mooring? Which do you trust more? Let us know in the comments, or on our Facebook page to engage with us directly and help more people go sailing!
This season was our first trip to GT so we don’t have the context of previous years. We used the moorings in both Sand Dollar and Red Shank and had an overall positive experience during our month-long stay. I can say that we had people come in and anchor between us and the beach at Sand Dollar and it worked out just fine for them. Also, people anchoring at the outer edges of the field seemed to fare just as well. Monument was packed, but I suspect that it’s always been that way.
We have been coming to Georgetown the past 18 years, more so the last seven years. This year we heard a lot about the moorings while sailing the E Caribbean, and upon arrival early March, they seem to be in use. My primary concern has been the prohibition on anchoring in Red Shanks. This is a safe place during frontal passage. There is mostly sand and little turtle grass. The moorings are sparsely placed, and I would like to see anchoring outside the mooring field as an option for cruisers seeking weather protection.