The leg to Long Island will be etched deep in our memory: Perfect moonset and sunrise, the incomparable light of the Bahamas and sailing in two to three meter deep water over a white sandy bottom. All around us, every shade from turquoise to blue. Not a soul far and wide.

We sit on the railing and count the passing starfish. Around noon we just drop the anchor in the sand and take a break for a swim. The scenery couldn’t be more surreal.

On Long Island we find some infrastructure again, can replenish our supplies, enjoy the beach bars and wait out the coming days with strong winds. But actually we are here because of a hole in the sea. With 202 meters, Dean’s Blue Hole is one of the deepest blue holes in the world. It is not located somewhere in the middle of the ocean. No, ten steps from the beach it goes down into the depths. The place is famous for apnea competitions, among other things. The record without aids is 133 meters. We rent a car and want to look into the abyss with our own eyes. The strong wind and waves may limit visibility, but the feeling of floating over the abyss is truly unique.

After a few dives, we continue past countless church buildings, to buy bananas from a local cooperative, to the beach and into a cave with bright red shrimp and tiny mosquitoes. At the beach bar in our anchorage, we reflect on the day’s impressions as a red glow rises over the coast. What looks like a huge fire in the distance turns out to be the moon, rising red and large over the island. What a way to end Long Island.

Island hopping in the Exumas

Georgetown has a reputation that precedes it. Sailors speak of overcrowded bays, poor water quality and a geriatric regime. Many seniors from Florida have been coming here for decades and seem to let everyone know how to run things. But it is the same as always. The Bahamas know how to surprise: The small town may have little to offer apart from basic services, but the surrounding area has all the more. Sandy beach after sandy beach, dolphins and stingrays in the water, beach bars for every taste, hiking trails across the islands, beach concerts: it’s all there. Every morning at eight o’clock there is an open radio session on channel 86, where information is exchanged and the day’s activities are announced. The community here is well connected.The number of anchored boats seems to have halved from about 300 just before we arrived. In any case, we can’t complain about a lack of space or reprimands from older people. Instead there are plenty of children to play with and have Easter egg hunts. The little bit of rain in between is a welcome change.

The days are spent swinging, swimming and hiking as we work our way up the island chain. The Thunderball Grotto at Staniel Cay beckons. The Bond movie “Thunderball” was filmed here in 1965. The pictures on Google Maps look promising, and there is a beach with swimming pigs around the corner. In fact, this Bahamian curiosity can be found in several locations.

The island chain is roughly aligned in a north-south direction. The open, deep Atlantic Ocean with wind and waves meets the eastern side of the islands. The leeward side to the west is sheltered and flat. If you sail on the Atlantic side, for example because it is too shallow on the inside, you have to squeeze through the small gaps between the islands and their reefs. That alone is a challenge. Then there are the tidal currents that rush through the gaps. As we head to Staniel Cay, we see what it looks like when the current is against you and the wind and waves are at your back. We arrive just after high tide, so we assume there is little current. Far from it: the current is strong and high, steep waves build up out of nowhere. Before we know it, it’s too late to turn back. So we hold on tight and trust the charts. After three minutes we are on the other side and the water looks as if nothing has happened. Nevertheless, we now prefer to stay away from the cuts in windy conditions if there is even the slightest chance of water flowing towards us.

The rough approach is quickly forgotten as the scenery is once again gigantic. We quickly jump into the dinghy and take a look at the cave. At low tide you can swim in without diving. Fortunately, the cave is more spectacular in reality than in the movie, where it serves as a dreary backdrop for about ten seconds.

Otherwise, there are great reefs, plane wrecks, lots of sharks, turtles and swimming pigs. We only take a quick look at their beach. Somehow we are suspicious of the spectacle surrounding the rather ordinary pigs.

Our last stop in the Exumas is Shroud Cay. There are mangroves that can be explored by dinghy. The mooring is a bit uncomfortable due to the vastness, the swell and the many motor yachts, so we move on after two days. But the tour through the mangroves makes up for everything. The amazement doesn’t end in the Bahamas. The wildlife is amazing and the view of the islands is fascinating.

Private property in the Berry Islands

Despite all the unique impressions, we have to continue north. The season in the Bahamas is coming to an end. We want to set off for the USA from the Berry Islands. Although Nassau is a perfect halfway stop to get there, it doesn’t seem very exciting to us, even if there are more Bond props to dive for. We spend the night in Fluff Cay to the east and admire the hotel towers and the neatly lined-up cruise ships from afar.

We reach the cut to Alders Cay at a favorable time as far as the tide is concerned. This makes the approach much less exciting. Together with a friend’s boat, we are the only ones far and wide. Fortunately, no one chases us away from the beach, even though the island is privately owned and access is not actually permitted. Like the Exumas, many of the islands in the Berry Islands are privately owned. Celebrities from Johnny Depp to David Copperfield have fulfilled their island dreams here. If you anchor naively, you can expect an unpleasant surprise in the form of security teams. But Alders Cay has been up for sale for years and we don’t bother anyone. When we turn around towards Bonds Cay, things surely look different. Shakira and Roger Waters would certainly not be happy having us there.

We enjoy the last two nights of our Caribbean dream and snorkel around the corals once again. The ones in the Bahamas are the most beautiful and healthiest we have seen on our trip so far. Dolphins also finally accompany us on our way again.