Well over a year ago I promised my dad a guys beach vacation to the Bahamas; just him and I. Next week I get to make good on that promise. Next Thursday we head for Staniel Cay, Bahamas located in the Exumas. Our whole family fell in love with the Bahamas during our Spring Break trip to Treasure Cay last year, so my daughter Abby was not too happy to find out she was not going. I promised her that as soon as the State Department sends us her baby sister's first passport, we'll look to go back as a family. That's a promise I have every intention of keeping!The Flight Plan:
We are looking to depart Craig Field, Jacksonville (KCRG) by 8:00am and fly to North Eleuthera (MYEH). I am planning to submit an IACO IFR flight plan with a route basically from Jacksonville direct to Melbourne, then out over the Atlantic Ocean direct to Freeport, then direct to North Eleuthera. I plan to fly this route at 7000 feet. At MYEH we will clear Bahamian Customs and Immigration as well as fuel up. MYEH has an FBO on the field, White Crown Aviation, that is reported to reliably have 100LL AvGas.
As I dreamed about this trip, I had originally planned to clear into the Bahamas in North Andros, but it looks like from all reports that the airports on Andros currently do not have AvGas. No worries. This new route may only be a few minutes longer, but it promises to be a more scenic one. Flight time to North Eleuthera should be just over 3 hours.
After we clear Customs and get fuel, we will continue our flight on to Staniel Cay (MYES). This last leg is only 80 miles and should only take about 40 minutes. I may choose to fly lower and slower to enjoy the views from above, but either way it will be great and I look forward to sharing the pictures!
Accommodations:
Once we arrive at MYES, we’ll be staying at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club. I've had this place happily stored in my Internet favorites ever since we got the plane and started looking at traveling to the Bahamas. We will be staying in the Orange Cottage. We are choosing to do the "all inclusive" plan. You get 3 bar meals a day, which I understand are quite good, as well as the use of a few recreational toys like bikes, kayaks, snorkel gear, and more. The highlight of the package deal is the daily use of a 13' Boston Whaler boat with gas to explore all the area has to offer.
We're headed to the Bahamas baby so stay tuned for a full report!
