palm beach-grand bahama crossing

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Big fish63

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How is the crossing from palm beach to grand Bahama island and roughly how long does it take?
 
Depends on the weather and a realistic boat speed. The Gulf Stream can be very rough and dangerous when the prevailing wind has a strong component from the north. The wind running against the strong north flowing stream kicks up high waves with short intervals.

Ideally, you want to arrive at one of the safe entry points when the sun is high in the sky so you can visually avoid shallow coral heads.

When we crossed on our trip to the Bahamas, we waited about 10 days for a suitable weather window. We left West Palm Beach at 1:00 AM and arrived at the deep entry point to the Little Bahamas Bank at noon. We were is a 36 ft sail boat.

This is not something to be casually approached. Even with good conditions it can be rough which will greatly reduce the speed a boat can safely use even if it is capable of higher speeds.
 
I'm travelling on the shearwater with scuba adventures/Jim abernethy. I didn't realise it was such a tough journey! Not looking forward to it now. I think we leave palm beach around 9/10/11 pm .
 
A 36 foot sailboat and the Shearwater are two very different animals. Jim can cross the gulf stream in 4-6 hours, and the last couple aren't too bad unless it's a northeast wind. Take your dramamine, go to bed, wake up when it's over.
 

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