Abacos, Andros or Exumas?

[mantaraye]

I am an fairly expereinced snorkeler looking for nice beaches and very good snorkeling. I define very good snorkeling and excellent coral conditions - little to no algae, good variety of hard and soft corals, etc. If the health of the reef is there, the fish population will be there as well.

I know Bonaire is rated highly by Rodale's Scuba Readers survey, but I don't want to travel all the way to Bonaire and from what I have heard has few good beaches. Which of these 3 locations would be the best for me? I would be happy to do boat snorkels and have done many boat trips with divers ( I was often the only snorkeler), although I like having access to beach snorkeling because I can snorkel more and it is cheaper.

I have contacted a couple of dive operators about reef conditions and have only gotten one response from Coral Caverns - the response was that the reef "was as healthy as it was everywhere else". That does not tell me much!

Anyone with any insights? Where would I find the best, healthiest shallow corals?

 

[jaydog]

The reef off Andros has quite a bit of algae growth.

 

[Aqua Cat]

You will have a hard time finding a combination of sandy beaches and healthy reefs with variety in Abaco or Andros. Finding reasonable airfares may take a bit of work. Down Island Exumas have very healthy reef as they are so remote. Sandy Beaches are also very common. On Aqua Cat, we have many non-divers enjoy snorkeling, fishing, lobstering, and beach combing while others dive. We dive sites 30-120ft with opportunity to snorkel on the surface on many. Our 28ft tender, 'Seadog' is available to regularly run non-divers to the beach. Liveaboards are a great way to go as we are always on the move visiting healthy dive sites. Nassau (NAS) is easy to get to as well. A wonderful way to meet new friends and not have to worry about logistics!

 

[ONESPEED]

Try Staniel Cay in the Exumas. The Staniel Cay Yacht Club offers flights out of Fort Lauderdale and their all inclusive packages include a small Boston Whaler that is ideal for exploring the numerous islands and snorkeling spots. Staniel Cay Yacht Club - Exumas, Bahamas

 

[gregboon]

The Abacos has several underwater national parks that are fantastic for snorkeling or diving. You will need a boat to get to them. There are numerous dive and snorkel operators to choose from. I have never seen so many fish and such a variety as I saw in Abacos. The beaches in Abacos are also first rate. The white sand and the color of the water in Abacos is a vivid blue that is indescribeable. They have elkhorn coral that stretches for a hundred yards per formation. They do not allow fishing in their national parks and apparently enforce it well. I highly recommend Abacos. I have never been to Exuma or Andros. Be aware there have been a few outbreaks of malaria on Andros.

Gregg Boone

 

[longliner]

The Abacos has several underwater national parks that are fantastic for snorkeling or diving. You will need a boat to get to them. There are numerous dive and snorkel operators to choose from. I have never seen so many fish and such a variety as I saw in Abacos. The beaches in Abacos are also first rate. The white sand and the color of the water in Abacos is a vivid blue that is indescribeable. They have elkhorn coral that stretches for a hundred yards per formation. They do not allow fishing in their national parks and apparently enforce it well. I highly recommend Abacos. I have never been to Exuma or Andros. Be aware there have been a few outbreaks of malaria on Andros.

Gregg Boone

We've been here on Andros for three years now and I have not heard a word about malaria. I wonder where this information [misinformation] comes from. Care to enlighten us.

 

[mantaraye]

Thank you all for the wonderful replies! I am not sure about the liveaboard. I will be traveling solo - I am the only snorkeler/nature lover in the family. If I were on a live aboard and perhaps encoutered a person that I didn't care to spend much time with, I would be stuck in the small confines of the boat. That may be an uncomfortable situation.

Also being a solo traveler, I would prefer not to rent a boat while in Exuma or Abacos. I have been on many many boats but have never piloted a boat and I don't want to run the risk of accidentally striking reef.

Malaria does not scare me - I have been to Southeast Asia, Belize and Roatan and all 3 places I have taken malaria medicine.

Since I first posted, I have narrowed down my choices. Being a solo traveler limits me for Exuma - I would love to go there but there just didn't seem to be many opportunities for a solo traveler - most options depended on independent boat rental. I cannot tell much from the Exuma dive operation web pages.

I considered Andros because it is a relatively large island, is undeveloped and has areas of unexplored reef. Due to the lack of development, I hoped that there would not be much algae - algae tends to really happen with lots of run off and development. I am sad to hear that there is much algae on the reef. I would like to get other opionions of this so please post.

I am really leaning towards the Abacos - have read many good things.

Should I stay on Guana Cay or Elbow Cay?
I would welcome any pros on Andros as well - I was thinking of splitting my time between the two.

 

[gregboon]

I was in Abacos in May 2006 on a 38" catamaran. We stayed at both Guana Cay and Elbow Cay. Elbow has Hopetown. It's a population 400 pretty town with brightly painted picturesque buildings and a lighthouse. There is a dive operator there, Froggies Dive in Hopetown. They took us to Fowl Cay (a 20 minute ride) and dove on the mini wall. It was incredible, were 2 sharks 4' and 6' that swam with us for 25 minutes. An incredible number of fish there. Coral in excellent shape - no algae.

We snorkeled at Elbow Cay also, snorkeling is OK, lot of dead reef and algae where we tried it.

Guana Cay has the most beautiful beach I have ever seen. No developement (except for a killer bar and 1 or 2 houses over a 5 mile stretch that we walked. My brother who was with me said it had great snorkeling and the reef was excellent. Unfortunately it is exposed and we had 25 mph winds kicking up good size waves. It was too rough for us to snorkel. Guana also has a dive shop, we anchored across from it for 2 nights. Sunday's the bar on the beach called "Nippers" has a killer party called the pig roast. Cruisers come from all around Abacos and it's quite a party. YOu can walk a mile down the beach and there is no one. We did not pass another person the 5 miles we walked the beach on the Sunday of the party. Not sure of the population on Guana but it must be under 100. Are very few buildings or restuarants.

If you want solitude, peace and quiet, Guana would be your best choice. If you want a few more restuarants and shops (not many) then Hopetown on Elbow would be a better choice. Neither island has many people on it. They are both beautiful. I tried to get another couple to charter a boat this year, they backed out right before we booked it.

Gregg Boone