BSAC TRAVEL CLUB - Trip Reports - Cat Island, Bahamas

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BAHAMAS: CAT ISLAND

By Charles Stirling

Cat Island is off the normal tourist trail of the Bahamas, one of the outer islands. It's populated, but seemingly only just, with around 1700 locals and not a large number of long-stay visitors or holiday makers. It's as close to the deserted island paradise as one is likely to find. It's a long and skinny spit of land (56 x 4 miles at the widest) with the highest point in the Bahamas, though still only 206 foot at its peak.

Think of its shape as rather like a high fashion boot with a pointed toe. Just offshore along the sole of the boot, i.e. Southern side, runs a deep water trench with shallower water over the top of the toe and along the front. This deep trench makes for ideal diving conditions as the island's shallow shelf extends out by a few hundred to many hundreds of metres before meeting the near vertical wall dropping away to undivable depths.

Grouper

The island is visited by a number of liveaboard dive boats coming to dive its walls but it's also possible to be land-based. I was land-based at Hawk's Nest Resort. This offers perhaps the only dive centre on the island and is a relaxed yet eloquent resort, it couldn't really be in a more ideal location. Located at the toe of that boot shape, it's within a few hundred metres of the deep wall at its closest point. Greenwood Beach Resort in Port Howe advertises diving but when I went it had supposedly closed its dive shop. The wall extends on for 12 miles along this coastal length, dropping to 1800 m depth but with a fringing coral reef on its shore side then patch reefs between that and the actual shore. The patch reefs are numerous, many probably haven't even been dived. They are usually surrounded by areas of white coral sand and depths from 10 to 20+m, so offer excellent areas for the less experienced as well as longer dive times for anyone. All the expected Caribbean fish and invertebrate life seemed present, but I didn't see anything really large except for the occasional Caribbean reef shark. The Caribbean generally sounds like it has such a large contingent of visiting sport fisherman that large fish are uncommon, but conservation measures are slowly beginning to help, I'm told.

The deep water does bring in some larger fish and sharks for feeding with occasional hammer-heads and the more plentiful reef sharks over the fringe reefs. The coral seemed in good condition with areas on the fringing reefs offering deep gullies, tunnels, and overhangs which can be reached in less than 35m depth.

Divers in gully on fringing reef

* Dives were off one of two boats, some shore diving possible.
* One boat was a smaller very fast aluminium hulled runabout.
* For longer trips a larger cabin cruiser type was used.
* Dives on fringing reef generally 20 to 35m depth, but deeper was easily possible.
The fringing reefs had dense coral built up to considerable thickness and openings in this allowed tunnels, deep fissures, etc. From the surface of the reef one could look down through open areas to see complex structure well into the reef. Dives started on the inside of the reef and could proceed to the outside of the reef in blue water.
* Patch reefs, inside the fringing reef, dive depths generally of 9 to 15m.
The thickness of these reefs was not as great as on fringing ones so swim-throughs, overhangs, deep gullies, and tunnels were not present. Fish and invertebrate life still prevalent, coral still good.
* On some days I was the only diver present but diving still went on, sometimes with two divemasters.
Normal procedure was two dives a day, one morning, one after lunch. Time to site varied from a few minutes to maybe an hour or more as we included a bit of exploring or snorkelling. One day we went 6 miles offshore to Tarter Bank (a coral mound), but normally along the island's shoreline, not more than a quarter mile out.
We returned to the marina between dives as travel times were normally short.
* Most sites did not have fixed mooring points as it had been found these acted as attractions to fishing boats, which could decimate the immediately surrounding areas. Instead an anchor was dropped in sand well away from reef structure. Swims to the reef were never a problem.
* Snorkelling is possible, and good, from the boats but equally its possible nearly anywhere along the island, including off the beaches and shore at the resort. One could go for a walk or kayak and have interesting snorkelling.
* All diving was on air. Cylinders are "A" clamp only.
* Visibility: fringing reefs 30 to 50+m, patch reefs 20+ m due to suspended sand.
* Temperature in water about 26°C. Gentle breeze on land so not overly hot, even at 30°C, on shore (OK, it was near perfect!) in May.
* Wetsuit desirable if planning much diving but possible without. 5mm full suit was comfortable for long dives (many of mine were over an hour) but 3mm more common.
* Kit hire possible: fins, mask, regulators and BC no problem, but limited range of sizes on wetsuits so ideally take your own. I'd personally say always take your own if diving is planned.

The advantage of staying land based is space and freedom, particularly if you have non-diving family with you, but you might not get as many dives as you would on a liveaboard. At Hawk's Nest complimentary kayaks, bicycles and snorkelling equipment were available along with tennis, volleyball and basketball courts and a swimming pool. Though if you wanted to have, say a volleyball match, you would have to bring your own crowd to play with as the resort doesn't offer crowds! The long white sandy beach just outside my room stayed pretty much deserted except at sunset when a few others would come out of the resort's main bar to watch for the "green flash" as the sun sank below the waves (and yes, I did see it once).

Blue striped grunt

For the kayaks a river/estuary runs for many meandering miles in and out of mangroves just next to the property along with a beautiful sheltered small bay and it's also possible to kayak along the coast. Snorkelling (or diving) was also absolutely fantastic in what might be called the house reef just at the edge of the property. Staghorn corals were plentiful here and loads of fish. The big attraction in Hawk's Nest for many was bone fishing or sea fishing and they had a constantly changing clientele of real luxury (to me anyway) private fishing boats visiting mainly from the US, but charters were available.

Car hire can be arranged by Hawk's Nest, but I hitched a lift with some other visitors. We ventured up the island on the single main road (it has one loop in it to Point Howe) to see local basket making and get a feel for the wider aspects of the island. This half day's outing wasn't able to cover much, but it showed how sparsely populated the island is. The local shops in the south, both of them, had little content (really little!, a few tins of food, a few cans of soft drinks, maybe a few rolls of toilet paper and some very nice bottles of chilli sauce). It's not a place to go if big shops are a psychological necessity for you, or indeed if discos, night clubs, casinos are thought necessary. There are no banks, few vehicles. This is an ideal place to put all of that consumer stuff aside and simply relax.

Would I go back? Yes!! There is much more to explore both underwater and around the island than I could do in a reasonably full week.

Getting to Cat Island:
I flew BA direct to Nassau from London, Heathrow and had an overnight's stay before flying on to Cat Island.

The resort has its own private airport if you happen to have your own plane or use a charter service, otherwise fly into New Bight (TBI) airport from Nassau by Bahamas Air or Lynx Air, available from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. It's an hour's drive from the airport but Hawk's Nest will collect you. Cat Island has a second commercial airport, Arthur's Town, at the northern end, about 4 hours drive away, and you would need to arrange your own transport.

Pool and main lodge at Hawk's Nest

Hawk's Nest Resort & Marina has 10 ocean front rooms (either single king or two queen size beds) and a two-bedroom beach house, all air conditioned, with TV and VCR. Two restaurant/bar areas, picnic areas, 28 slip marina, the dive centre and more. Very comfortable.
email: info@hawks-nest.com
www.hawks-nest.com Tel: (242) 342 7050

My trip was arranged by the UK Tour Operator "Discover the Bahamas" , Tel: 01737 218 803,
email: sales@discover-the-bahamas.co.uk
www.discover-the-bahamas.co.uk

Besides Hawk's Nest the island offers 8 other small inns or hotels located either at the North of the island or near the New Bight airport. One other, Greenwood Beach Resort also on the south coast, in Port Howe advertises that it provides diving. http://www.greenwoodbeachresort.com

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