Bimini Report

[Reel Crazy14]

Got back from Bimini on Sunday and once again had a blast! I spent the thanksgiving 5 day weekend there with bimini undersea and the big game resort. Bill, Nowdla, Melanie, and Aaron are top notch crewmen and run a great operation. All in all the weather was great and so was the diving. I saw a big eagle ray, many reef sharks and nurses, eels, a hawksbill turtle, and many more interesting critters. Vis was 50-100 ft depending on tides and what not. Water temp was 78-80. Blacktip reef and the barge were especially impressive as was rainbow reef and the strip. Also, you can't beat the night life at that place, too much fun. The Bimini Bay Development is threatening all of this good diving, ripping up mangroves and all, I hope a hurricane blows it away or something!

 

[archman]

Could you elaborate on this development project? Is it in Alice Town? What terrible things are they planning on doing?

 

[Tim Ingersoll]

How does Bimini compare to other places that you have dived?

 

[freefall2]

This was written back in 2002

Unprecidented Ecological Disaster

edit - Oops, sorry about that. I have no idea where I got 1992 from!

 

[archman]

This was written back in 1992

Unprecidented Ecological Disaster

No, it's written 2002. The intitial project startup dates 1992. Dr. Gruber, super-shark biologist, seems to be leading the front against the developers. He's an alright guy. I surmise his primary interest in this is the fact that he has a shark research facility on Bimini. Always good to have a local dude on the scene.

Diving in Bimini is usually rather good, in relation to many other sites in the Bahamas. Better than most sites in Florida, too. A lot of this beauty is chalked up to the small human footprint; hence the well-merited alarm raised against these large-scale commercial projects.

 

[freefall2]

I always enjoyed Bimini. We spent a lot of time there in the mid 90's. It had a magical feel to it. I hope it isn't ruined by overdevelopment.
We were lobbying our boss to move us back to the Bahamas this year and we're lucky he picked Roatan instead. We would have been at Marsh Harbor and this is one hurricane season I was glad to be well south of.

 

[Reel Crazy14]

They already ripped up a good bunch of mangroves, which we all know is a nursery for pelagics, and reef fish that people travel to bimini to see. They plan on filling in the whole north lagoon and turning it into an 18 hole golf course, draining fertilizers and toxins into the water. The north lagoon is the major nursery for young lemon sharks in the bahamas. This project will ruin what people come to bimini for, they want to turn it into another freeport or nassau (building a casino too). Just plain heartbreaking.

 

[archman]

They plan on filling in the whole north lagoon and turning it into an 18 hole golf course, draining fertilizers and toxins into the water.

You've GOT to be joking... where on earth is the water for irrigation going to come from?

I'm sure Sam Gruber will have a heart attack, regardless.

 

[sdwho]

I had no idea that Bimini was a redevelopment target. I visited there back in 1978
and it was as sleepy a little spot as you could imagine...hell, the electricity went out at least twice a day. I wasn't a diver then, and it was my first snorkelling experience...
ah, the memories...

sdwho

I always enjoyed Bimini. We spent a lot of time there in the mid 90's. It had a magical feel to it. I hope it isn't ruined by overdevelopment.
We were lobbying our boss to move us back to the Bahamas this year and we're lucky he picked Roatan instead. We would have been at Marsh Harbor and this is one hurricane season I was glad to be well south of.