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Aviation articles by Garth Wallace
6/ Treasure hunting in the Bahamas
 It was a
Canadian pilot’s winter wish come true; leave the land of long johns and
pre-heat and fly to subtropical islands accessible only by yacht or private
airplane.
The Bahamian government has been promoting its islands as destinations for
recreation flyers for years. It’s working. More than 120,000 people visited
the former British colonies last year in small aircraft. The experience is
different enough to be an adventure yet is easily accessible.
A special way to enjoy the Bahamas is to fly with a group of aircraft on a
professionally organized island tour. In February my wife and I joined such a
group organized by Air Journey, a Florida-based company that specializes in
escorting private planes to exotic places. It was a fun way to try island
hopping and it saved me from map reading over open water on my own. I can’t
tell one wave from another.
Pilot paradise
The Bahamas is a chain of 700 small
islands and 2,000 smaller cays and rocks. It begins 60 miles off the coast of
Miami at Bimini and curves southeastward for 760 miles ending at Great Inagua
Island. Thirty of the islands are inhabited. There are 60 airports, some private
and some government. Nassau, the Capital City, and Freeport, on Grand Bahama,
have the largest and only controlled airports. The rest are single strips
varying from long and paved to short and rough.
The island pace is vacation friendly and infectious. The food and lodging mix
local flavour with North American convenience. The people are casual and curious
with a touch of British colonial politeness. It’s warmer than Canada in
February.
Our host
Air Journey is run by Thierry Pouille, a
French-born, multilingual travel agent who flies a Beechcraft Baron out of West
Palm Beach Executive Airport. The Americans in our group pronounced his name,
"Terry Poolie." It was close enough for him.
Pouille leads the Air Journey trips. Liz and I flew with him in his Baron on the
Eighth Annual Bahamas Treasure Hunt. He also organizes group flights to the
Caribbean islands, Mexico and Central America.
Prior to the trip, we received a package of information, charts and forms. A
binder included a detailed itinerary, the names of the people and aircraft in
the group, contacts for each overnight stop, a checklist and the documents
needed for flying to, in and from the Bahamas. There were completed navigation
logs for each leg as well as ICAO flight plans. The package also contained a VFR
Flight Planning Chart of the Bahamas, a 2004 Island of the Bahamas aviation WAC
chart, a big fat 2004 "Bahamas & Caribbean Pilot’s Guide" and
brochures from the Bahamian Ministry of Tourism.
The best lifejacket is one you’re
wearing
The group met at Ft. Pierce, Florida on a
Monday morning at ten o’clock. There were 16 people flying in eight aircraft.
The participants were older, experienced recreation pilots flying high
performance single-engine aircraft.
Pouille briefed everyone on the weather, frequencies and procedures for flying
the first leg to Freeport, Grand Bahama Island. An assistant filed the group’s
flight plans. Life jackets and rafts were distributed. Suggestions were
exchanged. Questions were answered.
The first plane was airborne by 11:15. Pouille departed last and monitored
everyone’s progress on an air-to-air frequency.
The beaten path
Freeport is 100 miles from Ft. Pierce. It
was built for mass tourism with new hotels, manicured lawns, casinos, good food,
expensive shopping and guided activities.
Clearance through Customs and Immigration was eased by our Air Journey leader.
Mini-van taxis were standing by. We climbed in and were off to Our Lucaya, a
high-rise, ocean front hotel.
That evening, Air Journey and Bahamas Tourism hosted a cocktail reception for us
in the hotel. There was no sales pitch, just, "Welcome to the
Bahamas." The participants got to know each other while being introduced to
Bahama Mamas and Drowned Monkeys.
There was no flying scheduled for the next day. One couple swam in the ocean
with trained dolphins, another had a scuba lesson diving on a coral reef and
others shopped in the straw market nearby. There was also golf, snorkeling,
sailing, fishing, swimming, parasailing, motorbiking and tennis available.
Liz and I ate and walked on the beach. Then we lounged beside a swimming pool
waiting for the next meal. There were lots of people. They looked like families
on $999 holidays. I remember thinking, "This is like Florida with slower
service. Is this really the Bahamas? The brochures showed quaint lodgings with
hammocks next to isolated beaches."
It was the Bahamas. The islands offer everything from high activity, full
service holidays to resorts off the beaten path where you can lay and watch palm
tree shadows creep across the empty beach while reading a funny flying book.
If you don’t like where you are, another experience is an island hop away.
Treasure hunt
Every flying day, Pouille gave each
couple a list of Treasure Hunt questions. This made it more fun for the
non-pilots in the group.
The first questions were easy:
"Who won the Super Bowl this year?"
I answered, "The Montreal Alouettes."
"Who is the Bahamian Minister of Tourism?"
"Obie Wilchcombe." His name was in the brochures.
Pouille handed out plastic gold coins for right answers during our evening
get-togethers. The treasure dollars were then played in a follow-up Black Jack
game with Pouille dealing. He cheated to make sure everyone won a hand.
The treasure hunt questions on the rest of the trip were based on the islands
and resorts to be seen on each flight with a few brain twisters thrown in.
You’re not talking to Nav
Canada
The Bahamians are friendlier and less
efficient than Canadians and Americans. Both are qualities that are part of the
island charm but visitors need to be aware.
Before departing Freeport, Pouille warned us to check our hotel bills. One
participant had been charged double. The chief pirate straightened it out.
At the airport, the wind was blowing 90 degrees across the single, 11,000-foot
runway at 25 to 35 knots. Pouille telephoned the control tower and convinced
them to depart us on a 3,500-foot taxiway that was closer to the wind. The first
pilot in our group to taxi out was instructed to takeoff on a 2,000-foot
downwind taxiway that ended at hangars. Pouille was monitoring the frequency
before his start-up and caught the error.
Our flight took us 200 miles south and 50 years back in time. There were to be
multiple stops along the way but the strong crosswinds left us with just one
extra landing. We flew to Staniel Cay on the Exuma Islands where we landed and
walked over to the Staniel Cay Yacht Club for lunch. The restaurant and
clientele had to be from a Hemingway movie.
To take our lunch orders, the waitress called out each dish, said how many were
available and asked for a show of hands from those interested. "I have
three lobster salads. OK, you, you and you."
Here’s the beach, where’s the
hammock?
We continued flying down the Exuma Island
chain enjoying the spectacle of rocky outcrops dividing the rolling blue waves
of the Atlantic Ocean from the shallower turquoise water of the Bahama Banks.
Each protected cove was dotted with anchored boats.
The flying ended at George Town at the bottom of the Exumas where we spent two
nights at the Club Peace and Plenty. This is one of many smaller, older inns
common on the out islands.
George To wn is a hodge-podge of buildings scattered along a curving shoreline
that forms a large protective harbour. The village caters to the sailboat crowd.
It was bustling when we were there. Hundreds of sailboats were anchored in the
bay, their owners, like the ones further north, waiting out the strong winds.
The highlight of the next day was a boat ride to
an isolated, ocean side beach across the harbour. Members of the group walked,
talked, picked shells, waded in the ocean and dug in the sand around the remains
of an airplane that had crashed on the beach years ago. They didn’t dig for
long. It was hard work and they didn’t want to find the things they didn’t
want to find.
The pirates have landed
We flew northbound to North Eleuthra
Island for our final overnight. Our destination was The Cove, a small resort
like the ones in the get-away brochures: twenty rooms in cabins circling a
restaurant, bar, swimming pool and beach in the middle of nowhere.
Pouille threw a pirate dinner party. Our group made up half the guests in the
compound. A Bahamian performed island songs but we were the main entertainment.
Two of the other guests announced that they were engaged. This prompted our
group to perform the wedding with one of our pilot "Captains" as the
presiding pastor.
Prizes of one-night stays at different Bahamian resorts were awarded for the
best costumes. The evening ended with a bonfire on the beach. Great fun and good
friendships.
The next day we departed to different destinations in the United States but not
before trading e-mail addresses and saying our good byes.
The bottom line
The Air Journey price for this Treasure
Hunt was $350 US per airplane plus $715 per person. That’s $1,780 US per
couple in one airplane. It included all accommodations, some meals and drinks,
the information package, discounts on survival gear rental, escort aircraft and
crew, hosting at functions and expediting on each leg of the trip.
The package did not include the cost of traveling to Florida and back, aircraft
and fuel costs, ground transportation, many meals, additional activities, some
tipping and the Bahamian exit fee of $15 per person.
The Bahamian dollar is pegged to the American buck, one-to-one. American money
is the major currency for tourists. Most products are imported and cost 40 per
cent more than in the United States. Accommodations range from small, old,
isolated and rough-on-the-edges for under $100 per night, to large, new,
palatial, isolated and very expensive. A 15 per cent service charge is
automatically added at most restaurants and resorts.
Then there is Pouille’s knowledge of the Bahamas and its people, his
friendship making ability, his concern for each participant, his leadership
skills and his love of a good time. The cost is priceless.
For information on upcoming Air Journey tours,
see: www.airjourney.com.
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