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Summer critter updates

We’ve been having a pretty epic summer, between seeing great friends both above and below water, getting a few trips down south to the untouched places like Space Mountain, Long Bow and Do It Again; our old standbys like Krispy Kreme, Sponge Gardens, and Bull Run; and even the Gingerbread Grounds! Sometimes summer squalls kept us close to home, but we were only rewarded with amazing animal encounters in our Bahamas backyard. Check out this video (https://youtu.be/sXYTQuwdz8s) of a curious Female Loggerhead Sea Turtle shot by Kat just a week ago, doesn’t get much better than that, does it?

While we’ve noticed fewer nudibranchs and octopus lately, the vertebrate diversity is as stunning as ever. Crew and passengers alike are finding species they’ve never seen before on an almost weekly basis. These those critters were found just a week apart: one a juvenile version of a deep sea Short Big Eye (found by Lyndsey), normally only seen below 300 feet as an adult, but hangs out in the shallows as a young’un. The other an as-yet-unidentified hamlet hybrid, we’re thinking Barred and Shy, what do you think?

Juliet’s Upcoming Facelift
As many of you already know, Juliet is going dry for her every-other-year maintenance period this October. We can’t wait to show you the new stainless steel rails, chainplates, and to (hopefully!) be rid of the rust streaks on the nice green hull from the old toe-rail for at least a little while! We’re sure you’re worried about her looking not her best lately, but soon enough she’ll be painted and shiny and looking fabulous again. Thanks to everyone for your patience and tolerance with her looks during this pre-haul-out time!

South Bound!
After haul-out we have one last Bahamas trip before heading south for the winter (It snuck up on us too!) A few weeks in Puerto Rico and Mona Island, then on to St. Croix – but with a few trips in St. Thomas and BVIs to kick off January a little differently. We’re pretty full except for a few spots over Christmas, but it’s not too early to start looking at next winter if you’re hoping for a St. Croix getaway.

Hope you’re having an amazing end-of-Summer, and are as excited for Fall as we are!

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Nitrox for all in 2023

Some think liveaboards are the best way to do a dive trip – we certainly won’t argue! You set up your gear one time, you literally eat, sleep, dive, repeat and never have to think about parking, dinner reservations, crowds, or traffic. You typically get the reefs to yourself, and are able to travel to some seriously remote destination, experiencing the underwater world with less human interference.

But there’s the rub. The remoteness. Great for pristine reefs and quiet vacationing, not so great if there’s an emergency. And when you’re intent is to breathe underwater on quite literally a version of recreational life-support, the probability for an emergency goes up a little. In an effort to bring that probability back down – even just slightly – starting in 2023 we’re requiring nitrox certification on all of our trips.

  • What if I’m not certified for it? No problem, you can get certified at your Local Dive Shop beforehand, or we can do the certification before we even leave the dock on boarding day. It’s that simple.
  • But what if I want to dive deeper than nitrox allows? Good thing we fill to 30% O2 which allows you to dive safely to a maximum operating depth of 121 feet, which is just within recreational dive limits. But honestly, not very many of the dives we offer require you to go that deep, and all the good stuff is typically 80′ and shallower anyway. So you’ll be fine.
  • What if I don’t want to pay extra for it? Luckily, our 2023 pricing will include nitrox in the rate so there’s no extra fee anymore (check your confirmation documentation).
  • What if I want a discount and only dive air? Sorry, air will no longer be available in the scuba tanks. If you want to breathe 21% O2, looks like you’re headed to the sundeck!

Looking forward to seeing you soon!

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Update to Bahamas Entry requirements

We’ve added a new section to the website to help keep you – and us, let’s be honest – organized when it comes to how to apply for your Health Travel Visa for your Bahamas trip. This will be kept as up-to-date as humanly possible, but it’s never a bad idea to cross-reference it with The Association of Bahamas Marinas site and the Bahamas website itself.

Find our hopefully helpful instructions here: https://julietsailinganddiving.com/travel-planning/bahamas-health-visas/

And as always, feel free to contact us with any questions.

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Good news for Vaccinated Travelers

As of May 1, 2021, fully vaccinated travelers will no longer be required to take a Covid-19 PCR test to gain entry approval to travel to the Bahamas. This news is still developing and barely even up to date on the Bahamas Tourism website. We are thrilled that this will help stream-line travel both for our travelers and for the Bahamas Tourism Industry as a whole.

We have been told that you will upload your vaccination card in place of test results when applying for the Travel Health Visa, but have not yet seen the change made on the visa website itself. Thanks for your patience and we will update as soon as we know more.

 

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How the CDC testing requirement affects your trip with us (Spoiler: it doesn’t, yet)

Everything is still a little strange out there, and normal is starting to feel almost within sight. We’re trying to be as safe and warm as possible and hope you are too. We’re still operating, still keeping things clean, still trying to provide a little space to escape to for those who are able and willing to make the journey. We can’t wait to see all of you as soon as you’re ready.

So far the latest CDC guidance on COVID-19 testing for international travelers returning to the US hasn’t affected us as St. Croix is a US territory and so is exempt from the requirements. It does not look like it will affect us when we return to the Bahamas either as it only applies to air travel thus far. We’re keeping an eye out for all the latest reports and appreciate everyone who has been reaching out with updates and concerns. We’re trying to keep the Covid-19 FAQ as up-to-date as possible, if you’re booked on a trip check there for the latest. Kat will also email you 2-3 weeks before with detailed instructions as necessary.

As can be expected, we’ve had higher cancellation rates continuing into this year, but we’re able to continue to try to provide a safe and comfortable safe for the people who can join us.

Until then, fair winds.

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Bahamas closed to Americans? Not exactly…

Oh Mondays, you’ve been so much more fun this year. And by fun, I mean keeping me on my toes more than I’d asked.

On July 20, the Bahamas announced they were limiting international travel due to localized outbreaks:

International commercial flights and commercial vessels carrying passengers will not be permitted to enter our borders, except for commercial flights from Canada, the United Kingdom, and the European Union. This will come into effect as of Wednesday the 22nd of July 2020 at midnight. Private International flights and charters for Bahamians, residents and visitors will be permitted. Pleasure craft and yachts will also be permitted.

Bahamas Tourism Website

This announcement specifies the closure applies to commercial airlines and vessels, private charters and flights will still be allowed.

Keep calm. It’s still on.

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Doing what we can

We’re back! Well, as much as we can be at the moment anyway. Juliet resumed limited charters on June 6 to the Florida Keys, and it was nice to be back out on the water again. The following three charters followed suit with small groups, limited crew, and more Florida Keys – thank goodness the weather was gorgeous, we never get that lucky on regularly-scheduled Keys charters! We thought we might be able to squeak out a trip to the Bahamas when they announced their soft opening June 15, but the testing requirements were logistically not feasible in the time frame we were given. And we were hoping that their official reopening on July 1 would yield an easier window…

But the official word from the Bahamas is that the borders are open and they are excited to welcome tourists again, but until further notice, they will be requiring negative COVID tests to enter the country. All travelers are required to have a negative COVID-19 PCR swab test taken within 10 days of travel, and results digitally submitted to the Ministry of Health to obtain a travel visa. We had our first successful Bahamas entry on July 5 so we can attest that it is doable, and it is so good to be back.

Logically you might question that timeline – so the test was negative on day 7, but what if you then are exposed 5 days out, what then? No, it’s not perfect, far from it. But it is the best the Bahamas can do right now to try to jump start their tourism-reliant economy while trying to protect their citizens from folks coming from areas that have wide-spread COVID-19 community transmission. It is more of a hurdle than a fail-safe, discouraging an unrestricted mass-exodus from the nearby states in the US. If someone does come down with a serious case of COVID-19 while in the Bahamas or transmits it to someone who lives there… their medical system cannot handle a major outbreak. If you’re feeling symptomatic, do not travel.

Yes, we all need a break, but not at the expense of Bahamian citizens’ health and well-being. And even though we as a group on Juliet do not touch land, the captain does, and the captain interacts with all passengers and crew before doing so. So this testing requirement does include us. If you are booked with us on a trip this summer, assume that this testing procedure will be our New Normal until told otherwise. Look into how and where you can get tested, what the turn-around time is for results, and plan accordingly. You will receive detailed information 2 weeks prior to your trip’s departure. If this process is not feasible for you, please reach out to the office and we’ll chat about options.

There may be weeks this summer that we are scheduled to head to the Bahamas and cannot due to local testing procedures, results taking longer in some parts of the country, or some counties not allowing asymptomatic testing to prevent a drain on local resources. Those weeks we might get rerouted to the Keys again. We’ll do our best to get you away, wherever that may be. We’re being as flexible as we can, and we appreciate your patience while we navigate this new ocean. And of course, this is all subject to change – thanks for bearing with us!

Fair winds.

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Making progress!

Signs of life are starting to return to the streets and states around the country are slowly reopening their economies for business in whatever this new normal will be. We’re still on standby but here is the latest update:

Miami is beginning the reopening process with many marinas reopened May 18 along with the bulk of other non-essential businesses. Many restrictions on occupancy are still in place, including limiting charter boats to 10 total individuals on board, and our dockage location is not yet open to commercial operations. Also, according to the emergency order categorization we believe we fall under hotel and travel lodging, which have not yet been allowed to reopen but is anticipated for June 1.

The Florida Keys announced they will be reopening to tourism on June 1. If this lines up with hotel also reopening in Miami-Dade, we could be on track for restarting charters in some capacity in early June with the Florida Keys as the destination to start.

As Bimini went into full lock-down for 2 weeks over recent unexpected spreading of Covid-19, the Prime Minister of the Bahamas announced over the weekend that the country anticipates they could reopen for commercial travel on or before July 1. It is still unclear what that means for commercial boating as flights were the only thing mentioned in the address. We hope to be able to return to the beauty of the Bahamas by late June, early July.

In the next few days we’ll be reassessing what traveling on Juliet will look like as we reopen. Not too much will change – our sanitation protocols were already in line with CDC guidance – but some things will as we adjust to abide by local and federal requirements to open our doors and remain in operation. We ask for your help and thank you in advance for keeping us compliant if you are coming on board this summer.

Thanks to everyone for the kind words, encouragement, and overall understand and compassion these past few months. This virus might be terrible and confusing, but it has shone a light on the good that is in the world through all of your kindnesses.

Fair winds.

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When are you going to open again!?

We are just as antsy as anyone to get back out on the water, and believe us, we are ready to go at a moment’s notice. But there are a few things standing in our way.

While most of the state of Florida is resuming business as usual in early May, the city of Miami is keeping non-essential businesses closed as of this writing until further notice. That puts a bit of a damper on us being able to dock the boat (marinas are considered non-essential), never mind board passengers, provision, etc. Once that is lifted…

The Bahamas has extended it’s State of Emergency until May 30. This means no visitors, sea ports are closed to all private vessels except essential trade, and all hotels and resorts are closed until further notice. They have released a 5-phase plan for reopening the country, and tourism falls into phase 5. There is no time-table set, though some family islands are in phase 1b as of this writing.

If Miami reopens but the Bahamas doesn’t, we can just go to the Florida Keys, right? Not exactly. The Keys will remain closed to tourists and visitors through the end of May at least. Plus Keys trips only work in close-to-perfect weather, which is never guaranteed. It’s a good alternative, not a great only option.

But we don’t touch land, so can’t we go either location because we’re so low risk? Yes, we’re lower risk than most tourism, but if something were to go wrong – we had a medical or mechanical emergency – we would have a long, slow haul back to Miami or risk putting an undue burden on a location that has made it explicitly clear they are not prepared for visitors.

This is hard. This is frustrating. But this will change and we will feel the wind on our face and the salt water on our dive suits as soon as we are able. Hang in there!

Fair winds.

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Stay Safe and Sound – a COVID-19 Update

We hope you are all staying healthy and safe and have a good support system to get you through this event. As you might have assumed, we were unable to run any charters in April this year. The governor of Florida issued a state-wide “Stay at home” order for the entire month of April, expiring April 30. There are also federal regulations against gatherings of 10 or more people through April 30, Miami has shut down all non-essential businesses, and Juliet has been denied dockage anywhere for the duration of the local Miami emergency order due to all marinas being ordered closed, no exceptions. Add to that the Bahamas has a instituted a complete travel ban (tourists and Bahamian Citizens), and south Florida has put restrictions on all recreational boating.

Obviously we are at the mercy of all of that, plus the fact that it continues to be much safer for everyone to stay home and try to reduce the spread to allow our health care systems to keep up. Whether or not any of that will change come May…? We’ll leave that to the experts, and will sit and await that decision. While we’re hopeful we can all get out of the house and out on the water soon but we are also realistic that it may not be an option. If you are traveling with us this May and haven’t already heard from us or your dive shop that is organizing your trip, please feel free to get in touch, our office is open and here to answer your questions.

If you’re curious about where Juliet is now: after returning to Miami on April 3, the boat made the long trip around to the Gulf side of Florida near where the owner lives to ride out the chaos until the world is safely open for business again. Juliet and her skeleton crew (including Rico!) are safe and sound anchored in a protected canal, and have a couple of alligator friends who visit them regularly to keep them company.

We appreciate all of your kind notes, phone calls, and social media engagement, it’s bringing smiles to our faces. We’ll get back out on the water soon, but until then please stay safe and healthy and smart.

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DBA Juliet Sailing and Diving
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