Great Stirrup Cay hiking and snorkeling questions

[bbaileyfamily]

Has anybody walked/hiked to the back side of the island away from the normal public areas? Google Earth shows that the south side of the island faces some much shallower water. Anybody been over there? Any good snorkeling over there? How long did it take to get there.

 

Where are the best places to snorkel away from the massive sea of humanity?

 

Which way is the lighthouse? Which direction do you head?

 

Has anybody hiked to either end of the island? How was it and how long did it take? I want to do some trail/beach hiking. But, not with crowds. More exploring type of stuff.

 

If anybody has any ideas on getting away from the crowds, please feel free to input them here.

 

many thanks, Brad

[CruisinCrow]

If you go back and to the left of the tenders, you'll see a sign for the lighthouse trail. The sign says it is a 2-mile walk to the lighthouse but it is really only 1 mile. The trail is rocky so you'll need shoes.

 

Not far past the lighthouse is a small cove. We saw some people snorkeling there but I don't know how good it was. We didn't see a beach there.

 

Along the trail, there are some ruins of old military buildings and a helicopter pad. We walked down past the helicopter pad to see the waves crashing on the rocks. It was very scenic.

 

My advice for avoiding the crowds is to get there early and find a chair to the right on the tenders. There is a whole beach on that side and we even managed to snag 2 hammocks. Plenty of room and you are still close enough to hear the band playing (but far enough away so you don't get blasted).

 

Have fun exploring!

[CHIPMUNKSMOM]

bbailey Family... I couldn't find it with Google Earth.. and suggestions ?:confused:

[bbaileyfamily]

bbailey Family... I couldn't find it with Google Earth.. and suggestions ?:confused:

 

Searching for Great Stirrup Cay in Google Earth doesn't get you any results. Searching for "Berry Islands, Bahamas" gets you closer. It gets you to the chain of islands and GSC is the northernmost cay. But, to fly right to it;

 

In your search area in Google Earth, put in;

 

25 49' 30"N, 77 54' 30"W

 

This should take you right to Great Stirrup Cay in the Berry Islands chain of Bahama islands. The Norwegian beach area is that bay on the north side just to the left of center of the cay. By zooming out you can see how shallow the water is south of the cay

 

The smaller cay just to the left/west of Great Stirrup Cay is Coco Cay. You can see cruise liners for both islands sitting just offshore.

 

Hope this helps.

Brad

[lovetocruise99]

As other posters have suggested, get there early to avoid the crowds. I've been on ten cruises and have never seen a beach this crowded, except maybe in Europe where people are squeezed in like sardines on the beaches.

 

Here's a couple of pictures of Stirrup Cay's beach. If you click on the photo it will bring it up bigger to show you how crowded it can get.

 

http://www.familytravelfun.com/great-stirrup-cay-picture.html