During the evening we crossed the Straits of Florida and then during the remainder of the night we sailed under Freeport towards Half Moon Cay. In the early morning we felt the ocean swell as Half Moon Cay is at the edge of the Bahama Bank facing the North Atlantic. Officially the island is called Little San Salvador Island and next to it is San Salvador Island which is larger and has the claim to fame that Columbus discovered America here in 1492. There are several islands that claim that fame and if they are all correct then Columbus must have been busier with landing at all these islands than being occupied in figuring out why he was not in India as he wanted to be.
The Zuiderdam at anchor on the edge. The red triangle is the safety zone. If the ship drifts out of it, then there must be something wrong and the Navigators will take action.
However we knew where we were going as we have been there before. So by 07.30 the good ship Zuiderdam was at anchor and the shore tenders were coming out. We have large tenders available here and that speeds up the disembarkation to the island considerably. 5 runs to the island and the ship is empty. We anchor here in a similar way as we do in Grand Cayman, at the edge of the island, with the bow in about 30 feet of water and the stern in about 1000 feet of water. The island is rising quite steeply out of the depths of the ocean. With the hook down, only the stern can move and that stern is kept in position by keeping one of the Azipods running and setting the pod under such an angle that the ship is kept from drifting onto the reef and also not yawning too much.
The “Half Moon cay” shore tender and the “Half Moon Clipper” for provisions docked alongside the ship.
Holland America has leased part of the island from the Bahamian government since 1996 and as it is a very long term lease so big investments have been made to make it the most popular private Island in the Caribbean. We are neighbors with Princess, Disney and NCL, who have their islands further to the West, but I understand from various prizes which we received through the years that HMC is considered the best one. It is dedicated to HAL ships but when we are not there, then Carnival is allowed to call here as well; but there will never be two ships of a different brand together. The island can easily handle two ships and today I could see it myself. With 2000 guests ashore, it was still very empty. In the coming cruises the Zuiderdam will meet up with the Eurodam and the Nieuw Amsterdam and then the island will be a little bit fuller.
All prepared for a very last minute return to the ship.
I hopped ashore today to see what they had been adding in the last few years, and the first thing which caught my eye was the waiting area to return to the ship. If it is a nice day, all the guests are coming back at the same time and as the tenders cannot handle this, you have to wait. Before everybody had to stand in the burning sun while waiting (after having been burnt in the sun already all day) but now a covered area has been created. Here the guests go through the security scanner before they can walk straight onto the shore tender. The only thing which is missing is a small bar where they sell Heineken. A small pint while waiting in line would just be my piece of cake. The guide – rope – lanes are not so much in use for our guests as they come back fairly staggered but when there is a 3500+ Carnival ship in, then they are needed due to the long lines by the last minute returns.
The inside of the pirate ship. A bit strange to see our own bar tenders working ashore.
The other thing I had not seen yet, although it was built a few years ago, was the pirate ship. Inside the hull is a bar with a band stand where they play Calypso music. It is just across from the BBQ house which is the main focal point of the island apart from the beach. All food and drink outlets are manned by the ship’s crew, while the facilities are being looked after by the Bahamians who come to the island each day with one of the boats. Apart from the island manager and those who look after the horses there is not anybody living on HMC. They all come from next door Eleuthera.
The Barbeque hall is a covered but open area with the open kitchen along one length and self serving buffets on a 90o angle at several intervals.
The food and drink all comes from the ship and is taken to the island by a special tender, the Half Moon Clipper and whatever is left over, returns the same way just before departure. That departure was set for 15.00 hrs. and then the Zuiderdam turned her nose to the south, heading for Oranjestad Aruba where we are scheduled to arrive two days from now at 1 pm.
The weather looks good, we had a hurricane in the area, Kate, but she turned to the north and did not create more wind there that can normally blow. But because she came by, it “sucked” all the wind away and today we had no wind at all. So it was a very warm day but as we are on a Caribbean Cruise that is what it is all about.
November 10, 2015 at 8:00 pm
Very nice post about one of my favorite places. Thanks…Always interesting and informative.
November 11, 2015 at 8:56 pm
When Carnival acquired Holland America, I read that two of the reasons was for the HAL operations in Alaska (Westours) and Half Moon Cay. I’ve thought that HAL had purchased the island. Is it just a lease?
November 12, 2015 at 4:13 pm
Thank you for reading my blog.
Yes it was a purchase and yes it was a lease and it is a very long running one. I think it is one of those (English law)
leases which run for 999 years. If it was an outright purchase then Holland America might be able to start their own
country or something.
Best regards
Capt. Albert
November 12, 2015 at 8:10 pm
Thank you for your enjoyable style again, Captain, now embellished with a snap shot that portrays the aloha spirit that seems to be so contagious on any tropical island.
November 14, 2015 at 9:28 am
A simple question but one I’ve always wondered about, when at anchor is the anchor simply dropped onto the seabed or does the captain have to manoeuvre the ship once the anchor is dropped to be sure it is secure.
November 14, 2015 at 5:00 pm
Thank you for reading my blog.
The anchor is simply dropped once the bow is at the correct position. Once the hook is down, the ship is slowly manuvered away from that location to pay out the anchor chain over the seabed. A ship stays where it is, due to the drag /weight of the anchor chain. It is not the anchor which keeps the ship in position, it is the weight of the amount of chain which has been paid out and laid over the sea bed. The function of the anchor is merely to ensure that the chain does not start “gliding” over the seabed but continues to provide the grip.
Best regards
Capt. Albert
February 19, 2016 at 11:53 am
I am curious about one of the tenders in the photograph for this blog, The Half Moon Clipper. I see this particular blog was posted this past November, but when I look up info for this ship I find “Existence in doubt since 2010”. My interest in the Half Moon Clipper is purely Nostalgic in nature as it was originally named “Marine Runner” and served as a Coastal Ferry to isolated fishing outports on the Southwest Coast of Newfoundland, Canada. I travelled on it a few times as well as it’s sistership the Marine Sprinter ( now named Cavaliers des Mers). To the best of your knowledge is the Half Moon Clipper still in use and is it a private tender or owned by Holland America?
February 19, 2016 at 3:34 pm
Good morning and thank you for reading my blog.
Yes the Half moon Clipper is still there and it is still used for travelling all the food, drink and other materials to the island when a ship calls. It even transfers the bales of hay for the horses from the ship to the shore. The tender is fully owned by Holland America since 1997 and registered to Hal Properties Nassau Bahamas. Apart from being the “food ferry for the ship” it also transfers the locals who work at HMC out and back to Eleuthera island were they live, as only the Horse Grooms live on the island.
I hope this helps.
Best regards
Capt. Albert