Dive and Discover along the Way! Join the crew of the Morning Star for a week of adventure! We'll be returning to Freeport from the Southern Exumas and invite you along for the journey!

We'll dive from Georgetown thru Conception, Exumas, Berries, Gingerbreads and back to Grand Bahama the week of August 16-22. Same great price, with a great twist!

Here is some info on each of the areas we will try to visit on the way: Conception Island Wall, this uninhabited Bahamas Nature Park, on land and underwater, provides pristine dive stuff that legends are made of! Vertical walls fringed with huge coral heads begin as shallow as 45' and step down to indefinite ink-blue depths. Visibility usually ranges from 150 to 200'. All underwater life is at its best! And close by the infamous 9-mile South Hampton Reef, sporting continuous depth changes from 10 to 100', reportedly snagged some 150 wrecks, historic and modern. There is close by beach relaxation on Conception Island, the island’s creeks provide shelter for various turtle species, and bird watching is great, too. “Conception” can stand up to any Bahamas and Caribbean dive hot spot competition! What secrets has the sea been hiding below the surface in San Salvador all this time? Start with superb walls and stellar visibility, then add cruising scalloped hammerheads and dog friendly Nassau grouper. Slide headfirst down a vertical chute that spits you out at 120ft (36m) on the face of the wall with nothing but blue water between you and the bottom of the world, and you'll begin to appreciate the draw of this splendid island. You can see such vast panoramas here that the underwater dimensions seem bigger than other places. Many consider the Exuma Cays to be the most beautiful chain of islands in the Bahamas. Stretching over 90 miles, they range from 30 miles southeast of Nassau (Sail Rocks) to the Great Exuma Cay in the south. Only a few cruising yachts and native conch fisherman visit the Exumas. The cays themselves vary in size and terrain: some are low and barren with white sandy beaches; others have rolling hills covered with dense vegetation and small trees. Between the islands are narrow channels sporting a maze of coral growth. The abundant coral reefs are protected in all weather conditions to create quiet anchorages and great night dives. The spectacular drop-off runs parallel to the islands along Exuma Sound on the eastern side. The wall starts in about 50 feet of water and plummets to several thousand. The edge contains huge caverns, tunnels, and large fish of numerous species. Just inside the wall are areas of reef formations in 20-60 feet of water. These reefs vary from shallow elkhorn and staghorn coral gardens to tall coral heads on white sand. The shallower diver yields hundreds of species from the smallest nudibranchs and shrimp to the larger reef fishes such as barracudas and sharks. To the west of the Exumas, the Great Bahama Bank ranges 40 miles. Only 40 feet deep, the shallow coral reefs here teem with tropical fish and provide an excellent environment for the juveniles to develop. The tidal flow creates strong currents between the islands - ideal for drift dives over a mile in length. The Berry Islands are located on the edge of the Bahama Bank, shallow dives among the area's many reefs are plentiful, and with the Tongue of the Ocean just a stone's throw away, the rare experience of diving along sheer walls is also standard fare.There is a deep-water canyon at Chub Cay where you can find a variety of colorful reef fish and open water marine life. Staghorn coral are numerous in the shallow waters near Mamma Rhoda Rock. The Chub Cay Wall, which starts at 80 feet and drops to 4000 feet, provides divers with a magnificent look into the deep. The Canyons is located in 45 feet of water and has a variety of swim-throughs, tunnels and large coral arches. Another popular site is the Eel Garden which starts at 40 feet of water over white sand with hundreds of garden eels, southern stingrays and parrot fish. A rollover covered with coral heads continues down to about to about 75 feet. Diving along the way back to Freeport! Captain Grayson and crew will be on the look out for new sites, new adventures and great fun.

One of the deadliest shipwreck traps in the Western Hemisphere! In the Southern Bahamas, approximately 50 miles midway between Great Inagua and Crooked Island, and roughly l00 miles north of the island of Hispaniola is a place so untouched by intruders, that it typifies the definition of the word "unspoiled". It was also a dangerous place during the old shipping days before GPS devices existed. Almost invisible beneath deceptively tranquil waters lies a treacherous reef of jagged coral which has claimed hundreds of ships over the last 450 years. Named the "Dragon's Teeth" by early Spanish captains and sailors, we now know it as "HOGSTY REEF". Hogsty Reef is one of only three true coral atolls in the Atlantic formed when the volcanic island slowly receded into the ocean. Surrounded by waters that plunge to depths of 6,000 feet or more, two small spits of sand in a horseshoe shaped formation encompass a crystal clear lagoon. The only entrance to the lagoon on the west side keeps the diving pristine. The entire formation of approximately twelve square miles provides a lush habitat for colorful schools of butterflyfish, parrotfish angelfish, grouper and snapper abound. And away from the protection of the reef mass, giant sharks and whales prowl the waters over the edge of the shear walls that plunge to the depths of the ocean.

More than 25 wreck sites have so far been identified on Hogsty Reef. The reef even appears on early European maps and Christopher Columbus includes the area in a 1492-93 drawing and it is also on a world map prepared by Juan de la Cosa in 1500. Owing to the favorable currents, the Bahama Channel was a popular early shipping route, despite the jagged reefs. Some refer to the Hogsty reef area as the “Truk Lagoon” of the Caribbean. This is a wreck and wall diver’s dream liveaboard trip!

The two visible wrecks are the only things that can be seen of the reef on initial approach. One of these is a WW2 liberty ship, wrecked in 1963 and from a distance looks like an intact ship. It is truly an amazing place. Inside is turquoise water, 25 feet deep over white sand. Outside the wrecks and atolls, there is a sheer drop to over 6,000 feet! So, there is phenomenal shear wall diving which attracts numerous sharks and rays.

Blackbeard’s is still keeping their exceptionally low pricing of $929 pp plus taxes for an all-inclusive week of diving, exploring, eating and drinking on this phenomenal itinerary. Come explore with us this summer and discover the pristine diving of the Southern Bahamas. “Twice the fun, Half the Cost” The itinerary will be weather dependent and include the best dive sites of the above areas.

Don’t Wait---Only two week long trips and they will fill fast!

Call Today to reserve your spot for just a $150 deposit.

TRIP INFO

Cost = $929 plus $50 fuel surcharge, $10 marine park fee & $40 Bahamian port tax.

August 2nd –August 8th August 9th- 15th

Departing Georgetown, Great Exuma late Saturday afternoon and returning to Georgetown by Thursday night. Airport code GGT. Georgetown is serviced by daily flights on American Airlines, Continental Airlines, US Airways.

Weekend trips on Blackbeard's Cruises are perfect for the quick getaway! Log up to 10 dives in 3 packed days of diving in the Western Bahamas. Trip boards at noon on Saturday, the 30th of August and we'll shove off at 3pm. We'll dive that day so get ready to get wet! We'll stop in Bimini for port night so you can enjoy the local night life and then back to dive, dive, dive the rest of the weekend! We'll return to port on Tuesday evening with all passengers disembarking by 9 am on Wednesday morning! Flights should be easier (cheaper) with this configuration than the traditional Fri-Tue long weekend. Priced at just 667.00 per person plus 90.00 for fuel, port and park fees. Includes all diving, meals, beverages/bar, lodging on board. Book your space soon, it fills up fast!

Blackbeard's Cruises has been diving the Bahamas for 30 years! In celebration of this hallmark moment, we are shaving 30 bucks off our weeklong rates effective all trips departing September 1, 2008 and throughout our 30th year of 2009! Arrgghh, Matey! Come aboard for some great diving and camaraderie! We really are Twice the Fun for Half the Cost! We are reducing our weeklong rate from $929.00 to just $899.00! Take advantage of this great offer now!