June 11, 2026 - South Florida and Bahamas Cruise
Bimini
We woke up the next morning and we were at Bimini (North Island).  Bimini is about 40 miles due east of Miami and has a population of 2,360.  There is an airport on the south island.
   
Chuck and I were going on a Shark Snorkling excursion.  Here we are on the long pier looking back at the Reflection.
   
A nice beach at the base of the pier.
   
We crossed maybe 100 yards of land to the bay on the other side, where our snorkle boat was.
   
Now on the boat, heading south through a narrow channel that parallels the north island.
   
Lots of boats in the channel this morning.
   
A bunch of lounge chairs on a small beach with a crumbling, empty cement building behind them.  Coco Cay it isn't.
   
The water was very pretty though.
   
We passed South Bimini island on the left then continued due south until finally coming to a reef area.  Total transit time was about 45 minutes.  Right away we saw sharks.
   
The boat supplied the face maks, snorkels and fins.  They gave us a short safety brief and then we were in the water.
   
The water was about 30 feet deep.  The sharks stayed near the bottom.  At first.  The boat captain had told us the sharks were used to people and would not bother us.  But they knew they would get fed at the end and so would come up near the surface as people climbed back into the boat.  The captain said the last person to get into the boat would probably be surrounded by a lot of sharks.
   

Towards the end I did have a shark pass only a couple of feet right under me.
   
To the west of Binimi, the water is deep and blue.
   
The sharks were good size, maybe six foot.  But they were Sand Sharks and are not known to attack humans.  They do have teeth that are long, narrow, and very sharp with smooth edges,
   
Chuck prepares to exit the ocean, as the sharks circle around him.
   
I think this guy was the last one out of the water.  The boat Captain was not wrong.  The sharks are all around him.
   
Preparing to feed the sharks.
   

The sharks knew it was coming.

They gave us some rum punch on the transit back.
   
Heading out on the pier back to the ship.  Those cars on the water are actually jet skiis.
   
Back on the ship, Pete and Dave warm up for the ship's ping pong championshiip.  But no one showed up to compete.
   
It's hard to see in this picture, but Miami is visible in the distance, to the left of that big thunderstorm.  We were only 30 miles east of Miami and were just cruising back and forth until a final dash back into Port Everglades  in the early morning.
   
That evening, we all went to one of the specialty dining rooms:  Qsine.
   
The gang is ready to be entertained.
   
During the dinner a computer display lit up the table and told a story.
   
I've never seen anything like it.
   
The animation and light show was excellent but the food was first-rate as well.
   
Enjoying the desert.
   
 Dave and Jenny having a great time.
   
The dinner was sort of the last hurrah of the cruise, so afterwards everyone was saying goodbye.
   
But there was still disco to be had in the main atrium.
   
You wore headphones and could select one of three disco stations to listen to.
   
So people were dancing to different disco tunes which was kind of interesting.
   
 
   
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