Andros Expedition, July 28-3rd Aug 2019

What a week! From swimming with wild dolphins, to gill netting in the dark, exploring blue holes, and diving with a school over over 50 silky sharks, this expedition was jam-packed with adventure. This thrilling week saw guests face some emotional and challenging moments that they’ll remember forever, and we’re proud to have been part of their special journey. The weeks breakdown is detailed below, enjoy!

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Day 1

Everyone arrived to the airport at 8:15am. Tristan handed out our eco bags while the guests got acquainted and the luggage was checked in. Before we knew it, it was time to board our plane and start our adventure to Andros, the largest island in The Bahamas!

Whilst flying the group had amazing views of the blue waters of the Bahamas, and as we reached Andros, they were entranced by the wild terrain of the island. Once landed, we passed through customs and loaded our bags into the taxis to head to the Bonefish Club, our home for the next week.

On arrival to the Bonefish Club, some guests were immediately drawn to the ocean, and were rewarded with a view a few local lemon sharks swimming by, including a well known individual named Eclipse. After receiving our room keys, we placed our belongings in our rooms, and headed back to the main area for lunch and an afternoon briefing.

Before we knew it, we were on the water and heading to a shallow reef where we encountered a large, free-swimming remora that spent a lot of time investigating each of us! Where there’s a remora, there’s often a shark, ray, turtle, or other large animal, and one of this size got us all guessing which large critter was close by! After our dip we hopped back into the boat and drove over to the deeper side of the reef where we saw a reef shark patrolling thirty feet below us.

After our snorkel we visited Isla’s Point, a known lemon shark hotspot, to see if we could attract some juvenile lemon sharks. The current was ripping, which means a strong bait slick and sharks, but extreme tides meant the sharks were overly cautious and reluctant to venture close. We all enjoyed the view of the sharks from the surface, but with the sun beginning to set, we called it a day and headed back to the lodge for dinner.

After our main meal, we gathered around the TV in the common room to watch the first night of Shark Week! This trip coincided with Shark Week so we were excited to really live our own Shark Week, with live, in-person sharks; what’s more, our expedition leader, Tristan, was on both feature shows that opening night, so we all enjoyed teasing him about his onscreen appearances!

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Day 2

We woke for a 7:00am breakfast and headed out early to a spot known for silky sharks. This location is a navy buoy that sits in the Tongue of the Ocean, a deep oceanic trench that reaches eerie depths of over 2000 meters!

Upon our arrival and without any bait in the water, we immediately spotted a few silky sharks, so we decided to take advantage of the opportunity to swim with them in their natural state. Curious, calm, and a little inquisitive, these sleek sharks have the perfect temperament to introduce pelagic sharks to almost anyone! After about thirty minutes, everyone got back in the boat, and we began to bait to see what we could bring up from the depths.

All guests then returned to the water to observe the difference in behavior bait would make. The sharks were motivated and excited.  With more silkies zooming around, we were greeted by a new surprise, from deep below a much larger shark was swimming up to investigate us, and at first, we thought it was very large silky. As the shark approached the surface, it gave everyone a good look and made several close passes, and we realized that it was a different species. It was a large male dusky shark!

Using our own co-leader Matt as a reference, we were able to gauge that the dusky was roughly three meters (10 feet) long. We spent some quality time in the water with him. What a beauty! After our shark-filled morning, we decided it was time to head home for lunch before our afternoon activity.

On arrival to the lodge, we ate lunch and took a short break before heading back to sea. Next up was a leisure snorkel around a popular area we often visit. A couple of guests saw green turtles, along with an abundance of colorful reef fish and other life. 

After everyone excitedly explored the location, we moved on to a nearby blue hole. The water was crystal clear and warm, and nobody wanted to leave even when it was time to go! At the bottom of this relatively shallow hole, there is a cave entrance, which a few people dove down into when they weren’t swimming around the perimeter admiring the healthy reef. The creepy hole was dark, and spider crabs had been spotted there previously.

So, we finished up at the blue hole and decided to bait in a known sharky channel, to see what we could attract. Unfortunately, as the tide wasn’t in our favor and nothing big appeared to be present, we cut our losses and decided to head back for the day. Nature had other ideas though; on our way back we were joined by a small pod of dolphins in incredibly shallow water. A few people did not hesitate to hop in to see if they could get a close interaction with the dolphins. The dolphins could be heard communicating under the water and they seemed to enjoy swimming past our divers. We spent time playing and interacting with them, which was extremely hard to leave, but we did, as the light was fading and dinner was calling.

On arrival back to the lodge we got cleaned up and ready for dinner, followed by some more Shark Week episodes and an early bed ready for tomorrow’s adventures.

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Day 3

Today the crew were up bright and early for a 6:30am breakfast and an early start on the water, with a break in the afternoon, followed by a night-time activity. With great weather conditions and favorable tides, we headed out to a popular snorkeling spot, a shallow, beautiful location.

The reef was absolutely gorgeous and busy with the early morning life. There was a huge spider crab hiding in the coral that everyone excitedly observed. In addition, a large loggerhead sea turtle and a nurse shark were also spotted by a couple of guests.

After our relaxed, snorkel we piled back into the boat and headed to our hammerhead location. Hammerhead season is typically December through April, so we knew the chances of attracting one in July was extremely unlikely, but as a group, wanted to try, so we did. Tristan hopped in and began baiting with co-leader Matt, and after a few minutes guests leaped in too. We were all interested to see a nurse shark and Nassau grouper resting next to each other near a coral head; neither one of them moved while the bait started to attract other animals. No luck on the hammerheads, but the dive was still a huge success with Caribbean reef and blacknose sharks, giant grouper and cubera snapper, barracuda, mackerel, and southern stingrays making frequent passes.

After a few hours in the hammerhead location, we moved to a local lagoon for a relaxed afternoon walking the shallow water and enjoying the island’s isolation, while Tristan baited the water and Matt snapped some photos. Within twenty minutes, juvenile lemon sharks surrounded us. We enjoyed watching them swim in close, using each other as anchors against the strong current!

Soon everyone started to get hungry so we headed back to the lodge for lunch and our afternoon break. The staff at the Bonefish Club had prepared Bahamian BBQ chicken wings and pasta salad for us, and we were grateful for the delicious, filling lunch. With our next activity in a few hours, some guests grabbed a nap, some caught up with friends and family, and others simply enjoyed the view from the patio at the lodge.

At 4:00pm, Tristan gave a lecture on the sharks and other fauna of Andros, and answered any questions the group had regarding the different species he’d covered. Soon after we ate dinner, everyone prepared for our next outing, nighttime gill netting.

At 7:00pm we loaded into Captain Cole’s truck for a thirty-minute drive to a local beach where sawfish were known to be regularly spotted.. The scenery on the way was beautiful, and those in the bed of the truck had a fun time dodging branches while driving the narrow dirt road to the beach.

Upon arrival, we gathered our equipment and carried it a few minutes down the beach to a stunning lagoon where we set our net. Tristan gave a detailed briefing on what we planned to do, what he hoped we’d achieve, and what would happen if we caught a sawfish or a shark. Part of the group helped set the 100 meter net in the water, while those on shore prepared a tub and data sheet as the sun was setting.

When we began the tide was high, but falling. Two different groups rotated for checks every fifteen minutes, and with the tide dropping, the checks got easier. Those whio were not checking sat on the beach and stargazed until a small storm rolled through. After a quick downpour, the clouds moved on to reveal a gorgeous night sky and some incredible shooting stars. We also had the pleasure of seeing striking bioluminescent organisms in the waves.

Over the course of the evening, we neeted a couple snappers, a bonefish, and a ton of seaweed, all of which were released unharmed, but unfortunately no sharks, or the elusive smalltooth sawfish. At 11:30pm, we hauled the net and packed up the gear to head home, back to the lodge and the comfort of our clean beds.

Even without any sharks it was an incredibly fun and enlightening experience, everyone went to bed exhausted and happy. “We didn't realize we were creating memories, we just knew we were having fun.” - Winnie the Pooh

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Day 4

Due to our late night before, breakfast was at 8:00am this morning, giving everyone a chance to catch up on sleep and be refreshed for the day. With full stomachs, we loaded into the boat and headed off to The Coffin, a local blue hole named for its long, rectangular shape.

We spent over an hour exploring this popular crevice and the surrounding reef, and for many this was the perfect opportunity to practice some freediving into the creepy depths of the hole. Once we’d had our fun, we moved on to a research-based activity and deployed some drum lines in hopes of processing sharks for research. Drum-lining consists of a floating buoy tied to a line that is secured to a 45-pound weight, which has a monofilament line attached with a baited hook. All research is standardized, which means it feeds directly into the research goals and objectives of collaborating 501 (c) 3 non-profit, Saving the Blue.

After we deployed the five drum lines, we moved closer to shore to wait for an hour before checking to see if we’d caught anything. While waiting, we saw a reef shark patrolling the break wall in extremely shallow water, but with no sharks on the first check, we redeployed the lines. Our diverse group shared stories from their lives and laughed while we snacked and waited for the next check. The second check brought us a chocolate colored nurse shark, which allowed guests to actively participate in shark research through a firsthand view and involvement in the process. The shark work-up consisted of taking measurements, a stable isotope sample (a small clipping from the dorsal fin), and insertion of a PIT (Passive Integrative Transponder) tag into the muscle near the dorsal fin, then releasing the shark to return to its normal activities.

With a successful work-up completed and the whole group happy, we headed back to the lodge for lunch and a break to cool off from the relentless summer heat.

At 3:30pm, we took a short truck drive on the island and trekked just a bit to an inland blue hole, which is actually quite green. The rocky perimeter of the hole creates a unique base for the thriving mini ecosystem in the murky water. Guests enjoyed snorkeling along the edge to see the small fish making their homes in the crevices of the rock. If not snorkeling the edges, we were freediving to the bottom to get a glimpse of the cave that leads to the ocean!

After our hours of fun, we headed back to the lodge for dinner and a wonderful talk by Matt on his travels and photography from around the globe. We chatted and watched a little more Shark Week before heading to bed. During the night we had a powerful storm pass through the lodge, everyone fell asleep to the sound of rain and thunder, which really added to the adventuresome, off-the-beaten-track vibes for the day.

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Day 5

We woke up to a stormy morning and headed to the common room for breakfast. The weather wasn’t looking like it would break anytime soon, so we decided to use this time to prepare our rigs for some more shark captures once the storm had passed.

Once the weather calmed, we loaded our gear onto the boat and set out to see if we could process more sharks. We deployed five drum lines in shallow water and waited to see what the morning would bring. Over the course of three checks we captured five sharks and a barracuda. All guests excitedly took turns assisting with the work-ups of four Caribbean reef sharks and one nurse shark.

We were delighted with our success and decided to try deeper waters! We hauled our gear and headed to the drop off to test our luck in waters ranging from 60-80 feet. Luck was not on our side that time, and we unfortunately did not catch another shark, so we decided to call it a day on the research front, and instead we headed to another blue hole and beautiful patch reef for a snorkel.

The small blue hole had a milky haze overtop, which enticed many of us to try and dive into it to find clearer waters below! Sure, it wasn’t for everyone, but almost all were tempted to try. Upon our attempts, we discovered the water was much cooler just a few feet into the blue hole, but we laughed as no one would venture deeper! The surrounding reef, however, was vibrant and we explored the vicinity, discovering a smaller blue hole which was more like a narrow crevice in the sea bed.

After everyone had their fill at this new area, we loaded back onto the boat and decided to see if we could attract any sharks in the late afternoon. Time was running out, but we wanted to try one last spot, as we always push our days until the very last minute! Once bait was in the water, Tristan spotted a Caribbean reef shark swimming up our bait trail behind the boat, but it never came in close. With the hesitancy observed, and the sun low, we finally gave in and headed home.

To avoid our bait going to waste we decided to use it off the dock at the lodge in the hopes of attracting some local sharks in for a late night snack. A sawfish had been spotted less than a mile down the same canal, so we’re always hopeful we’ll attract a wild card! Tristan hid bait in the rocks resting on the bottom of the sea wall, and by the time we got back from our showers, there were already a couple large lemon sharks sniffing around for their treat!

We quickly ate our dinner and headed back outside to see if any more sharks were attracted to the area. There were five sharks in total, all swimming around the shallows, only a few feet away. Some of the more determined ones were swimming on top of the rocks with most of their backs out of the water! We all enjoyed watching them until, slowly but surely, we all sifted off to bed.

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Day 6

Today the group was greeted by another rainy morning, but it passed quickly, and we decided to head out to the navy buoy again, in hopes of seeing more silkies.

Upon our arrival, there were a handful of silky sharks swimming around the boat. Tristan hopped into the water to secure the boat and within seconds we heard a shriek of excitement from him. He popped his head up to describe the scene below him. There was a large school of silkies! He estimated more than forty individual silkies in the group, along with rainbow runners, jacks, and mahi-mahi!

Guests quickly put on their dive gear and hopped into the calm, clear waters of the Tongue of the Ocean. On slipping into the deep blue, we felt like we’d entered a whole new world. With no bait, we were able to see up to fifty silky sharks gracefully swimming below us. They were incredibly calm and at ease with our presence, so much so that guests were able to dive down into the middle of them with no fear, and the sharks seemed to welcome us as one of their own.

The group spent the best part of two hours observing and freediving with these amazing animals, words cannot explain the magical, breathtaking moments we all experienced.

After our unbelievable snorkel we headed back onto the boat to see if we could catch a few of the silkies for Saving the Blue research. Silky sharks (Carcharhinus falciformis) are listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List with declining populations documented throughout the world. Research efforts investigating aspects of their behavior, ecology and biology are crucial to improved conservation.

As soon as bait was in the water, many of the sharks came immediately up to the surface. We successfully caught and tagged three juveniles (128cm – 162cm, total length), and so, after a thrilling and exhausting morning we decided it was a good time to head back to the lodge for lunch and a break.

Everyone ate, rehydrated, and headed back out to see if we would get lucky again! With hopes of attracting a great hammerhead, we returned to the area where they’ve been regularly seen. Within minutes, we enticed a few reef sharks, but again no hammerheads would make their presence known, so we moved on.

So, we were satisfied with our attempt in the area, and with the tide dying off we headed to the lagoon we visited earlier in the week to see what sharks were nearby, and well, we were greeted with exceptional conditions! The water was glass flat and crystal clear. Everyone waded in the shallow water and chatted about the day while Tristan baited. Before long we saw the dorsal fin of a reef shark break the surface. Everyone gathered around as both reef and lemon sharks made numerous approaches. The entire group, whether they were in the water or on the boat, had a blast watching these two species swim in and out around us.

No one wanted to call it a day, but it was getting late and so we started our ride home, back to the lodge for the final time. On arrival to the lodge, we took quick showers, then gathered for our last dinner of the trip. After our meal, some guests assisted Tristan as he processed the blood samples from the silkies that morning, using a small centrifuge to separate the plasma from the blood. These tissue samples are then analyzed to learn more about the diet of these open ocean travelers! Once complete, we ventured out for our last night in paradise. Everyone piled into Cole’s truck one final time, and headed to a local bar. We enjoyed fun conversation, reflected on the week, played pool, and celebrated with a few drinks before heading back to the lodge for our final night.

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Day 7

Everyone woke up bright and early to enjoy breakfast and experience one last outing before we had to say goodbye to Andros.

For our final activity, we decided to test our luck back at Isla’s Point. When we got there, the water was shallow and the current was ideal. Everyone waded in, and Tristan began to bait. Within a few minutes we had our first shark, a small shark obviously born just this year, not much bigger than a banana! We were elated to see this miniature predator enjoy the bait and make close passes before the larger lemon sharks started rolling in.

Once their numbers increased, they became bolder, following each other up the bait trail to within mere inches of the guests. We spent almost two hours with over a dozen lemons sharks in thigh deep water. What a way to end the trip! Before we knew it, it was time to head back to the lodge to pack up our belongings, so we slowly trudged back to the boat and said goodbye to our lemony friends.

Upon returning to the lodge, everyone did a final rinse of their gear, grabbed a quick lunch, and piled their luggage into the local taxis. Saying warm goodbyes and see-you-laters to the staff and Cole, everyone hopped into the taxis and headed back to the airport. A short flight saw us land back in Fort Lauderdale, and with reluctant goodbyes, our week in Andros had finally come to an end… until next time.

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We would like to take this opportunity to thank our wonderful guests for joining us, the incredible Andros Island Bonefish Club for their hospitality, the hardworking and ever professional Cole from PFO Charters for his top class boating and captaining skills, and everyone that made this trip as awesome as it was: an entirely unforgettable July 2019.

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If you’d like to join us on an expedition, we still have spaces for 2020, so please contact us and be part of something truly special.