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The following is an excerpt from The Northern Bahamas Guide, The Exuma Guide, and the Southern Bahamas Guide, all by Stephen J. Pavlidis

If you are going to be cruising in The Bahamas from June through November, hurricane season, you should always keep a lookout for a safe hurricane hole.  In the northern and central Bahamas you’re never too far away from some sort of refuge, some holes are better than others but like the old adage advises: Any port in a storm.  Bear in mind that if you ask ten different skippers what they look for in a hurricane hole you’re likely to get ten different answers.  Some of these “holes” may not meet your requirements.  They are offered here only for your consideration when seeking safety for your vessel.  The final decision is yours and yours alone.  For the best information concerning hurricane holes always check with the locals.  They will always know the best spots.
 

The Northern Bahamas
 
Abaco
The best protection in the Abacos lies in places like Treasure Cay where you can anchor in the narrow creeks surrounding the marina complex.  There is a man-made canal complex called Leisure Lee lying just south of Treasure Cay on Great Abaco.  Here you will find excellent protection from seas in 8’ but you will have to tie off to the trees along the shore as the entire complex is dredged and the holding is not good.  Green Turtle Cay offers White Sound and Black Sound.  I much prefer White Sound though there is a bit more fetch for seas to build up.  Black Sound, though smaller, has a grassy bottom and a few concrete mooring blocks scattered about.  At Man Of War Cay you can choose either anchorage.  Just to the south on Elbow Cay, Hope Town Harbour boasts very good protection.  If you arrive early enough and your draft is shallow enough you may be able to work you way up the creek for better protection.  There is an old hurricane chain stretched across the harbour that you may be able to secure your vessel to.  Ask any local where to find the chain.  Near the southern end of Elbow Cay is White Sound, a fair spot for hurricanes but it's taken a lot of damage in the past from named windstorms.
 
Just a few miles away lies Marsh Harbour with that wonderful sand/mud bottom that anchors so love (but the harbour is open to the west for a fetch of over a mile).  For small shallow draft (3’) monohull vessels there is a small creek on the eastern side of the harbour just to the east of the Conch Inn Marina.  Get there early.  Farther south you might consider Little Harbour though it is open to the north with a 3’ bar across the mouth.  Between Marsh Harbour and Little Harbour lies Snake Cay which has excellent protection in its mangrove lined creeks.  To the north, you can try Hurricane Hole on the SE end of Allan’s Pensacola Cay.  Excellent protection can be found in 6’-8’ of water but the bar at the entrance will only allow about 4’-6’ at high water, depending on the tidal height that particular day.  Small shallow draft vessels can work themselves well up into the creeks at Double Breasted Cay if unable to get to better protection to the south. 
 
Andros
An excellent spot for vessels drawing less than 4’ is in the small pocket at Stafford Creek that lies north of the bridge.  Enter only at high tide.  If you draw over 6’ and are in Andros when a hurricane threatens you would be better off to get to New Providence or someplace in the Exumas, although I know several boaters that weathered Hurricane Michelle at the dock in Fresh Creek (the eye of that hurricane passed directly over Fresh Creek and winds were in excess of 100 mph).  Kamaleme Cove offers a bit of protection to those who can enter.
 
The Berry Islands
There are only three places to consider in the Berry Islands and two of them were hit hard by powerful Hurricane Andrew.  Chub Cay Marina is a possibility if you didn’t mind a slip or perhaps tying off between pilings.  The marina was devastated by Andrew and quite a few boats destroyed.  Something to remember when it’s decision making time.  Another possibility would be to work your way into Little Harbour.  There is a winding channel into the inner anchorage where you can tuck into a narrow channel just north of the Darville’s dock in 7’-11’ of water with mangroves to the east and a shallow bar and a small cay to the west.  Little Harbour is open to the north but there is a large shallow bank with 1’-3’ over it just north of the mangroves.  By far the best place to be in a hurricane is in Bullock’s Harbour at Great Harbour Cay Marina.
 
Bimini
The best protection in the Biminis is up the creeks of South Bimini by way of Nixon’s Harbour.  Seven feet can get in over the bar at high tide where you’ll find plenty of secure water inside.  On the west side of South Bimini lies the entrance to the Port Royal canals.  Five feet can make it over the bar with spots of 7’-10’ inside.  Be sure to tie up in vacant areas between houses. 
 
On the north side of South Bimini is another entrance to some small canals with a 4’ bar at the entrance from the harbour at North Bimini.  Take into consideration that these canals have plenty of wrecks lining the shores along with old rotten pilings jutting up here and there.  The surrounding land is very low and the canals may become untenable in a high storm surge.  From Bimini Harbour you can follow the deep-water channel, 5’ at MLW, northward to Bimini Bay Resort where you can find protection in a deep mangrove lined creek.  There is only room for two or three boats here at best.  As with any hurricane hole, get there early.
 
Grand Bahama
If you’re in the area of Grand Bahama Island you might consider tying up at Old Bahama Bay Marina at West End.  Although the marina offers excellent protection, a direct hit by a major hurricane would likely do considerable damage to this complex.  From the north of Grand Bahama you can consider entering Hawksbill Creek though it only has 2’ over the bar at its entrance with 5’-6’ inside at MLW.  The Grand Lucayan Waterway offers very good protection.  You can tie up anywhere deep within its concrete lined canals but you cannot pass under the Casuarina Bridge unless your height is less than 27’ at high water.  The canal has a fairly uniform depth of 5’ throughout although the northern entrance has shoaled to around 3’-4½’ at MLW.  Another option would be to tie up at Lucayan Marina or in the small coves surrounding the complex that offer some very good protection.
 
New Providence
Here, in the capitol of The Bahamas, the harbour at Nassau has fair to good holding along with a long east-west fetch.  There are two hurricane chains crossing the harbour whose approximate locations are shown on most charts for Nassau.  If you're fortunate enough to know someone in Coral Harbour you may be able to use their dock to escape the seas.  Lyford Cay offers good protection except in winds and seas from the west through the north. On the southwestern shore of Rose Island is the entrance to a very good hurricane hole shown as Salt Pond on charts.  It is a circular harbour with a small island in the center.  The channel is easily 50’-60’ wide and 7’-9’ deep.  Anchor and tie off between the shore and the island.  Get there early as everyone in Nassau and the northern Exumas will have the same idea.
 
Eleuthera
There are a few holes in Eleuthera but they all suffered considerable damage from Hurricane Andrew.  Royal Island offers excellent protection and good holding, but during Hurricane Andrew the fleet washed up on one shore only to be washed up on the other shore after the eye passed.  Hatchet Bay is often considered a prime hurricane hole but it too has a history of damage as the hulls along the shore will testify.  At Spanish Wells you will find Muddy Hole lying off the creek between Russell Island and St. George’s Cay.  Muddy Hole is the local hurricane hole and 4’ can enter here at MLW if you get there early.  Every boat (and there are a lot of them) at Spanish Wells will be heading there also.  Some skippers like Cape Eleuthera Marina at Powell Point but I wouldn’t use it as shelter unless I had no other choice.  The dogleg marina channel is open to the west and large seas easily work their way into the basin rocking and rolling everybody.  The huge concrete breakwater at the bend in the dogleg has suffered considerable damage and offers testimony to the power of the seas that enter the marina.  Just south of Powell Point lies No Name Harbour, Un-Named Harbour on some charts.  Seven feet can enter here at MLW and 6’ can work farther up the small coves that branch off and offer fair protection.  You might consider tying your lines to the trees and setting your anchors ashore here, the holding is not that great being as this is a dredged harbour.  Davis Harbour Marina offers a bit of shelter as well.

The Exuma Cays

The Exuma Cays are home to some of the best hurricane holes in The Bahamas.  From the north you should consider the inner pond at Norman’s Cay.  The pond offers excellent protection and good holding although there is a mile long north-south fetch that could make things rough at best.  Shroud Cay has some excellent creeks with a reputation as good hurricane holes.  Dr. Evans Cottman rode out a fierce hurricane here as documented in his book Out Island Doctor.  Compass Cay has a snug little cove for protection with moorings, a marina, and creeks for shallow draft vessels.  Farther south at Sampson Cay you may be able to tie up in the marina on the eastern side of the complex in the shallow and well-protected basin.  I have known people to anchor between the Majors just north of Staniel Cay for hurricane shelter though I personally would try to find someplace a little more protected.  At the north end of Great Guana Cay lies a small, shallow creek that gives fair to good protection for one or two small vessels drawing less that 5’.  Cave Cay is an excellent hurricane hole with room for four boats in 6’ at MLW.  Many experienced captains like the pond at Rudder Cut Cay as a refuge but I see the eastern shore as being very low.  I believe a strong hurricane with a large storm surge and high tide might make this anchorage a death trap.  The George Town area is home to what may be the finest holes in The Bahamas.  Holes #0, #2, and #3 at Stocking Island are excellent hurricane holes in every sense offering protection from wind and wave.  The only problem here is that these holes will be crowded and Hole #3 is usually full of stored boats with absentee owners.  The inner cove at Red Shanks offers good protection if you can get in close to the mangroves.  Another possibility is inside the western arm of Crab Cay.

 
The Southern Bahamas

Cat Island
Unless you have a small, shallow draft vessel and can get up Orange Creek or Bennett’s Creek along the western shore of Cat Island, your only choice may be Hawksnest Creek on the southwestern tip of Cat Island.  Six feet can enter here at MLW and work its way up the creek.  Bennett’s Harbour offers good protection but it is small and open to the west and northwest, however, Bennett's Creek, just to the south of the main harbour, offers good protection but space is limited.
 
Long Island
If I had to find a place to hide from a hurricane while visiting Long Island my first choice would be in the canals that wind behind the marina at Stella Maris.  Some skippers have suggested Joe’s Sound but I find the land to the west too low and a tidal surge like the one in Hurricane Lili (9’-14’) would make this anchorage untenable.  Another consideration is in the mangrove tidal creeks in the Dollar Harbour area but the best protection is hard to get into unless you have a draft of less than 4’.
 
The Jumentos and Ragged Island
There are only two possibilities here and both are in the vicinity of Ragged Island.  A boat with a draft of less than 5’ can work its way up the mangrove lined channel to anchor in the harbor at Duncan Town.  Here you will find 4’-6’ at high water with mangroves and cliffs surrounding you.  This would be a fantastic hurricane hole if it were just a couple of feet deeper.  The people of Duncan Town are in the process of having their channel and harbour dredged.  Just south of Ragged Island is a small hole called Boat Harbour that some Ragged Islanders use as a hurricane hole.  There is 9’ inside but there is a winding channel with a 3’ bar at the entrance.  Ask any Ragged Islander for directions, they’ll be happy to help.
 
Crooked/Acklins
The only protection here will be found in the maze of creeks between French Wells and Turtle Sound for boats with drafts of 3’ or less, or by going through The Going Through towards the Bight of Acklins.  Here you will find a maze of shallow creeks leading to numerous small mangrove lined holes, perfect little hidey-holes for the shallow draft cruiser (up to 4’ or less draft) seeking shelter.
 
If you are cruising the southern Bahamas from Crooked-Acklins to Mayaguana or Inagua you will not find a truly safe hole.  Although I have heard about a large sailboat riding out Hurricane Klaus lying between Samana and Propeller Cay I would not attempt to test my luck.  I would either head north to better protection at George Town or continue on to The Turks and Caicos for protection at Sellar’s Pond or up the canals at Cooper Jack Bight lying northeast of Five Cays, at Leeward Going Through, or up North Creek at Grand Turk.  If I had enough time I would try to make Luperon in the Dominican Republic, which is as good a hole as any in the Caribben.