Bimini: Bahama's Mystical Island Of Atlantis' Remains And The Bermuda Triangle's Curse

 25°43'38.13"N 79°17'52.43"W

(From Dan Kosmayer Photography)

    Leicester Hemingway, brother of Ernest Hemingway, was an adventurer who sailed the whole Caribbean in search of weird experiences. One of the most prominent ones was when he declared the independence of the raft he was sailing on (Full story here) or when he allegedly claimed that the Fountain of Youth was located in Bimini Island, a main Bahamian resort hub for wealthy tourists. But he wasn’t the only one to think Bimini is a mystical place. In today’s post, we’re going to see how the many abandoned ships and wrecks of the area could be a possible proof of the Bermuda Triangle’s curse, and how an underwater structure is believed by many to form part of Atlantis’ remains.

      Firstly, we focus on the S.S. Sapona, the most famous ship wreck of the region, and indeed, the one with the craziest story. The concrete ship was initially built to serve as a transport vessel for US Army soldiers during World War I, yet, after the war, it had no use anymore so it was sold. The new owner had the unconventional idea of turning it into a floating casino and it didn't work, so it was sold again to a cunning man called Bruce Bethell. This guy was a former British naval officer who opened a little liquor store in Nassau, Bahamas' capital, and who would take advantage of the Volstead act for growing his business. In a nutshell, this act didn't allow the sale of liquor throughout the USA; therefore, Bethell wanted to create supply routes where he would sell to Americans cheap alcohol outside of their country

The S.S. Sapona from above (from Resort World Bimini)

   And that's when Bimini comes into play, as it is separated only by 80 kilometers from Miami. Here, Bethell established a warehouse where he transported the beverages with the Sapona he previously bought and ended up with a fortune of roughly 3 Million dollars and with the nickname "The Bimini Rum King". But when all seemed perfect, the Sapona wrecked during a hurricane in South Bimini, meanwhile the Volstead act was repealed. As a result, Bethell lived the rest of his life almost in poverty, whilst the S.S. Sapona was used by the US Army as a bombing target for training, until its abandonment. The concrete giant remains still and untouched in the south of Bimini, resting from its turbulent past.

Bimini Airport (from Bahamas Islands and Cays Realty)

   In what concerns the sunken airplanes, most are drug planes, as Bimini was an important islet for the Medellín Cartel owing to the same reason as Bethell’s plan: the strategic location near the USA. This Cartel was also responsible for building the little airfield of Bimini, which firstly served for the Cartel's needs but that now is only used by fully loaded tourist airplanes. Nevertheless, the most remarkable remain of the drug business is a plane wreck, which some sources consider it belonged to Pablo Escobar. Yet, for the disappointment of skeptical people, this is probably not true. Escobar’s actual aircraft is stranded in the Exumas.

   Apart from that one, there were at least 10 plane crashes within the surroundings of Bimini with 10 recorded killings this last 100 years (Here is the record for aviation freaks). The most notable was in 2023; a Cessna 402B which traveled from Fort Lauderdale to Bimini and which suddenly disappeared from the radar. Local witnesses affirm watching it come down, but nobody has known the cause ever since. Is the Bermuda Triangle maybe really haunted?

The supposed "Pablo Escobar Plane" (from Shore Excursions Group)

   Whether it is or isn’t, the topic we’re going to focus now is “Poseidon’s Realm”. This is the nickname given to the lost city of Atlantis, which many position beneath Bimini Island. That is so due to two reasons: a casual discovery of a weird rock formation off Bimini’s coast, and the far-fetched prophecy of a noted psychic called Edgar Cayce.

      In 1968, a group of hobby divers would be the ones that firstly sighted that underwater structure and named it “Bimini Road” (Some sources, however, attribute the find to the pilot of a low-flying plane). In any case, the given name made reference to the similar aspect it had with a street: a large thin rock measuring half a kilometer and formed by ordered rectangular-shaped stones. The news spread quickly.

Bimini Road's cobblestones. (from All That's Interesting)

     Yet, geologists disagree that it is man-made. Once a group of researchers went there to check it, they came to the conclusion that it was a natural beachrock formation. On the other hand, there are many that believe it is the remains of Atlantis, based on a sighting made by the psychic Edgar Cayce: thirty years before the discovery, he stated that proof of Atlantis will come out in the late 1960s. Coincidentally, it really did, so people genuinely thought he was right.

     Lastly, even if he were right, the first mention of Atlantis was made by Plato, who said that it was situated next to the Strait of Gibraltar and was 10,000 years old; the stones at Bimini Road, are much younger, according to researchers. That leaves another of Bimini’s mysteries open… This little Bahamian island truly is fully mystical. 

Mystical Bimini... (from All That's Interesting)

Sources: B3A, The Islands of the Bahamas, Yacht Art Fleet, Scuba Diving (1) and (2), Power and Motor Yacht, The New York Times, All That's Interesting