North thru the Bahamas

I'm in the planning process for moving my owners 70' motoryacht north from St Thomas USVI for a family cruise on the ICW this spring.
I am limited in range by fuel. I plan on stopping in the DR and then fueling again in Provo. From there next stop is Nassau which is just barely within my comfort range. I don't want to stray too far from the rhumb line but also want to consider comfort and to minimize time spent conning through the shallows. I am considering crossing from Exuma Sound to the Tongue of the Ocean at Galliot Cut (23 55.6N 76 16.5W). Is there any good argument in continuing on to Sail Rock to cross the bank or even skipping Exuma Sound altogether and crossing the Ragged Islands directly into the Tongue?
I draw 5'!0" and although its a delivery, not a cruise, I still have enough time to make the trip as painless as possible...

Thanks in advance for experienced advise.

Staniel Cay looks like a good crossing point.
I like that there is fuel though I won't be desperate by then. The "jugs on the rail" gotta be big ones to make much difference. My most economical range is at about 40-42 gallons per hour. Plus the generator.
Have you crossed the Exuma Bank there? With what draft?

Thanks for the second perspective.
One of my crew members has connections close to Luperon DR but I'll probably stop in Puerto Plata instead. In either case I could manage Georgetown without having to stop at Provo which might have some attraction.
I good for about four hundred miles with 15% reserve.

Thinking now that Staniel Cay not a first choice for me. I would find myself wondering why I was running southwest across the bank when my rhumbline is northwest?

My original intent was to go up through Man o War Channel in the Ragged Islands. Im thinking that the crossings from Exuma Sound to the Tongue is about 25 compared to about 75 from the Jumentos.

My draft is 5'10" on a 70' Hatteras motoryacht. I've got a full skeg but little interest in probing the bottom with my running gear...

I'm running 8v92 Detroits. At 11 knots I burn 20 - 22 gallons per side, at 15 knots I burn 30 per side/per hour. My chartkits and plotter both show a lot of 2 and 3 meter depths on the banks so I have been trying to minimize my time running on the banks in favour of the Sound or Tongue

The previous skipper did the delivery from Ft Lauderdale to St Thomas in a 5.5 day express stopping in Nassau, Provo and San Juan for fuel. This time I'm looking at departing from Fajardo, fueling at Puerto Plata, ??, and Nassau My intended destination is Merrit Island. Then its meet the family and up the ICW.

I'd like to get from Fajardo to the ICW in seven and a half days or so.

Interesting comment Pascal. I've been running this boat for two years and had settled on eleven as my go-to speed. Seemed like the right combination of noise, fuel, speed, fore and aft attitude and wake. The owner drives at 15, idle is near 6.
At idle speed underway I burn 8 per side, sixteen total. Hard to believe I would do 10 for 20 total but we will see this weekend.
I firming up on the idea of going from Puerto Plata to Long Island, through Gilliot Cut into the Tongue of the Ocean.
From there Nassau is the obvious stop but what about staying the course till Freeport? I'd have enough fuel if I topped off at Flying Fish Marina on Long Island.

Thanks Bill,

I plan to do a quick haul at marina Puerto del Rey in Fajardo just before heading out. I launched there in December with a fresh coat of Micron and my running gear coated with Prop-speed. My bottom remains clean and my props sparkle, but I'll touch up and plan on renewing my rudder and shaft packing. I fueled there in December and expect to do the same again.
What fuel will do between now and May might be scary. Today was the largest per gallon jump in one day in history according to CNN!

Grateful for all the advise.
Planning to start from Fajardo, run north of PR and DR at night refuel at Ocean World, depart in evening, run to Clarencetown, Long Island for fuel, cross from Exuma Sound at Gillots Cut to the Tongue of the Ocean, run north to Old Bahama Bay on Grand Bahama to top up then allow the stream to set me north to Port Canaveral, Florida.

No. I'll have two crew aboard but we will not be in the company of any other boats (that we know of anyway!)