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Encompassing more than 365 islands, cays and rock outcroppings, The
Exumas stretch over one hundred miles along the eastern edge of the
Grand Bahama Bank. Bound on one side by the bank's shallow, clear
waters, and on the other by the deep waves of Exuma Sound, the
island chain is predominantly oriented toward fishing and farming,
though the tourist trade continues to make slow but steady progress.
Not surprisingly, the most compelling reasons to visit the Exumas
are to sail, snorkel, die or kayak, as the surrounding waters are
lush with undersea gardens and iridescent coral reefs, and abundant
with multicolored sea life.
A
bit less stunning than the luminous turquoise sea around them, the
Exumas are mainly low-lying chunks of honeycombed limestone, rimmed by
bright, powdery sand and covered with dense egetation. While the
outlying reefs and bars glow with swirling blue and white tones, the
cays themselves are a dun-colored landscape marked by pristine expanses
of soft white beaches, towering silhouettes of coconut palms and dunes
covered with tangled vines and exotic blooms.
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The
largest islands in the Exuma chain are Great Exuma and Little Exuma at
the southern end, which have been settled and farmed for two hundred
years, giving them an authentic pastoral character. North of Great Exuma,
there are a few small fishing settlements on sleepy Little Farmer's Cay, on Great Guana Cay at Blackpoint, and on inviting Staniel Cay, which
famously hosts a New Year's Day regatta with three days of festivities.
North of Staniel Cay, a lengthy array of mostly uninhabited cays extends
thirty miles, with the highlight being the Exuma Land and Sea Park, a
protected sanctuary of extraordinary beauty.
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