This is the second issue about Long Island (See Long Island Tips & Excursions) and last month we finished at the island’s museum and I said we would continue at Hamilton Cave, which is one of the largest caves on the island. The cave is on private property, so you must find Leonard Cartwright and he will give you a personal tour of the cave. Make sure you look for the note written on the wall in 1865 and a rock carving of a beautiful woman.
As we continue moving south we come to Dean’s Blue Hole. This is an underwater cavern with a collapsed ceiling. It is right up against shore and is perfectly circular and one of the deepest blue colors you will ever see due to its depth of 663 feet, making it the deepest blue hole in the world. It is also the home of the world record holder for an unassisted freediving at a depth of over 330 feet. Think about that…..diving down more than a football field on one breath!
A bit south of Dean’s Blue Hole is Bonacorde Pool, where you can find a protected swimming hole and a beach that is so peaceful to walk along.
The second town on the island’s eastern shore, Clarence Town, is my favorite harbor in the entire Bahamas. Here you will find protection for your boat, a 30 foot blue hole in the shallows, and a wonderful little town. Plus, Father Jerome’s two most famous churches are here. The first church is the red and white Anglican Church and the blue and white Catholic church was built 20 years later. You can go into both and at the Catholic Church you are able to climb the stairs to the top of the bell tower, where you will find a great view of the town.
Miley’s Cave is another cave worth a visit if you are on the south end of the island.
Don’t miss the large abandoned salt pond, which used to be owned and operated by Diamond Crystal. This was a huge operation and you can find the canal floodgates, housing, machine shop, and other interesting bit of the operation. I heard different reasons for the facility shutting down from excessive hurricane damage to the government interfering too much. The most fascinating thing to me was finding an intact tug boat on dry land. Obviously, it was left in the small harbor which has since silted up.
Our final stop is Gordon’s Beach and I do mean final stop since the road completely ends. This is a fun beach to hang out on and brings a close to our time on Long Island. Next issue we will talk about several of the Out Islands and then visit Turks and Caicos in the following issues.
Visit www.svGuidingLight.com to read more from Captain Shane about the Bahamas, Caribbean, life aboard, world traveling, and more. You might also want to check out his travel video series.
