Long Island, a Tropical History

Deans Blue Hole

On its way to Long Island the 30-year old sailing sloop moves slowly south lifting and settling with the waves. There is no fanfare, no bells, no whistles, no mile markers, nor billboards to welcome as we cross the invisible but well recognized latitude known as the Tropic of Cancer.

Suddenly, in the midst of deep aquamarine waters, I am a middle school student  answering questions about the Tropic of Cancer. The Tropic of Cancer is officially the most northerly latitude where the sun appears directly overhead at noon on June 21. It dissects the Bahamas at 23 degrees north, 26 minutes and 76 degrees west.  It crosses through Little Exuma, Exuma Sound and the shallow banks of the southern Bahamas.  As the line circles the globe, it also  passes through Mexico, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, India and China.  

The seasons at this latitude are not as noticeable as in northern climates.  Weather hovers in the low 70's during winter and low 80's during the summer.  In the Bahamas, the summer season brings humidity, black face gulls and bugs.  Exotic fowers bloom. 

Tropical storms and hurricanes become a dangerous reality for Bahamians living on either side of the invisible line. 

Sponging was once a large industry

Most of Long Island lies below the Tropic of Cancer. Casuarina pines, sea grape, palmetto, and silver top palm cling tenaciously to the sandy and rocky landscape. On the banks side of the island, the shoreline provides beautiful sandy beaches interrupted by shelves of iron rock jutting out of the calm blue waters.  The splashing crystal water echoes under the shelves where schools of  small colorful fish hide in the shade.  

The long 80 nautical mile island is aptly named.  It is seldom more than four nautical miles wide which makes it appear as a long narrow strip of land curving slightly as it rises from the sea.

On the Atlantic side, rocky weathered reefs line many of the beaches.  Light blue aquamarine water of the near shore area turns dark becoming a brilliant royal blue as the waters deepen.  Many of the Atlantic side beaches require a hike across the island.  Paths are carved out by machete through jungle like foliage.  These paths usually include a rocky incline that gives way to sand as one descends to the ocean. Cruisers keep the beach paths marked and open.

Imagine's captain, Ed, hacked through the overgrown foliage clearing Path108, named for the telephone pole number along Queens Highway where the three-quarter mile long twisting and rocky path begins.  

Unfortunately, many of the hard to reach Atlantic side beaches are filled with plastic debris.  Shoes, bottles, lines, headless dolls, buckets, medical waste, wood, and other trash litter the high tide line.  The remote areas make it nearly impossible to clean these particular beach expanses.  

Life on the Island is laid back.  It is easy to hitch a ride from one end of the island to the other. Employment is limited and many of the young move to Nassau to find work. Long Island is one area of the Bahamas where farming is successful.  Not only do the people depend on it for their own use, but much is exported to other Bahamian islands. Sheep and goats are prized and raised on Long Island.  A mutton festival is held each winter on the island.

The island's history is rich with both tragedy and adventure.  The Lucayan Indians  were  probably the earliest inhabitants of this island they called Yuma.  Lucayan artifacts date back to 500 A.D.  The fifteenth century brought Columbus and opened the era of exploration.  The Spanish used the gentle native population as slaves and brought disease that would eventually wipe out the Lucayans.  


The period of 1750 through 1838, is referred to as the Loyalist Period.  Loyal British citizens living in the Americas wanted  no part of the Revolution.  Many  were given land grants from England. They left plantations and homes in the colonies to begin anew in British controlled lands.  Slavery made little difference as the immigrants learned that the rocky soil would not grow the cotton or tobacco that grew prolific in the fertile soils of the American colonies.

By 1900 those who remained on Long Island took up small farming, pineapple growing, sponging, sisal making and salt harvesting.  A 1926 hurricane washed the 10-to-14 foot deep water out of the Salt Pond and Thompson Bay area.  All people could see was sand to the horizon. Locals rushed out to gather stranded fish.  More than 200 died that day when the winds died and the water rushed back before thegatherers could run back to shore. 


Long Island has so much to offer in both history and scenery.  It is home to Deans Blue Hole, the deepest blue hole in the world. It dips down nearly 670 feet opening into a 4000-foot deep underwater canyon. The location is the home of the AIDA free diving championships each year.  Amidst the shallow aquamarine water surrounding it, the blue hole appears as a small dark blue pond surrounded by rocky cliffs and native foliage on one side and a white curving beach with ocean waves lapping the shoreline on the other.  The water is cold in in the hole.  The drop off is dramatic from a couple of feet to nothing.

Long Island is a mix of modern establishments and historic family settlements.  Wild pigs roam the southern end of the island while marinas and resorts bring an influx of  visitors to the northern end.  Acres of abandoned salt ponds left by Diamond Salt Crystal, old churches dating back to the early 1700's, straw making, and regattas all speak about the culture and history of this welcoming and beautiful Island.  Living on a boat not only brings back memories, but can be quite educational.