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Destination : CAYMAN ISLANDS
The Cayman Islands (Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman) are coral and limestone islands. They were discovered by Columbus in 1503, later traded to England, and remain a British Crown Colony to this day. They are located in the western Caribbean, 480 miles south of Miami, 150 miles south of Cuba and 180 miles northwest of Jamaica. The islands lie between 19 15' and 19 45' North and between 79 44 ' and 81 27' West and over 1000 miles west of the US Virgin Islands and the Leeward Island chain. Cayman has a long history of parliamentary type government with legislators elected every four years and still subject to Great Britain in matters of foreign policy and defense.
The island country consists of Grand Cayman, largest and most populous of the trio; and the Sister Islands of Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which lie approximately 89 miles east-northeast of Grand Cayman and are separated from each other by a channel about seven miles wide. Grand Cayman is best known for its diving and underwater attractions. Stingray City, where divers and snorkelers can see, touch,and feed stingrays, is particularly famous. However, there are plenty of other dive and snorkeling sites. In fact, Grand Cayman has over 160 charted dive sites. Popular dive sites include Trinity Caves, Valley of the Rays, and Tarpon Alley. Cemetery Reef is a popular site for snorkelers. The island's beautiful Seven Mile Beach is another major attraction. This is where most of the larger hotels and resorts are found. Divers come here to relax after morning dives. The sand is soft and white. The water transitions through some lovely shades of blue as the sun shifts in the sky.
Grand Cayman's main city is George Town. Here one will find some shops and the Cayman Islands National Museum which has exhibits about the history of the islands. George Town is visually interesting with a variety of architectural styles ranging from colonial structures to modern bank buildings. For the most part, the town is best covered on foot.Smith Cove is a small, attractive beach worth visiting. Rum Point is a festive beach area with watersports, activities, and a restaurant. It can be reached by car or by ferry from the Hyatt Regency's dock. Geysers spout from Grand Cayman's Blow Holes where waves force water into caverns below the surface. As the pressure builds, impressive bursts of water shoot up into the air. The Cayman Turtle Farm with its many tanks and exhibits educates visitors about endangered green sea turtles from egg to adulthood.
The total land mass of the three islands is 100 square miles. Grand Cayman occupies 76 square miles; Cayman Brac, 14 square miles and Little Cayman, 10 square miles. Grand Cayman is approximately 22 miles long and 8 miles at its widest point, reaching a maximum elevation at East End of 60 ft.
The three islands are limestone outcroppings, the tops of a submarine mountain range called the Cayman Ridge, which extends west southwest for the Sierra Maestra range off the southeast part of Cuba to the Misteriosa Bank near Belize. The islands lack rivers or streams because of the porous nature of the limestone rock. Is it this lack of runoff which gives the surrounding Caribbean Sea exceptional visibility, often well over 120 ft.
Between the Cayman Islands and Jamaica lies the deepest part of the Caribbean, the Cayman Trough, which is over four miles deep. South of Cayman is the Bartlett Deep where depths of over 18,000 ft. have been recorded. All three islands are surrounded by healthy coral reefs which lie at the top of dramatic walls and drop-offs close to shore, creating ideal conditions for diving and sportfishing.
Cayman Brac is 12 miles long and just over a mile wide and has the most dramatic topography of the trio, marked by the Bluff which rises west to east along the length of the island to 140 feet at the eastern tip, ending in a sheer cliff.
Little Cayman, only 10 miles long and a mile wide, is relatively flat, reaching a maximum elevation of 40 ft.
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