Great Abaco Islands
LOCATED 200 MILES EAST OF FORT LAUDERDALE AND 75 miles north of Nassau, the Abaco Islands are the capital of the Bahamian sailing world. Yachtsmen come from around the globe to sail along this 130-mile, boomerang-shaped arc of islands. With nearly 50 square miles of landmass, Abaco is the second largest of the Islands of the Bahamas. The Abacos were once the boat building capital of the Bahamas, although today most yards do only repair work. The Marsh Harbor airport is located a short three miles southwest of town.
The atmosphere throughout this island group is slower than the hustle and bustle of Nassau and Freeport. Yet, Marsh Harbor is the largest of the out island cities and you’ll find a wide choice of hotels, restaurants and shops. The majority of resorts are in Marsh Harbor and across the sound in Hope Town on Elbow Cay.
These islands are rich with bird life and several spots have been set aside as nature preserves. Abaco National Park Parrot Preserve is the habitat of the Abaco Parrot.
Marsh Harbor (MYAM) 09/27 5000' x 100' Airport of Entry. (lat. 26.31'N, long. 77.05'W)
Mores Island (MYAO) 09/27 2600' x 100' (lat. 26.19'N, long. 77.34'W)
Treasure Cay International (MYAT)
14/32 7000' x 150' Airport of entry. (lat 26.44'N,
77.23'W) Treasure
Cay lies 21 NM northeast of Marsh
Harbor and is the other major airport in Abaco. Each airport makes a good
alternate for each other, in case of strong crosswinds or a local thunderstorm.
Runway 14/32 has 6,800' of good asphalt, elevation seven feet. Runway 10/28 is
permanently closed. It is so overgrown that you will really have to look to
find it at all. Unicom is 122.8, fuel is rarely available. If you are arriving
after normal business hours, circle once east of the field prior to landing.
The customs agent lives about a mile from the field and will meet you there. Be
prepared to pay overtime charges after 1700 and remember no landing after
sunset!
This
airport serves not only the Treasure Cay Resort and Marina, but the island of
Green Turtle Cay as well.
Sandy Point (MYAS)
10/28 3100' x 80' Airport of entry. (lat. 26.00'N, long. 77.24'W) Sandy Point serves
the isolated southern end of Great Abaco Island. Runway 10/28 is 3,000 feet of
packed coral, elevation eight feet. It is an airport of entry, but you must
notify them 24 hrs in advance.. It does make an interesting day trip. If
you’re traveling by airplane and don’t have a boat, this is your best chance to
see a native Bahamian village untouched by tourism. If you’re looking for a
place to “really get away from it all” you might try Pete & Gay Guest House
(242) 366-4119 or Oeisha Resort (242) 366-4139. If you’re looking for
that undiscovered, laid back retreat, (there aren’t many left) this could be
just what you’re looking for!
DAY TRIPPING TO SANDY POINT
Many communities on Abaco cater to tourists with docking facilities, hotel
accommodations and lots of bars and restaurants. Others are virtually untouched
by the tourism industry. The settlement of Sandy Point, 49 miles south of Marsh
Harbor, lies somewhere between.
Sandy Point is a fishing village situated on a peninsula at the extreme
south-western point of Abaco. If you expect Bahamian villages to be nestled
close to the sea and smothered in coconut palms, Sandy Point will not disappoint
you.
It was only in the early 1960s that a road to Sandy Point was constructed and
brought it residents fully into the Abaco community. Sandy Point people are
respected throughout The Bahamas as being friendly but independent and
self-sufficient people. For instance, all the small boats and skiffs in Sandy
Point are made right in the settlement. The main industry is fishing, mostly
rock lobster and scale fish, which employs about 80% of the men. The lobsters
are processed in Sandy Point and exported to the US. Tourism facilities are
expanding, however, and Sandy Point is well worth a day trip from anywhere else
on the island.
The road from Marsh Harbor to Sandy Point is paved and in excellent condition.
The journey down is rather featureless as it is mostly through pine forest. In
less than an hour, however, you will be turning a long bend towards the airport
and then making a sharp right to the north at the community picnic site. From
this position you can see Sandy Point stretched out before you with its azure
shallow waters, long golden beach and masses of coconut palms.
Most of the houses you will see during that last mile between the picnic site
and the main settlement belong to winter residents who discovered Sandy Point
decades ago and consider themselves privileged to be accepted into such a
charming community. You will see Oeisha Resort, a large building by Sandy Point
standards, that provides accommodation mostly for visiting bonefish anglers.
Meals and a bar are available and there's also a beachfront cabana.
The settlement itself is set out like fish bones: one central backbone, Queen
Street, with side streets running at right angles east and west. All the roads
are clearly named. The main crossroads occurs at the joining of East and West
Bay Streets. Half way down West Bay Street you will find E & E Grocery where you
can buy just about anything, including Sandy Point tee shirts. At the end of
West Bay Street you will find the government dock which is the town's centre of
activity. You will usually find several fishing vessels tied up there.
Beside the government dock you will also find two restaurants: Pete and Gay
Guest House and Enza's Place. At Pete and Gay's you will see photographs on the
wall left by appreciative bonefish men, who often lodge in the comfortable air
conditioned rooms attached to the restaurant. There's a large dining room and a
well-stocked bar and your host is Stanley White, who runs the establishment with
the help of his adoptive mother, Glacie Dean.
Over the road, Enza Russell's restaurant is the longest-established in Sandy
Point. For over 30 years she has provided delicious meals for the community and
its visitors, a testimony to both the quality of her cooking and her friendly
disposition. No bar facilities.
A block north on the bay is the Seaside Inn Restaurant & Bar where the ambience
is laid back and friendly. You reach the restaurant by driving down Sandy Street
or walking a few yards along the beach from the government dock. The former
proprietress, Nancy Adderley, passed away earlier this year but the business is
carried on by her family. There are extensive bar facilities here.
The eastern shores of the Sandy Point peninsula are bounded by a tidal creek
that possesses its own peculiar charm. Julia's Beach Inn Club nestles beside the
creek at the end of Pear Street and is the largest of all the restaurants.
Wedding receptions are regularly held here. Your hosts are Julia and Basil
McKinney, who are both very adept at making visitors feel right at home. There's
a pool table beside the bar, but don't play a game with Basil unless you are
very good!
One of the favorite restaurants of the local people is Big J's, at the end of
School Lane near the creek. It is mainly a take-out establishment overseen by
Marinett and Richard Walker, but there are tables inside as well as a small bar.
A word about drinking in native restaurants and bars. If you want a mixed drink
such as rum and cola or gin and tonic, buy a half pint of liquor and a can of
mixer. Along with them will come a glass filled with ice. You mix your own drink
to your personal taste, and if you have any liquor left over you can just slip
the small bottle into your pocket and carry it. It's yours. Not only is it a
handy way of drinking, it's far cheaper than the standard mixed drink.
Besides eating and drinking, what else is there to do in Sandy Point? Many
people go for the excellent shelling between the picnic site and Rocky Point to
the south. The beach between the picnic site and the settlement is about a mile
in length and well worth the walk. Walking around the settlement is a
fascinating experience which will allow you to see the local people at their
everyday tasks. On the bay side of town you can walk down one road, traverse the
beach for about 40 yards, then walk up the next one. This way, you can see a lot
of the settlement without doubling back on your path. You won't find many people
walking the roads because there is an informal network of pathways throughout
the township, most of which take advantage of Pythagoras' theorem.
While you are on the bay beach you will be able to see Gorda Cay in the distance
to the north-west. Disney has established its Castaway Cay resort complex there
and if the Disney Magic is in port bringing in over 2,000 tourists,
you will be able to see it clearly.
There is a particular charm in visiting a native settlement where there are no
souvenir shops and nobody particularly wants your money. Every business in Sandy
Point is owned by residents: there are no managers here. People will hail you as
you pass them by yet will not trespass upon your privacy. But don't be shy. As
soon as you ask advice or directions you'll find the local people will go out of
their way to help you all they can. Sandy Point people are friendly and want you
to leave with a good impression of their lovely settlement.
One last word of advice: If you want a rock lobster (crawfish) or grouper meal,
or are descending with a large party, please call the restaurant of your choice
a day ahead. Sandy Point people appreciate their seafood freshly caught and
prepared, and that's the way you'll have it served if you give advance notice of
your visit.
Beach Inn Club: 366-4102
Big J's Restaurant & Bar: 366-4020
Enza's Place: 366-4129
Oeisha Resort: 366-4139
Walkers Cay (MYAW) 09/27 2.500' x 80' Airport of entry. (lat. 27.16'N, long. 78.24'N) At the northernmost point of the Abacos lies the easily-recognizable Walkers Cay. The tiny isle is located on the edge of the Upper Bahamas Barrier Reef. Because of its proximity to the US and its accessibility, Walkers Cay was a favorite for travelers from Florida and the East Coast looking for a few days of fishing or diving. However, the hurricanes in 2004 caused extensive damage to the resort and at this time it is still closed. The previous owner of the resort died in 2003 and the island has been purchased by Cay Clubs Resort, which plans to renovate the existing facilities and add several hundred hotel rooms, condos and townhouses. Customs and Immigration is open for pilots and boaters