© Dale Leatherman 2004
There are more than 700 islands in the Bahamas, many of them tiny specks on the map known collectively as the “Out Islands.” For purists, the Out Islands are the “real” Caribbean, the unspoiled Caribbean of the 1950s. No casinos. No air-conditioning. No fast food restaurants. No traffic. No crime. Sand roads lined with conch shells. Trackless beaches and romantic coves. Small inns cooled by overhead fans and sea breezes wafting through open windows. Grouper, spiny lobster and conch caught fresh by the local fishermen and prepared in inimitable Bahamian fashion. Friendly, happy faces.
Great Exuma is one of those tiny islands. It’s bigger than others in the Exuma archipelago – 365 cays sprinkled over 120 miles of transparent ocean in the middle of the Bahamas -- which is why it was called “great” in the first place. Those of us who discovered that it was great in other ways have kept the secret to ourselves for many years. We came to stalk bonefish, to dive incredible reefs and caves, to shed our watches and unwind, to mingle with the locals over a cold beer and hot conch fritters, and to experience the “real” Caribbean.
Last November, as the first guests settled into the new Four Seasons resort on the east end of the island, Great Exuma suddenly became the most “in” of the Out Islands. The once unfamiliar word “Ex-oomah” now trips off the tongue of affluent travelers who have either experienced the Four Seasons Great Exuma at Emerald Bay or plan to.
Magnolia Rolle, who drives the limo from the airport to the resort, says the Four Seasons is a wonderful thing for the island. “It means that the children who have been forced to leave to find work can come home,” she says, and her bright eyes dance and her face creases into a huge smile.
Contact me to read the entire story or to discuss second rights or a rewrite. daleatherman@cs.com