View allAll Photos Tagged lucayan
"Opportunity is a bird that never perches."
-Claude Maxwell MacDonald
White-cheeked pintail
Grand Bahama Island, Bahamas
The White-cheeked pintail feeds on aquatic plants, grass seeds, algae and small creatures (such as insects and small aquatic invertebrates) obtained by dabbling. The nest is on the ground under vegetation and near water.
They are found in the Caribbean, South American and the Galapagos Islands. It occurs on waters with some salinity, such as brackish lakes, estuaries and mangrove swamps.
- wiki
• Queen Conch
Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Mollusca
Class:Gastropoda
Clade:Caenogastropoda
Clade:Hypsogastropoda
Clade:Littorinimorpha
Family:Strombidae
Genus:Aliger
Species:A. gigas
Deep Pink specimen
2017
Ragged Island, Jumentos Cays, Lucayan Archipelago, Bahamas
From my collection
La Rábida, Huelva (Spain).
The hols of the boats are full.
Las bodegas de los barcos ya están llenas.
ENGLISH
On the evening of August 3, 1492, Columbus departed from Palos with three ships; one larger carrack, Santa María, nicknamed Gallega (the Gallician), and two smaller caravels, Pinta (the Painted) and Santa Clara, nicknamed Niña (the Girl). (The ships were never officially named). They were property of Juan de la Cosa and the Pinzón brothers (Martin Alonzo and Vicente Yáñez), but the monarchs forced the Palos inhabitants to contribute to the expedition. Columbus first sailed to the Canary Islands, which was owned by Castile, where he restocked the provisions and made repairs, and on September 6, he started what turned out to be a five-week voyage across the ocean.
Land was sighted at 2 a.m. on October 12, 1492, by a sailor named Rodrigo de Triana (also known as Juan Rodríguez Bermejo) aboard Pinta. (Columbus would claim the prize.) Columbus called the island (in what is now The Bahamas) San Salvador, although the natives called it Guanahani. Exactly which island in the Bahamas this corresponds to is an unresolved topic; prime candidates are Samana Cay, Plana Cays, or San Salvador Island (named San Salvador in 1925 in the belief that it was Columbus's San Salvador). The indigenous people he encountered, the Lucayan, Taíno or Arawak, were peaceful and friendly. In his journal he wrote of them, "It appears to me, that the people are ingenious, and would be good servants and I am of opinion that they would very readily become Christians, as they appear to have no religion." He also wrote of them, two days after landing, "I could conquer the whole of them with 50 men, and govern them as I pleased."
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Columbus#First_voyage
--------------------------
CASTELLANO
Cristóbal Colón, en representación de los Reyes Católicos de España, realizó cuatro famosos viajes desde Europa a América en 1492, 1493, 1498 y 1502. En el primero de ellos llegó a América el 12 de octubre de 1492, a una isla de las Bahamas llamada Guanahani, cuya exacta localización aún se discute. En el tercer viaje llegó a territorio continental en la actual Venezuela.
El primer viaje de Colón se inició en Palos de la Frontera, el 3 de agosto de 1492. La escuadra colombina estaba formada por las carabelas Pinta, Niña y Santa María. Para el equipamiento de las naves fue decisiva la colaboración de los hermanos Pinzón, que participaron también en el viaje. Colón se dirigió hacia las Canarias y desde la isla de Gomera se lanzó a la travesía del Atlántico (6 de septiembre). El 12 de octubre llegó a la isla Guanahaní (Walting, en las Bahamas), a la que llamó San Salvador. Arribó después a la isla de Cuba, bautizada con el nombre de Juana, y posteriormente a La Española. El 25 de diciembre encalló la carabela Santa María y con sus restos construyó un fuerte llamado Navidad, en el que dejó una pequeña guarnición. Con las dos naves restantes, la Pinta y la Niña, emprendió el viaje de retorno (16 de enero de 1493). Durante la travesía las dos naves se separaron. Colón llegó a Palos el 15 de marzo y marchó a Barcelona para informar a los reyes de su descubrimiento.
Fuente: es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Descubrimiento_de_Am%c3%a9rica
La Rábida, Huelva (Spain).
After two months of navigation, they began to be scarce the food, and the crews thought about rebelling.
Tras dos meses de navegación, empezaron a escasear los víveres, y las tripulaciones pensaron en amotinarse.
ENGLISH
On the evening of August 3, 1492, Columbus departed from Palos with three ships; one larger carrack, Santa María, nicknamed Gallega (the Gallician), and two smaller caravels, Pinta (the Painted) and Santa Clara, nicknamed Niña (the Girl). (The ships were never officially named). They were property of Juan de la Cosa and the Pinzón brothers (Martin Alonzo and Vicente Yáñez), but the monarchs forced the Palos inhabitants to contribute to the expedition. Columbus first sailed to the Canary Islands, which was owned by Castile, where he restocked the provisions and made repairs, and on September 6, he started what turned out to be a five-week voyage across the ocean.
Land was sighted at 2 a.m. on October 12, 1492, by a sailor named Rodrigo de Triana (also known as Juan Rodríguez Bermejo) aboard Pinta. (Columbus would claim the prize.) Columbus called the island (in what is now The Bahamas) San Salvador, although the natives called it Guanahani. Exactly which island in the Bahamas this corresponds to is an unresolved topic; prime candidates are Samana Cay, Plana Cays, or San Salvador Island (named San Salvador in 1925 in the belief that it was Columbus's San Salvador). The indigenous people he encountered, the Lucayan, Taíno or Arawak, were peaceful and friendly. In his journal he wrote of them, "It appears to me, that the people are ingenious, and would be good servants and I am of opinion that they would very readily become Christians, as they appear to have no religion." He also wrote of them, two days after landing, "I could conquer the whole of them with 50 men, and govern them as I pleased."
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Columbus#First_voyage
--------------------------
CASTELLANO
Cristóbal Colón, en representación de los Reyes Católicos de España, realizó cuatro famosos viajes desde Europa a América en 1492, 1493, 1498 y 1502. En el primero de ellos llegó a América el 12 de octubre de 1492, a una isla de las Bahamas llamada Guanahani, cuya exacta localización aún se discute. En el tercer viaje llegó a territorio continental en la actual Venezuela.
El primer viaje de Colón se inició en Palos de la Frontera, el 3 de agosto de 1492. La escuadra colombina estaba formada por las carabelas Pinta, Niña y Santa María. Para el equipamiento de las naves fue decisiva la colaboración de los hermanos Pinzón, que participaron también en el viaje. Colón se dirigió hacia las Canarias y desde la isla de Gomera se lanzó a la travesía del Atlántico (6 de septiembre). El 12 de octubre llegó a la isla Guanahaní (Walting, en las Bahamas), a la que llamó San Salvador. Arribó después a la isla de Cuba, bautizada con el nombre de Juana, y posteriormente a La Española. El 25 de diciembre encalló la carabela Santa María y con sus restos construyó un fuerte llamado Navidad, en el que dejó una pequeña guarnición. Con las dos naves restantes, la Pinta y la Niña, emprendió el viaje de retorno (16 de enero de 1493). Durante la travesía las dos naves se separaron. Colón llegó a Palos el 15 de marzo y marchó a Barcelona para informar a los reyes de su descubrimiento.
Fuente: es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Descubrimiento_de_Am%c3%a9rica
Where blue meets green, lies a shade in between
Like the deep blue sea, dipped in key lime green.
Some call it turquoise, others, azure.
Regardless the color, it’s paradise for sure.
Location: Freeport, Grand Bahama, Bahamas
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Turks Islands Dwarf Gecko (male), Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos Islands. Like most of members of the genus Sphaerodactylus, these geckos prefer rubble piles and old rock walls that are shaded below low shrubbery. This species is endemic to only seven small islands in the southeastern Lucayan Archipelago. They exhibit sexual dichromatism (males and females are colored differently), whereas the males have an orange head and are heavily spotted, the females have a uniform tan/gray color with numerous small spots along the back and larger and darker spots and streaks on the head.
Grand Bahama - Gold Rock Beach
Is part of the protected Lucayan National Park. The beach is often secluded at low-tide when it unveils its signature rippled sandy peaks which the locals call their official “welcome mat”.
Islands, Keys, and Cays,
Embrace me in your paradise
And endless summer days
Carry me in on a trade wind breeze
To a sandy beach with coconut trees
This island life is the life for me
Surrounded by emerald waters
On an Island, Cay, or Key.
Location: Freeport, Grand Bahama, Bahamas
For daily photos, updates and musings on all things photography - please like my Facebook page via the link below.
www.facebook.com/thuncherphotography
You can also visit my website at:
-30-
© All rights reserved. Words and images, intellectual property of Florida Life / Thüncher Photography.
vacationrentalsexperts.pennistonemedia.com/top-10-vacatio... -
The Seas - When you think of the Bahamas, you immediately think of its beautiful stretches of beaches.
Therefore, upon arriving in the country, one’s first instinct is to hit the beaches right away.
The Grand Bahama Island is without a doubt the most popular island destination in the Bahamas because of its caves and cays, reefs and white-sands beaches.
If you wish to see the country’s best example of its ecosystems, then the Grand Bahama Island is where you should certainly go.
The Lucayan National Park in the Grand Bahama Island showcases all of the archipelago’s 6 types of ecosystems.
Looking through a maze of pine tree roots on the south shore of Grand Bahama Island at Lucayan National Park.
A long walk on the beach at Lucayan National Park, Grand Bahama Island. The beach has a line of numerous pine trees that had been toppled over but were still rooted deep into the sand that formed some amazing shapes.
Gold Rock Beach, on Grand Bahama Island, is part of The Lucayan National Park and is protected by the Bahamas National Trust, this spectacular park was the filming site of Pirates of the Caribbean II and III.
The beach is located about 25 miles from Freeport and is secluded and it's very spectacular. At low tide, the shoreline of the beach spans for almost 1km into the sea, and it is referred to as Grand Bahama Island's "welcome mat."
You can also see in this picture, part of the Caribbean Pine. It inhabits tropical and subtropical coniferous forests, which include both lowland savannas and montane forests. Wildfire plays a major role limiting the range of this species, but it has been reported that this tree regenerates quickly and aggressively.
The two island groups are in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of the Bahamas, northwest of Puerto Rico, north of Hispaniola, and about 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) from Miami in the United States, at
21°45′N 71°35′WCoordinates: 21°45′N 71°35′W. The territory is geographically contiguous to the Bahamas, both comprising the Lucayan Archipelago, but is politically a separate entity. The Caicos Islands are separated by the Caicos Passage from the closest Bahamian islands, Mayaguana and Great Inagua.
The eight main islands and more than 299 smaller islands have a total land area of 616.3 square kilometres (238.0 square miles), consisting primarily of low, flat limestone with extensive marshes and mangrove swamps and 332 square kilometres (128 sq mi) of beach front. The weather is usually sunny (it is generally regarded that the islands receive 350 days of sun each year) and relatively dry, but suffers frequent hurricanes. The islands have limited natural fresh water resources; private cisterns collect rainwater for drinking. The primary natural resources are spiny lobster, conch, and other shellfish.
Big Sand Cay is 1 of the 299 unpopulated islands
La Rábida, Huelva (Spain).
ENGLISH
On the evening of August 3, 1492, Columbus departed from Palos with three ships; one larger carrack, Santa María, nicknamed Gallega (the Gallician), and two smaller caravels, Pinta (the Painted) and Santa Clara, nicknamed Niña (the Girl). (The ships were never officially named). They were property of Juan de la Cosa and the Pinzón brothers (Martin Alonzo and Vicente Yáñez), but the monarchs forced the Palos inhabitants to contribute to the expedition. Columbus first sailed to the Canary Islands, which was owned by Castile, where he restocked the provisions and made repairs, and on September 6, he started what turned out to be a five-week voyage across the ocean.
Land was sighted at 2 a.m. on October 12, 1492, by a sailor named Rodrigo de Triana (also known as Juan Rodríguez Bermejo) aboard Pinta. (Columbus would claim the prize.) Columbus called the island (in what is now The Bahamas) San Salvador, although the natives called it Guanahani. Exactly which island in the Bahamas this corresponds to is an unresolved topic; prime candidates are Samana Cay, Plana Cays, or San Salvador Island (named San Salvador in 1925 in the belief that it was Columbus's San Salvador). The indigenous people he encountered, the Lucayan, Taíno or Arawak, were peaceful and friendly. In his journal he wrote of them, "It appears to me, that the people are ingenious, and would be good servants and I am of opinion that they would very readily become Christians, as they appear to have no religion." He also wrote of them, two days after landing, "I could conquer the whole of them with 50 men, and govern them as I pleased."
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Columbus#First_voyage
--------------------------
CASTELLANO
Cristóbal Colón, en representación de los Reyes Católicos de España, realizó cuatro famosos viajes desde Europa a América en 1492, 1493, 1498 y 1502. En el primero de ellos llegó a América el 12 de octubre de 1492, a una isla de las Bahamas llamada Guanahani, cuya exacta localización aún se discute. En el tercer viaje llegó a territorio continental en la actual Venezuela.
El primer viaje de Colón se inició en Palos de la Frontera, el 3 de agosto de 1492. La escuadra colombina estaba formada por las carabelas Pinta, Niña y Santa María. Para el equipamiento de las naves fue decisiva la colaboración de los hermanos Pinzón, que participaron también en el viaje. Colón se dirigió hacia las Canarias y desde la isla de Gomera se lanzó a la travesía del Atlántico (6 de septiembre). El 12 de octubre llegó a la isla Guanahaní (Walting, en las Bahamas), a la que llamó San Salvador. Arribó después a la isla de Cuba, bautizada con el nombre de Juana, y posteriormente a La Española. El 25 de diciembre encalló la carabela Santa María y con sus restos construyó un fuerte llamado Navidad, en el que dejó una pequeña guarnición. Con las dos naves restantes, la Pinta y la Niña, emprendió el viaje de retorno (16 de enero de 1493). Durante la travesía las dos naves se separaron. Colón llegó a Palos el 15 de marzo y marchó a Barcelona para informar a los reyes de su descubrimiento.
Fuente: es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Descubrimiento_de_Am%c3%a9rica
Fronting a pristine, white-sand beach and the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, this upscale island getaway provides unforgettable comfort for families, spa-lovers, golf-enthusiasts, and active travelers alike. Refreshing guestrooms are designed for complete relaxation with ocean, marina or island views.
Deluxe resort services include a selection of restaurants and bars serving everything from Asian-style cuisine to a popular cigar bar; romantic wedding services; fun-filled gaming action at the casino; 25,000 sq ft of fitness center and spa, sparkling pools, and a golf course located within minutes of the hotel. Where the natural beauty of the sunrise is only matched by the island’s spectacular watercolor sunsets, guests of the resort enjoy treasured vacations of sun, sand, and surf.
Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:
www.grandlucayan.com/?utm_source=Grand%20Lucayan
www.bahamas.com/hotels/lighthouse-pointe-at-grand-lucayan...(242)%20373%20-%201333.
www.bing.com/search?q=lighthouse+point+freeport+bahamas+a...
© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.
Paradise Island is an island located in the Bahamas formerly known as Hog Island. The island, with an area of 277 hectares, is located just off the shore of the city of Nassau, which is itself located on the northern edge of the island of New Providence.
A rickety wooden boardwalk cutting through a mangrove swamp at Lucayan National park on Grand Bahama.
The park is in the eastern half of the island, which is mostly desolate pine barrens and home to just a handful of small towns on the coast.
Note: this and many of my other shots were taken with my Canon 70-300mm because I managed to break my 50mm pretty early on in the trip.
Note: This is a different version cropped to 4:5 ratio because I had it enlarged to 18x24" and it now hangs on my wall.
Canon Rebel XSi + Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago, part of the larger Antilles island grouping. They are known primarily for tourism and as an offshore financial centre. The total population is about 31,500,[1] of whom approximately 27,000 live on Providenciales in the Caicos Islands.
The Turks and Caicos Islands lie southeast of Mayaguana in the Bahamas island chain and north of the island of Hispaniola. Cockburn Town, the capital since 1766, is situated on Grand Turk Island about 1,042 kilometres (647 mi) east-southeast of Miami, United States.
The islands have a total land area of 430 square kilometres (170 sq mi).[b] They are geographically contiguous with the Bahamas, but are politically separate.
The Port Lucaya Marketplace is a 9 ½ acre waterside open-air facility situated on the Lucayan Strip in the heart of Grand Bahama’s main tourism area, adjacent to the Grand Lucayan Resort and Treasure Bay Casino. Pristine white sandy beaches are within walking distance accessible to visitors of the Marketplace and Grand Bahama Island. Port Lucaya Marketplace is roughly 12 miles from the Harbour and is acknowledged by visitors and Bahamians as the prime location for shopping, dining and entertainment on Grand Bahama. With more than 40 specialty stores and boutiques offering high-quality jewellery, cameras, watches, perfume, leather goods and designer bags, over 120 handicrafts and straw vendors with the best selection of bags, hats and baskets, the Port Lucaya Marketplace is the place to visit. There are three watersports operators that offer a variety of tour options for the adventurous who would like to explore beneath the crystal blue waters and a bike tour operator for the more timid individuals. We also have 16 restaurants, and 4 bars, in addition to Coconut, Daiquiri and Seafood Vendors waiting to give you a taste of the Bahamas. There is a yogurt and ice cream parlor, coffee café, bakeries, a chocolate factory, a game room, school of survival and the famed Count Basie Square now called the Marketplace Square, where you can dance to Junkanoo, rake and scrape or bongo drums during the day and to live Bahamian music at night. Everyone wants to be here – to shop, dine, have fun and relax.
Port Lucaya Marketplace….it’s everything you came to Grand Bahama for and more!
Mayaguana is the most easterly island and district of the Bahamas. It is one of only a few Bahamian islands which retain their Lucayan names. The population of Mayaguana in the 2000 census was 259, amounting to an estimate 312 in 2010. It has an area of about 280 km².
About 100 km north of Inagua and 560 km south of the capital Nassau, Mayaguana is considered the halfway point between South Florida and Puerto Rico and is about 450 nautical miles off Palm Beach, Florida. It is a popular stopover for yachtsmen on a direct route to the Caribbean.
The largest settlement is Abraham's Bay on the south coast; other settlements are the neighboring towns of Betsy Bay and Pirate's Well in the northwest. The uninhabited areas of Upper Point (north shore), Northeast Point, and Southeast Point are largely inaccessible by road.
As the most isolated island, Mayaguana is one of the least visited by tourists in the Bahamas. Most tourists who visit do so for the isolation, as well as scuba diving, bonefishing, snorkeling, and duck hunting. The eastern part of the island is popular with advanced off-trail bikers. Ecotourism is also a common draw.
Yours truly ( Matt Anderson ) spelunking in Middle Caicos, Turks and Caicos Islands.
Middle Caicos Indian Caves located on the tiny Turks & Caicos Islands in the Caribbean. Deep within you look up and see the lush jungle light protruding through the "holes".
Not far from this area is a tunnel that housed thousands of bats. (Which were bombarding me with fly-byes all within inches of my head at times) Holes in the caves on Middle Caicos, Turks and Caicos. Stalactites and stalagmites fill the damp and mysterious interior of the Conch Bar Caves on the Northern Coast of Middle Caicos. The largest caves in the entire Bahamian chain of island. Lucayan Indians occupied this area many centuries before they were exterminated by the Spanish. The caves have fresh water lakes with caverns meadering on for many miles.
Little San Salvador Island - The Bahamas -
Little San Salvador Island, also known as Half Moon Cay, is one of about 700 islands that make up the archipelago of The Bahamas. It is located roughly halfway between Eleuthera and Cat Island. It is a private island, owned by Holland America Line, which uses it as a port of call for the cruise ships it operates in the region. Prior to being owned by HAL, Little San Salvador was the private island of Norwegian Cruise Line.
Little San Salvador Island is located about 100 miles (160 kilometres) southeast of Nassau. Holland America Line purchased the island in December, 1996 for a price of $6 million USD. It has since developed 50 acres (200,000 m2) of the 2,400-acre (9.7 km2) island, with the stated goal of maintaining as much habitat as possible for wildlife. The island is also a significant nesting area for waterfowl. The island does not have deep water docking, requiring the use of tenders for cruise ship passengers to disembark and embark.
The Bahamas
The Bahamas, known officially as the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic state within the Lucayan Archipelago. It consists of more than 700 islands, cays, and islets in the Atlantic Ocean, and is located north of Cuba and Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), northwest of the Turks and Caicos Islands, southeast of the United States state of Florida, and east of the Florida Keys. The capital is Nassau on the island of New Providence. The designation of "the Bahamas" can refer either to the country or to the larger island chain that it shares with the Turks and Caicos Islands. The Royal Bahamas Defence Force describes the Bahamas territory as encompassing 470,000 km2 (180,000 sq mi) of ocean space.
The Bahamas is the site of Columbus' first landfall in the New World in 1492. At that time, the islands were inhabited by the Lucayan, a branch of the Arawakan-speaking Taino people. Although the Spanish never colonised The Bahamas, they shipped the native Lucayans to slavery in Hispaniola. The islands were mostly deserted from 1513 until 1648, when English colonists from Bermuda settled on the island of Eleuthera.
The Bahamas became a British crown colony in 1718, when the British clamped down on piracy. After the American War of Independence, the Crown resettled thousands of American Loyalists in the Bahamas; they brought their slaves with them and established plantations on land grants. Africans constituted the majority of the population from this period. The slave trade was abolished by the British in 1807; slavery in the Bahamas was abolished in 1834. Subsequently, the Bahamas became a haven for freed African slaves; the Royal Navy resettled Africans there liberated from illegal slave ships, American slaves and Seminoles escaped here from Florida, and the government freed American slaves carried on United States domestic ships that had reached the Bahamas due to weather. Today, Afro-Bahamians make up nearly 90% of the population.
The Bahamas became an independent Commonwealth realm in 1973, retaining the British monarch, then and currently Queen Elizabeth II, as its head of state. In terms of gross domestic product per capita, The Bahamas is one of the richest countries in the Americas (following the United States and Canada), with an economy based on tourism and finance.
Middle Caicos Indian Caves located on the tiny Turks & Caicos Islands in the Caribbean. Deep within you look up and see the lush jungle light protruding through the "holes".
Not far from this area is a tunnel that housed thousands of bats. (Which were bombarding me with fly-byes all within inches of my head at times) Holes in the caves on Middle Caicos, Turks and Caicos. Stalactites and stalagmites fill the damp and mysterious interior of the Conch Bar Caves on the Northern Coast of Middle Caicos. The largest caves in the entire Bahamian chain of island. Lucayan Indians occupied this area many centuries before they were exterminated by the Spanish. The caves have fresh water lakes with caverns meadering on for many miles.
A scenic lighthouse on Grand Bahama island. Sadly, it is only a decoration (faux lighthouse) and not a real, working lighthouse. This is one of those tourist things like the one on Hilton Head. Oh well, it makes a nice scene anyway.
While climbing up the stairs to the top of Elbow Reef lighthouse, there are several opportunities to look out through windows in the thick walls and take in the view before getting to the top.
This is one of those views.
3 Raw exposure HDR
Las islas Turcos y Caicos son un territorio británico de ultramar que consiste de las islas Caicos, las más grandes, y las islas Turcos, las más pequeñas - dos grupos de islas tropicales en el archipiélago de las Lucayas del océano Atlántico norte.
The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the northern Atlantic region.
This is likely a lost prop from the filming of Pirates of the Caribbean 2. Found this barrel on Gold Rock Beach at Lucayan Natl Park, about a mile from site of filming.
As you are looking at this perfection, I was focusing on how fast I could get to the horizon and get my snorkeling gear on!
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The region consists of the Antilles, divided into the larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north, the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands or the Lucayan Archipelago, which are in fact in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, not in the Caribbean Sea.
Some islands in the region have relatively flat terrain of non-volcanic origin. These islands include Aruba (possessing only minor volcanic features), Barbados, Bonaire, the Cayman Islands, Saint Croix, The Bahamas or Antigua. Others possess rugged towering mountain-ranges like the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Dominica, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Tortola, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Trinidad & Tobago.
The climate of the region is tropical but rainfall varies with elevation, size and water currents (cool upwellings keep the ABC islands arid). Warm, moist tradewinds blow consistently from the east creating rainforest/semidesert divisions on mountainous islands. Occasional northwesterlies affect the northern islands in the winter. The region enjoys year-round sunshine, divided into 'dry' and 'wet' seasons, with the last six months of the year being wetter than the first half.
The waters of the Caribbean Sea host large, migratory schools of fish, turtles, and coral reef formations.
Hurricanes, which at times batter the region, usually strike northwards of Grenada, and to the west of Barbados. The principal hurricane belt arcs to northwest of the island of Barbados in the Eastern Caribbean.
The region sits in the line of several major shipping routes with the man-made Panama Canal connecting the western Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean.