The color of the water changes from crystal clear, to turquoise, to deep blue , with white sand bras dotting the seascape along the 100 miles distance to Great Exuma Island. The Exumas as they are commonly called have an estimated 365 islands and cays, one for every day of the year, and its no wonder that they are is accepted as the cruising yacht capital of the Caribbean. From November to April each year, there are no fewer than 300 or more sailing yachts anchored in Elizabeth harbor, near Exuma’s capital, Georgetown.
Although the northern end of the Exuma chain of islands is only 35 miles from Nassau,most of the Exuma’s 4,400 residents live at the southern end on the largest land masses, Great Exuma and Little Exuma islands which are connected by a one lane bridge. Great Exuma, about 45 miles long and a few miles wide at the widest point, is home to Georgetown, the capital and the largest community in the Exumas.
To the south, across the bridge, Little Exuma extends another 15 miles. Georgetown was founded in 1793 by Lord Denys Rolle and named in honor of the reigning monarch King George 111, who lost the Revolutionary War with America but who in turn, granted lands in the Bahamas, to Loyalists like Lord Rolle who sided with England in the war.
On great Exuma, 7,000 acres were granted to Lord Denys. He and his heir, Lord John Rolle, built five major cotton plantations on the island. In 1829, Exuma was the scene of a slave “revolt”, when slaves belonging to Georgetown’s founder, Rolle hid in the woods and refused to work because they were to be transferred to nearby Cat Island. Forty four slaves stole a vessel and made their way to Nassau to put their grievances to the English governor who halted the transfer. The action by the slaves alarmed slave holders throughout the region and although they were returned to Exuma, they were still flogged for their ambitions.
By the time slavery was abolished, five years later,Rolle’s five plantations on the island had failed due to soil exhaustion and pests. After receiving more than four thousand English pounds in compensation for freeing his slaves, Rolle deeded his holding on Exuma to his 387 slaves and their descendants who adopted their benefactor’s name.
Today, 60 percent of all the people who live in Exuma have the last name Role. Most Exumians earn their living today from tourism, fishing, or farming. Exuma was once the onion capital of the Bahamas and although it declined over the past ten years, younger farmers are now reviving the industry.
Exploring Great Exuma is an adventure in itself. The main highway ,the Queens Highway, runs through the middle of the island through small towns, from Rolletown on the northern end to Williamstown on the southern end, through forest and farmland and every ten minutes or so there is this glimpse of the incredibly blue/green waters of the Exuma Sound . On Little Exuma, near Williamstown, the imaginary line that defines the northern extent of the tropics, The Tropic of Cancer ,comes ashore on a white powdery sand beach, the longest on the island and the only land mass The Tropic of Cancer touches before it reaches Mexico.
For a region with some of the most spectacular aquatic scenery in the world, it’s perhaps only natural that a visitor will find the absolutely best way to explore Exuma is by boat. One of the most popular tours takes visitors from the hotels in Georgetown and nearby areas on a fifty mile boat ride to Sampson Cay, to watch, yes, pigs swim. Legend says the porcine treats were settled on this and other islands by sailors who wanted to populate this and other islands with a supply of fresh meat for return voyages. These pigs survived and are now the darlings of passing yachtsmen and enterprising Exumians who make a nice piece of change offering tours to the area. Every April the population of Georgetown quadruples when it hosts the National Family Island Regatta .
Now in its 54th year, the regatta brings sailors and sailing enthusiasts from throughout the Bahamian archipelago for a week of sailing in hand built boats modelled on workboats of a bygone era. When it got started ,most if not all work boats that went crawfishing, scale fishing , sponge harvesting or conching, were built by hand and by Bahamians craftsmen with simple tools or drawings. Georgetown’s Regatta is the national regatta but is has spawned similar events throughout the islands throughout the course of the year and Bahamian Sloops Sailing has been designated by government as the National Sport of the Bahamas.
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