User:Ecolife group/Strangers Cay

Strangers Cay is located 200 miles North East of Miami, Florida and 140 miles North East of Nassau, Bahamas.

Stranger’s Cay is an uninhabited island approximately 360 acres in area and about 2 miles long and nearly half a mile wide at its widest point. There is a natural harbour on the west side of the island. Most of the island is wild and covered with a thick cover of lush vegetation. The island's elevation is 50 feet above sea level at its highest point, with several acres above 40 feet. It is quite hilly and is covered with a lush green cover of trees and shrubs. Some pathways have been cut to allow passage through the dense vegetation along which there is a tree canopy 20 - 30 feet above. With development Stranger's Cay can have a completely land locked boat harbour of more than 30 acres. A study of the island shows it can accommodate an air strip of at least 5,000 feet.

Stranger's Cay is particularly well situated for boating traffic since it is located just halfway between West End, Grand Bahamas Island and Treasure Cay, Abaco. It would make an attractive stopping point since many people do not care to travel at night or to go more than 50 miles in a day.

Sport fishing of all types is known to be superb in the area of Stranger's Cay. Walker's Cay just 17 miles to the North East is world class fishing resort where many world record fish have been taken.

As in the most of the Bahamas, the water around Stranger's Cay is gin clear and there are many interesting dive sites nearby for both snorkelers and scuba divers.

The island is well positioned with the cobalt blue waters of the Atlantic Ocean on the eastern (windward) side and the turquoise shallow waters of the Grand Bahamas Bank on the western (leeward) side.

The southern end is relatively flat and has a large (about 35 acres) fresh to brackish water marsh. There is a thin fresh water lens and shallow fresh water well. The northern end of the island has a long, nearly level narrow ridge. This ridge runs in a North West to South West axis and is approximately 5,000 feet in length. This is an ideal location for an airstrip. Also at this end of the island, the deeper water comes in fairly close to the shoreline making it a logical location for a protected marina. The large bay off the South West portion of the island is shallow and not suitable as a boat anchorage.

Stranger's Cay is a diverse island in the upper Abaco’s, the northern most group of the Bahamian Archipelago. The Abaco’s are among the "Family Islands" which include all of the Bahamas, excluding New Providence and the Grand Bahamas. The island is well known for its sandy beaches and clear water.

Stranger's Cay’s year-around climate is pleasing and salubrious with cooling breezes in the summer and warming breezes in the winter. Its rainfall, which is heavier than that of more southerly islands, is one of the most valuable resources. The great climate offers other features too, the typical shallow, clear waters surrounding the island vary in colour, by depth, from white to brilliant green to turquoise to midnight blue; the bluer the water, the deeper the bottom. The waters of the bank are three to four fathoms with the bottom always visible. The beaches offer superb possibilities for offshore fishing and boating. The cay is surrounded by coral reefs and sand banks.

Tourism growth in the "Family Islands" is expanding and will continue to grow because the Bahamian government desires to provide "out-island" economic development programs that will increase employment opportunities for "Family Islands" residents and increase commerce on the cay. The fishermen and pleasure boater markets are the most affluent and generally account for the majority of club memberships and real estate purchases. The two other markets categories are almost strictly vacation oriented. Accessibility to resorts is critical to the success of the island.