Andros, Bimini, and the Berry Islands: Places to Explore

The Berry Islands

Remote, undiscovered, and pristine in beauty, the Berry Islands consist of more than two dozen small islands and almost a hundred tiny cays stretching in a sliver moonlike curve north of Andros and New Providence Island. Although a few of the islands are privately owned, most of them are uninhabited—except by rare birds who use the territory as their nesting grounds, or by visiting yachters dropping anchor in secluded havens. The Berry Islands start in the north at Great Stirrup Cay, where a lighthouse guides passing ships, and they end in the south at Chub Cay, only 35 mi north of Nassau.

Most of the islands' 700 residents live on Great Harbour Cay, which is 10 mi long and 1½ mi wide. Great Harbour, the largest of the Berry Islands, is sedate, self-contained, and oriented toward family beach and water-sport vacationing. Its main settlement, Bullock's Harbour, more commonly known as "the Village," has a couple of good restaurants near the marina, plus a grocery store and some small shops. The Great Harbour Cay resort and beach area, a few miles away from Bullock's Harbour, was developed in the early 1970s. More homes have been built since then, and many of the older beach villas and cottages have been remodeled.

Although the area has long been geared toward offshore fishing, in recent years family vacations and bonefishing have become more popular. Both Chub and Great Harbour cays are close to the Tongue of the Ocean, where big-game fish roam. Remote flats south of Great Harbour, from Anderson Cay to Money Cay, are excellent bonefish habitats, as are the flats around Chub Cay. Deeper water flats hold permit and tarpon.