Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
184
5 EXPLORING THE ISLAND
Birders flock to the Booby P ond Visitor's Centr e ( & 345/948-
1010; www .nationaltrust.org.ky/info/boobypond.html), which is
operated b y the N ational Trust. The visitor center is located in an
83-hectare (213-acre) nature reserve and has exhibits on Little Cay-
man's indigenous species, including the common crab and the seed
shrimp. For a closer vie w of bird life, take a look thr ough one of the
two telescopes on the visitor center 's por ch. A gift shop her e sells
locally made crafts and island ar t. Admission is free and the center is
open daily from 9am to 6pm.
Booby Pond itself is a 1.9km-long (1 1 / 2 -mile) brackish man-
grove pond, home to a breeding colony of splendid frigate birds. The
red-footed boobies who liv e at this pond ar e the Caribbean's largest
booby breeding colony. Estimates say that some 7,000 feathered crea-
tures of differ ent types call this pond home, including the black-
necked stilt, the West Indian whistling duck, the graceful egr et, the
heron, and, of course, the boob y.
Of minor inter est is Little Cayman Museum, Guy Banks Road,
Blossom Village ( & 345/948-1033 ), open M onday to F riday 3 to
5pm. It's free, although the staff will r equest a donation. I n a green-
and-white building with a wood veranda, the museum contains relics
from Little Cayman 's past. S ome of the memorabilia date back a
century and a half. The collection stemmed from the private treasures
of Linton Tibbetts, an islander who sailed to the U nited States with
US$50 in his pocket and r eturned to Little Cayman a multimillion-
aire. Everything from the attics of Little Cayman is her e, including
grandmother's old sewing machine.
Since getting ar ound Little Cayman might be difficult, y ou may
want to take an organized tour. LCB Tours, Blossom Village ( & 800/
327-3835 in the U.S., or 345/948-1033), offers a guided tour that
visits all of the island highlights for CI$20 per person, with lunch
costing an extra CI$16. You can also r ent snor keling gear, kayaks,
sailboats, pedal boats, and sur f bikes (which ar e basically floating
bicycles).
The pr eviously r ecommended Little C ayman Beach R esort
(p. 176) offers snor keling and bus tours of the island for CI$25 per
person. The best tours, ho wever, ar e the guided natur e hikes con-
ducted b y G ladys Howard, o wner of Pirates Point Resort (p. 176).
These tours ar e sponsor ed b y the N ational Trust, and only a CI$1
donation is asked. These tours can only be arranged b y appointment.
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