Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
SIGHTS
Wyannie Malone Museum
MUSEUM
(
www.hopetownmuseum.com
;
Back St; adult/family $3/5; 10am-3pm Mon-Sat, closed
Aug-Oct) Wyannie Malone, a South Carolina Loyalist whose husband was killed during
the American Revolution, fled to Elbow Cay with her four children and helped found Hope
Town. Today, the Malone name is spread across the Bahamas, and Wyannie is considered
the spiritual matriarch of Hope Town. Her story, and that of Elbow Cay, is told at this small
but engaging museum. Downstairs, check out a 1783
New York Post
article calling for a
meeting for all Tories intending to move to the Abacos. Upstairs, look for shipwreck arti-
facts and old island photos.
Elbow Cay Lighthouse
LIGHTHOUSE
( 8am-4pm Mon-Fri, 8am-noon Sat) The island's signature attraction, the candy-striped
lighthouse, was an object of community-wide loathing when built in 1863. Many here sup-
plemented their incomes by salvaging loot off ships that crashed against the cay's treach-
erous reefs - usually one a month. An 89ft lighthouse was the last thing these 'wreckers'
needed. Today, you can check out views from the top. There's no admission, just follow
the signs, walk up 101 steps and - if you dare - push your way through a small trap door
to panoramic views from a scare-your-mother balcony. To get here, ask the ferry operator
to drop you at the lighthouse, and catch the next mainland ferry by waving to the captain
from the dock.
Tahiti Beach
BEACH
South of Hope Town, the Queen's Highway continues along a narrow peninsula between
the ocean and White Sound, a shallow, mangrove-lined bay with the Sea Spray Resort &
Marina at its southern end. Follow the road through an upscale residential neighborhood to
Tahiti Beach
(you can ignore the 'Private Property' signs; this is the only way to get to this
beach), which extends as a sandbar along the peninsula. Though small, its waters are warm
and exquisitely clear. For the best views, round the peninsula on foot.
Cholera Cemetery
CEMETERY
(Cemetery Rd) Decrepit graves recall the cholera epidemic that swept through Hope Town
in 1850, claiming one-third of the population. Note the weathered Betrothal Bench at the
crest of the hill. Cemetery Rd is off Back St.