Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
West Bay
Vacationers along fun-loving Seven Mile Beach miss the “real” Grand
Cayman, a place where homes, not condos, line quiet streets; where chil-
dren grow up in cozy neighborhoods; where friends take time from their
day to stop and say hello or to sit out in the yard and just enjoy a Caribbean
afternoon.
That feeling of real life is found in West Bay, directly north of Seven Mile
Beach, but a great distance away in terms of atmosphere. Don't look for
slick swimwear shops or shipwreck jewelry here. Hotels are few. But West
Bay, like the East End, is the heart of Grand Cayman.
The shape of West Bay somewhat resembles a hammerhead perched atop
the hammer handle of Seven Mile Beach. The head of the hammer is the
most developed area of West Bay. Here you'll find the
Cayman Turtle
Farm
and numerous dive sites. Traveling north from Seven Mile Beach
along West Bay Road, the name of the road changes to North West Point
Road and follows the coastline, becoming more and more residential. At
the Cayman Turtle Farm, a less-traveled road traces the far northern edge
of this region, continually switching names along the route: Boatswains
Bay Road, King Road, Birch Tree Hill Road, Conch Point Road, Palmetto
Point Road. Traveling east, houses become fewer and fewer and the area
gives way to a swampy habitat that attracts birds.
If you turn away from the coast and head to the inland area of West Bay
you will find a community called
Hell
, a popular stop on island tours. Lo-
cated, appropriately enough, on Hell Road, this small town cashes in on its
unusual moniker with the expected T-shirt shops and a post office that
sends off postcards franked with the obligatory Hell postmark. Neverthe-
less, it's a small, homey community that's worth a visit.
Follow Hell Road east, first onto Reverend Blackman Road and then
Batabano Road, to travel to the North Sound and the fishing community of
Batabano. This is home of
Morgan's Harbour
, starting point for many
deep-sea fishing cruises and some trips to Stingray City. It's not as glitzy
as Seven Mile Beach, but offers an interesting look at the working side of
Grand Cayman.
Back to the hammerhead image: The claw of the hammer is the
Barkers
area of West Bay. Located north of Batabano on the North Sound, Barkers
is also popular with birders, who find good sites off Palmetto Point Road on
its northern reaches and along its many ponds.
