Travel and Vacation In The Bahamas

I f you're traveling to or         the North is the island of Grand   planning a vacation in the      Bahama, home to the second         Bahamas you might be            largest city in the country,       interested in knowing a little        Freeport, Bahamas.                 about the area.                                                                                                The island of Great Abaco is to    The Commonwealth of the Bahamas       its east. In the very south is     is an independent                     the island of Great Inagua, the    English-speaking nation in the        second largest island in the       West Indies. Where in the world       country.                           are they? The Bahamas are located                                        in the Atlantic Ocean, east of        A few facts and figures: Nassau    Florida in the US, north of Cuba      is the capital and largest city,   and the Caribbean, and west of        located on New Providence. The     the British dependency of the         islands have a subtropical         Turks and Caicos Islands.             climate, moderated by the Gulf                                           Stream. Most people are ethnic     The Bahamas are a group of about      Christians, and English is the     700 islands in the western            official language.                 Atlantic Ocean, of which only                                            between 30 and 40 are inhabited.      The islands are surface            That may sound like a large place     projections of three oceanic       but on a comparison basis, the        banks, the Little Bahama Bank,     Bahamas are only slightly smaller     the Great Bahama Bank and the      than the state of Connecticut.        westernmost Cay Sal Bank. The                                            highest point is only 2480 inches  The largest of the islands is         (just less than half a mile)       Andros Island, located 120 miles      above sea level on Cat Island;     south-east of Florida. The Bimini     the island of New Providence,      islands are to its northwest. To      where the capital city of Nassau   is located, reaches a maximum         During the summer, which extends   elevation of only 1,457 inches.       from May through November, the                                           climate is dominated by warm,      The land on the Bahamas has a         moist tropical air masses moving   foundation of fossil coral, but       north through the Caribbean.       much of the rock is oolitic           Midsummer temperatures range from  limestone; the stone is derived       70° to 93° F with a relative       from the disintegration of coral      humidity of 60- 100%.              reefs and seashells. The land is                                         primarily either rocky or             In winter months, extending from   mangrove swamp. Low scrub covers      December through April, the        much of the surface area. Timber      climate is affected by the         is found in abundance on four of      movement of cold polar masses      the northern islands: Grand           from North America. Temperatures   Bahama, Great Abaco, New              during the winter months range     Providence, and Andros. On some       from 59° to 75° F.                 of the southern islands,                                                 low-growing tropical hardwood         Yearly rainfall averages 52        flourishes.                           inches annually and is usually                                           concentrated in the May-June and   Although some soil is very            September-October periods.         fertile, it is also very thin.        Rainfall often occurs in           Only a few freshwater lakes and       short-lived, fairly intense        just one river, located on Andros     showers accompanied by strong      Island, are found in the Bahamas.     gusty winds.                                                                                                The climate in the Bahamas is         Winds are predominantly easterly   semitropical. They have only two      throughout the year but tend to    seasons, summer and winter.           become northeasterly from October                                        to April and southeasterly from    May to September. These winds         Winds of up to 140 mph were        seldom exceed 15 mph per hour         recorded. Many lives were lost,    except during hurricane season.       and there was extensive damage to                                        buildings, homes, and boats.       Although the hurricane season                                            officially lasts from June to         Don't let the hurricanes and heat  November, most hurricanes in the      scare you. The Bahamas are a       Bahamas occur between July and        wonderful place to vacation, any   October. The last hurricane to        time of the year. Pick up your     strike was Hurricane David in         sunglasses, find your swim suit    September 1979. Damage was            and call your travel agent today!  estimated at US$1.8 million and                                          mainly affected agricultural          Permission is granted to reprint   products. The most intense            this article as long as no         twentieth-century hurricane to        changes are made, and the entire   strike the Bahamas was in 1929.       resource box is included.          About the Author: This article is Copyright © 2006, Heather Colman. Find more Bahamas resources at bahamas-press.info Read more articles by: Heather Colman Article Source: www.iSnare.com