Cayman Brac
Encyclopedia
Cayman Brac is an island that is part of the Cayman Islands
. It lies in the Caribbean Sea
about 90 miles (145 km) northeast of Grand Cayman
and 5 miles (8 km) east of Little Cayman
. It is about 12 miles (19 km) long, with an average width of 1 mile (2 km). Its terrain is the most prominent of the three Cayman Islands
due to "The Bluff", a large central limestone
outcrop that rises steadily along the length of the island up to 140 feet (43 metres) above sea level at the eastern end. The island is named after this prominent feature, as "brac" is a Gaelic
name for a bluff.
The Teignmouth Electron, the boat in which Donald Crowhurst
attempted to sail round the world single-handed in the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race
, has been left to decay on the south coast of Cayman Brac.
sighted Cayman Brac and its sister island, Little Cayman
, on 10 May 1503 when his ship was blown off course during a trip between Hispaniola
and Panama
. He named them "Las Tortugas" because of the many turtle
s he spotted on the islands. The Cayman Islands were renamed by Sir Francis Drake, who came upon the islands during a voyage in 1586. He used the word "Caymanas", taken from the Carib name for crocodile
s after seeing many of the large crocodilians. Many people believe he had only seen the Rock Iguanas that inhabit the island today.
During the heyday of piracy
, pirates would use Cayman Brac as a haven and a place to replenish their supplies as there are a number of fresh water wells on the island and had many sources of food included in the local flora and fauna.
built in the Soviet Union
in 1984 for the Cuban Navy. It is one of only a few sunken Soviet naval vessels in the Western Hemisphere
, and the only one that is easily dived. The Koni II class frigate was purchased and sunk by the Cayman Islands government in September 1996. Originally designated 356, the frigate was rechristened the M/V Captain Keith Tibbetts, after a well-known Cayman Brac politician. The wreck originally sat upright in approximately 90 feet (27 m) with the deck at 60 feet (18 m), until wave action generated by a winter Norwester storm (December 1998-January 1999) which nearly tore the ship in two. The result was that the fore section tipped to about a 45 degree angle in relation to the remainder of the still-upright aft portion. and the midships became a debris field. The wreck's stern area was essentially unaffected. The frigate is located in a sandy area with generally good visibility, approximately 200 m (650 feet) offshore (a fairly long swim) from 'Buccaneer', on the island's north side, near the western tip of the island. There are numerous openings in the upper portion of the ship for non-wreck certified divers. Many more openings are available since the ship broke in half. The site also serves as an artificial reef. Other interesting dive sites are Radar Reef, Cemetery Wall, and the Wilderness Wall , all well covered in corals and with a wide diversity of marine life.
s are found around the island, offering spelunker
s a glimpse of delicate underground formations. Steps and, in some cases, ladders have been constructed to allow visitor access to more remote caves. One cave, Rebecca's Cave,http://www.Rebeccascave.com contains the grave of a young girl lost in a struggle against the ravages of the great '32 Hurricane
, and it is a Cayman National Heritage Site.
was developed beginning in 1992 and the island is now known as a world-class climbing destination. One must be somewhat experienced to climb here as the terrain is steep, many times over-vertical.
and hiking
trails have been opened by the Nature Tourism Programme which allow exploration of the island's dense Karst forestation. Unique flora and fauna thrive here and can be observed in the wild.
and the pursuit of big game fish.
, municipal government, and local enterprises, although on the Brac, the government (including Cayman Airways, the National carrier) is the largest employer. Some of the more economically prominent families in Grand Cayman originate from Cayman Brac, namely the Kirkconnells, Fosters, Waltons, and Scotts. The majority of the tourism sector is concentrated on scuba diving, although this is in recent decline in the hospitality sector, with one of the two local hotels, Divi Resorts, closed operations in 2006. The island's economy was also adversely impacted by significant damage from Category 4 Hurricane Paloma in November 2008.
A local enterprise that is nearly unique to Cayman Brac are its artists who work in a local stone known as Caymanite
, typically making jewelry or small stone carvings. Two of these artists have been Mr. Eddie Scott and Mr. Tenson Scott, whose works have won national contests, as well as being the official gift to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Andrew during the 1994 State Visit. For the 2011 Wedding of Prince William, the official gift was crafted by Mr. Horacio Esteban, who grew up on Cayman Brac and is currently living on Grand Cayman.
operates two primary schools and one secondary school on the island. These include:
Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...
. It lies in the Caribbean Sea
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
about 90 miles (145 km) northeast of Grand Cayman
Grand Cayman
Grand Cayman is the largest of the three Cayman Islands and the location of the nation's capital, George Town. In relation to the other two Cayman Islands, it is approximately 75 miles southwest of Little Cayman and 90 miles southwest of Cayman Brac.-Geography:Grand Cayman encompasses 76% of...
and 5 miles (8 km) east of Little Cayman
Little Cayman
Little Cayman is an island that is part of the Cayman Islands. It is located in the Caribbean Sea, about 75 miles northeast of Grand Cayman and five miles west of Cayman Brac. Little Cayman has a permanent population of less than 170 and is about 10 miles long with an average width of 1 mile...
. It is about 12 miles (19 km) long, with an average width of 1 mile (2 km). Its terrain is the most prominent of the three Cayman Islands
Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...
due to "The Bluff", a large central limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
outcrop that rises steadily along the length of the island up to 140 feet (43 metres) above sea level at the eastern end. The island is named after this prominent feature, as "brac" is a Gaelic
Goidelic languages
The Goidelic languages or Gaelic languages are one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic languages, the other consisting of the Brythonic languages. Goidelic languages historically formed a dialect continuum stretching from the south of Ireland through the Isle of Man to the north of Scotland...
name for a bluff.
The Teignmouth Electron, the boat in which Donald Crowhurst
Donald Crowhurst
Donald Crowhurst was a British businessman and amateur sailor who died while competing in the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race, a single-handed, round-the-world yacht race. Crowhurst had entered the race in hopes of winning a cash prize from The Sunday Times to aid his failing business...
attempted to sail round the world single-handed in the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race
Sunday Times Golden Globe Race
The Sunday Times Golden Globe Race was a non-stop, single-handed, round-the-world yacht race, held in 1968–1969, and was the first round-the-world yacht race...
, has been left to decay on the south coast of Cayman Brac.
History
Christopher ColumbusChristopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an explorer, colonizer, and navigator, born in the Republic of Genoa, in northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents in the...
sighted Cayman Brac and its sister island, Little Cayman
Little Cayman
Little Cayman is an island that is part of the Cayman Islands. It is located in the Caribbean Sea, about 75 miles northeast of Grand Cayman and five miles west of Cayman Brac. Little Cayman has a permanent population of less than 170 and is about 10 miles long with an average width of 1 mile...
, on 10 May 1503 when his ship was blown off course during a trip between Hispaniola
Hispaniola
Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...
and Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
. He named them "Las Tortugas" because of the many turtle
Turtle
Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield...
s he spotted on the islands. The Cayman Islands were renamed by Sir Francis Drake, who came upon the islands during a voyage in 1586. He used the word "Caymanas", taken from the Carib name for crocodile
Crocodile
A crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
s after seeing many of the large crocodilians. Many people believe he had only seen the Rock Iguanas that inhabit the island today.
During the heyday of piracy
Piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
, pirates would use Cayman Brac as a haven and a place to replenish their supplies as there are a number of fresh water wells on the island and had many sources of food included in the local flora and fauna.
Diving
Of interest to scuba divers is a 330-foot (100-m) Russian Koni class frigateKoni class frigate
Koni class is the NATO reporting name for a anti-submarine warfare frigate built by the Soviet Union. They were known in the Soviet Union as Project 1159. 14 were built in Zelenodolsk shipyard between 1975 and 1988. They were originally intended to replace the older Riga class frigates, but were...
built in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in 1984 for the Cuban Navy. It is one of only a few sunken Soviet naval vessels in the Western Hemisphere
Western Hemisphere
The Western Hemisphere or western hemisphere is mainly used as a geographical term for the half of the Earth that lies west of the Prime Meridian and east of the Antimeridian , the other half being called the Eastern Hemisphere.In this sense, the western hemisphere consists of the western portions...
, and the only one that is easily dived. The Koni II class frigate was purchased and sunk by the Cayman Islands government in September 1996. Originally designated 356, the frigate was rechristened the M/V Captain Keith Tibbetts, after a well-known Cayman Brac politician. The wreck originally sat upright in approximately 90 feet (27 m) with the deck at 60 feet (18 m), until wave action generated by a winter Norwester storm (December 1998-January 1999) which nearly tore the ship in two. The result was that the fore section tipped to about a 45 degree angle in relation to the remainder of the still-upright aft portion. and the midships became a debris field. The wreck's stern area was essentially unaffected. The frigate is located in a sandy area with generally good visibility, approximately 200 m (650 feet) offshore (a fairly long swim) from 'Buccaneer', on the island's north side, near the western tip of the island. There are numerous openings in the upper portion of the ship for non-wreck certified divers. Many more openings are available since the ship broke in half. The site also serves as an artificial reef. Other interesting dive sites are Radar Reef, Cemetery Wall, and the Wilderness Wall , all well covered in corals and with a wide diversity of marine life.
Caves
Cayman Brac also appeals to visitors of many persuasions besides divers. CaveCave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
s are found around the island, offering spelunker
Spelunker
Spelunker has several meanings.* In Caving, "spelunker" is sometimes a term for a person who explores caves.* Spelunker , a 1983 video game for various systems, including Atari and Nintendo....
s a glimpse of delicate underground formations. Steps and, in some cases, ladders have been constructed to allow visitor access to more remote caves. One cave, Rebecca's Cave,http://www.Rebeccascave.com contains the grave of a young girl lost in a struggle against the ravages of the great '32 Hurricane
1932 Cuba Hurricane
The 1932 Cuba hurricane was a powerful and deadly late-season hurricane during the 1932 Atlantic hurricane season. It was the tenth tropical storm, fifth hurricane and fourth major hurricane of the 1932 season...
, and it is a Cayman National Heritage Site.
Rock Climbing
Rock climbingRock climbing
Rock climbing also lightly called 'The Gravity Game', is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a pre-defined route without falling...
was developed beginning in 1992 and the island is now known as a world-class climbing destination. One must be somewhat experienced to climb here as the terrain is steep, many times over-vertical.
Walking and Hiking Trails
WalkingWalking
Walking is one of the main gaits of locomotion among legged animals, and is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults over the stiff limb or limbs with each step...
and hiking
Hiking
Hiking is an outdoor activity which consists of walking in natural environments, often in mountainous or other scenic terrain. People often hike on hiking trails. It is such a popular activity that there are numerous hiking organizations worldwide. The health benefits of different types of hiking...
trails have been opened by the Nature Tourism Programme which allow exploration of the island's dense Karst forestation. Unique flora and fauna thrive here and can be observed in the wild.
Fishing
Cayman Brac's waters are especially utilized for both fishingFishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
and the pursuit of big game fish.
Local Economy
The local economy tends to be concentrated in three areas which are probably typical for many Caribbean locales: tourismTourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
, municipal government, and local enterprises, although on the Brac, the government (including Cayman Airways, the National carrier) is the largest employer. Some of the more economically prominent families in Grand Cayman originate from Cayman Brac, namely the Kirkconnells, Fosters, Waltons, and Scotts. The majority of the tourism sector is concentrated on scuba diving, although this is in recent decline in the hospitality sector, with one of the two local hotels, Divi Resorts, closed operations in 2006. The island's economy was also adversely impacted by significant damage from Category 4 Hurricane Paloma in November 2008.
A local enterprise that is nearly unique to Cayman Brac are its artists who work in a local stone known as Caymanite
Caymanite
thumb|Caymanite from Cayman Brac, Cayman IslandsCaymanite is an uncommon variety of dolostone originally reported from locations in the Miocene Cayman Formation in the Cayman Islands: the Bluff in Cayman Brac and the East End on Grand Cayman. It has also been reported from the Buda Hills of Hungary...
, typically making jewelry or small stone carvings. Two of these artists have been Mr. Eddie Scott and Mr. Tenson Scott, whose works have won national contests, as well as being the official gift to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Andrew during the 1994 State Visit. For the 2011 Wedding of Prince William, the official gift was crafted by Mr. Horacio Esteban, who grew up on Cayman Brac and is currently living on Grand Cayman.
Education
Cayman Islands Education DepartmentCayman Islands Education Department
Cayman Islands Education Department is a department of the Ministry of Education of the Cayman Islands, a territory of the United Kingdom.The agency operates public primary and secondary schools on Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac.-High schools:Cayman Brac...
operates two primary schools and one secondary school on the island. These include:
- Creek & Spot Bay Primary School
- West End Primary School
- Layman E. Scott Sr. High School
External links
- Cayman Brac's website
- Cayman Brac's 360° Virtual Tours
- Attractions, photographs and much more information on Cayman Brac
- pictures and a brief bit of history regarding a unique form of crochet that developed on Cayman Brac
- 2005 Photo of the Teignmouth Electron on Cayman Brac
- 2005 Photo of the Teignmouth Electron on Cayman Brac
- The Teignmouth Electron is at coordinates 19°41′10.7"N 79°52′37.9"W
