Berry Islands
Population: 709
Size: 12 Sq. Miles
Highest Point: 80 Ft.
Location: Lat. N25 46' 00” - Long. W 77 51' 30"
Distance from
Nassau: 35 Miles North
Distance from
Bimini: 90 Miles East
The Berry Islands offer two places to clear entry formalities, at Great Harbour Cay and Chub Cay (presently closed for renovations by new owners June 2005).
This chain of 30 small Islands are inhabited by just over 700 people, most of whom live at Bullocks Harbour on Great Harbour Cay, the largest of the Berry Islands.
Located on the edge of the Tongue of the Ocean, the Berry Islands are popular with divers, anglers and yachtsmen. The Berrys, as locals call them, were believed to have been first settled in 1836 when Governor Colebrooke established a settlement of liberated Africans at Great Harbour Cay.
At the southern end of the chain is Chub Cay, which has a semi-private resort. It is located near the Great Bahama bank and the Tongue of the Ocean and is renowned as a sport-fishing resort for yachtsmen. At Great Sturrup Cay, another Island in The Berry’s chain, is a lighthouse built in 1863. Limited services can be found at Chub Cay, Frazer's Hog Cay, Little Harbour and Great Harbour Cay.
Cruise ships stop at Little Sturrup Cay (Royal
Caribbean Cruise Line calls it "Coco Cay") to allow tourists to swim and picnic on the beautiful white sandy beaches there. Between Great Harbour Cay and the Sturrup Cays are a number of privately owned Cays, including Bird Cay, Whale Cay, Frozen and Alder's Cays, Little Harbour Cay and Little Whale Cay. The east and south sides of the Berry Islands can be extremely rough in strong onshore
weather conditions and some
anchorages can be uncomfortable.