 Andros
is the largest island in The Bahamas, featuring a large creek
system mysterious,
mangrove-choked, bays,
bights and inlets
. Andros is also the least explored,
which means that you'll be sharing space with more terns and
whistling tree ducks than humans--and maybe even a chickcharnie or
two, those mischievous mythical inhabitants that are exclusive to
this island.
Reputed to be elfin creatures with
three fingers, three toes, and red eyes, chickcharnies bring
lifelong good luck to anyone lucky enough to see one. Andros even
has its own "Loch Ness Monster," a dragon-like sea
monster called the Lusca.
The island was called "La
Isla del Espiritu Santo" (the island of the Holy Spirit) by
the Spaniards.
As people began to inhabit Andros,
setttlements such as Staniard Creek, Nichols Creek and Mastic
Point arose as the first communities. Once these settlements
became overcrowded, people began to migrate to other areas of the
island such as Red Bay and Fresh Creek. At first, the
settlers attempted to farm the land of Andros, but being mostly
limestone, the lack of fertile soil led them to other forms of
trade.
The people discovered trades such
as sponging, fishing, basket weaving, woodcarving and fabric
crafting which became a unique aspect of their culture. The
community of Red Bay is an excellent example of the culture that
thrives on Andros.
Just off the sandy white beaches of
Red Bay, natives spend the day on the ocean harvesting sponges to
bring back to shore. Here the sponges go through a
distinctive process of drying and cleaning to prepare them to be
sold all over the world. Sponge finishing is one of the most
important forms of income.
Andros is home to
the second-largest
reef in the Western Hemisphere, popular with divers for its blue
holes & some of the deepest cave diving expeditions in the
world is located here. In the inland waterways, there are huge
schools of bonefish-making this an ideal fishing location.
Andros Bahamas has more to offer than any other fishing
area (the reef runs for about 170 miles) in this hemisphere due to
the vast fishable flats located here (either by wading or by
boat).
Andros is considered the Bonefishing Capital of
the World where anglers from around the world pit there skills
against the wily bonefish, and Andros flats are world-renowned for
the numbers of bonefish as well as trophy-sized bonefish. Many of
the flats have been found to contain large schools of bonefish
weighing in at around 3-5 pounds.
The snorkeling and scuba diving is
good, bird watching is fabulous, and Kalik Gold is the beer of
choice. The operative word for Andros is casual.
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