Caribbean Tales - The Bahamas - Inagua

Inagua
Inagua is an anagram for the herbivorous animal common to its shores: the iguana. Lying the farthest south in The Bahamas, it covers 645 sq. miles and comprises the islands of Great and Little Inagua. 40 x 20 miles at widest points. 321 miles southeast of Nassau; the southernmost tip of The Bahamas. The third largest island in The Bahamas. The terrain is wild and desolate; the climate desert-like. Great Inagua is synonymous with pink flamingos and also Great Inagua provides a treasure of a different kind: salt, a critical staple in the days before refrigeration. Sailing vessels called here regularly to purchase the commodity, and the settlement of Matthew Town developed into quite a prosperous trading post. Inagua's environment is ideal for salt production. The weather is exceptionally dry and hot; the land is low and for the most part flat, harsh, stark, and surreal. There are more cacti on Inagua than anywhere else in The Bahamas, the salt-soaked earth making it impossible for most other plants to survive. Miles of dazzling salt beds stretch toward the horizon, creating a brilliant world, desolate and impressive.
Little Inagua is just five miles to the north. It covers thirty square miles and is completely uninhabited except for herds of wild donkeys and goats (descendants of stock introduced by the French) and a wide variety of bird life, including a rare species of heron. Little Inagua will probably remain safe and secure from human intrusion, because of a vast protective reef apron that prevents boats from coming too close.