A few days ago, I was with my family on mainland Abaco, driving to
Crown Point, the northernmost town in the Abacos. We stopped in
Coopers Town, which happens to be the hometown of the Prime Minister.
Coopers Town is a lovely place of about 900; it is small, it is
colorful, it is clean and it hangs along a beachless stretch of the
Abaco sea. We stopped the car when I saw something strange.
I approached it as unassuming as possible. A loggerhead sea turtle,
quite dead, its shell was removed. Killing sea turtles is legal in the
Bahamas (all but the Hawksbill), even though sea turtles are protected
nearly universally throughout the rest of the world. In fact, not only
is it legal, on mainland Abaco, evidence of sea turtle slaughter is
everywhere. In Sandy Point and Marsh Harbour, we were offered sea
turtle soup. In Treasure Cay, a man was displaying a green turtle
shell for three hundred dollars. In Coopers Town, their carcasses lay
out in the open.
Continue Reading
Posted by Erik Gauger in
Notes From the Road
on 04 May 2008
Filed in
Caribbean
,
Bahamas
Recently Featured Travel Blogs
Nomadic Matt
Matt turned nomadic halfway through 2006 and has been on the road ever since. He's planning trips through Asia, Australia, New Zealand and South America, but anything can happen: he's a nomad, after all. (Interview with Matt)
Tea, Sugar, a Dream
Debby's blog recounts her experiences on the road, from solo trips in Europe, around the Baltic Sea, and up and down Vietnam and Alaska, to journeys with friends and family in Australia, New Zealand, and Iceland.
Taste the Tuna Fish Ice Cream
Phil Goldman is a self-described "jack of no trades" on a quest for the ordinary, bizarre, improbable, implausible, unthinkable, or disgusting, neatly summed up by his credo: Taste the Tuna Fish Ice Cream.
Travelling Tails
In May 2008, the Family Smudge sold their house, quit their job and took to the roads of Europe with a camper. (Interview with Alice Smudge)
The World By Road
Steve Shoppman, Steve Bouey, and a changing crew of extras are on an epic road trip from New Zealand to New York, living out their dreams while raising awareness of the world's diversity. (Interview with Steve Shoppman)
View all Featured Blogs
