The Cayman Islands consist of three islands Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and
Little Cayman, situated in the Western Caribbean, about 150 miles south of
Cuba, 480 miles south of Miami, Florida, and 180 miles northwest of
Jamaica. George Town, the capital of the Cayman Islands, is on the
western shore of Grand Cayman.
Geographically, the Cayman Islands is part of the Cayman Ridge, which
extends westward from Cuba to the Misteriosa Bank near Belize. The Cayman
Trench, the deepest part of the Caribbean at a depth of over four miles,
separates the three small islands from Jamaica.
Grand Cayman, the largest of the three
islands, is approximately 22 miles long with an average width of four
miles; 8 miles at its widest point, reaching a maximum elevation at East
End of 60 feet above sea level.
Of its total area of about 78 square miles, almost half is wetland. The
most striking feature is the shallow, reef-protected lagoon, the North
Sound, which has an area of about 35 square miles.
Cayman Brac island lies about 89 miles
northeast of Grand Cayman. It is about 12 miles long, with an average
width of 1¼ miles. Its terrain is the most spectacular of the three
islands. The Bluff, a massive central limestone outcrop, rises steadily
along the length of the island up to 140 ft. above the sea at the eastern
end.
Little
Cayman lies five miles west of Cayman Brac and is approximately ten
miles long with an average width of just over a mile. The island is
low-lying, with a few areas on the north shore rising to 40 ft. above sea
level.
Together, the islands have a land area of about 100 square miles. There
are no rivers on any of the islands, but there are large areas of
luxuriant vegetation. The coasts are largely protected by offshore reefs
and in many places by a mangrove fringe that often extends into inland
swamps that play a key role in the islands' ecology.
Almost 2,000 acres of dry forests and mangrove
wetland are protected by The National Trust for the Cayman Islands. An internationally acclaimed system of marine
parks is managed by the Department of Environment.
Cayman Islands Geography Information:
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Location:
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Caribbean, island group in
Caribbean Sea, nearly one-half of the way from Cuba to Honduras |
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Geographic coordinates:
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19 30 N, 80 30 W
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Map references:
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Central America and the
Caribbean |
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Area:
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total: 262 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 262 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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1.5 times the size of
Washington, DC |
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Land boundaries:
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0 km
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Coastline:
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160 km
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Maritime claims:
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exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
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Climate:
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tropical marine; warm, rainy
summers (May to October) and cool, relatively dry winters (November to
April) |
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Terrain:
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low-lying limestone base
surrounded by coral reefs |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: The Bluff 43 m |
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Natural resources:
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fish, climate and beaches
that foster tourism |
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Land use:
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arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (1998 est.) |
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Irrigated land:
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NA sq km
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Natural hazards:
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hurricanes (July to November)
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Environment - current issues:
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no natural fresh water
resources; drinking water supplies must be met by rainwater catchments
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Geography - note:
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important location between
Cuba and Central America |
