NORTH CAT ISLAND:

Untainted by tourism, lovely Cat Island is the sixth-largest island in The Bahamas. The fishhook-shaped island -- some 77km (48 miles) long and 1 to 6.5km (2/3-4 miles) wide -- lies about 209km (130 miles) southeast of Nassau and 523km (325 miles) southeast of Miami. (Don't confuse Cat Island with Cat Cay, a smallish private island near Bimini.)

Cat Island, named after the pirate Arthur Catt (and not wild packs of marauding cats), is located near the Tropic of Cancer, between Eleuthera and Long Island. It has one of the country's most pleasant climates, with temperatures in the high 60s (low 20s Celsius) during the short winters, rising to the mid-80s (low 30s Celsius) in summer, with trade winds making the place even more comfortable. It is also home to some 2,000 residents, among the friendliest in all of The Bahamas.

With its pristine virgin beaches, the island is beautiful to see, yet little-visited enough that it remains relatively inexpensive and untainted.

Many local historians claim that Cat Island residents were the first to see Columbus. Some believe that the explorer had been welcomed here by the peaceful Arawaks. Regardless of whether Columbus stopped here, the island has a rich history of adventurers, slaves, buccaneers, farmers, and visionaries of many nationalities. But even now, Cat Island remains mysterious to some. It's known as a stronghold of unfamiliar-to-most practices such as obeah (West Indian witchcraft) and of having miraculously healing bush medicines.