Salt Island

Very few people visit Salt Island, (pop: 20), there are no ferries and access is only by private boat. There are two salt ponds from which salt is gathered by two ageing residents. A bag of salt is still sent to the British monarch every year as rent for the island, the remainder is sold to visitors and local restaurants.

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The two old men who live there welcome visitors and will show you the salt forming and packing process. They have a hut from which they sell conch shells and shell necklaces. There is a small settlement on the north side as well as a reef-protected lagoon on the east shore. The main reason people come here is for a rest stop between dives. The British mail ship Rhone, a 310-ft steamer, sank off Salt Island in a hurricane in 1867 and the site was used in the film The Deep. Those who perished were buried on Salt Island. The wreck is still almost intact in 20-80 ft of water and is very impressive. There are moorings provided at Lee Bay, just north of the Rhone, for those diving the wreck, to minimize anchor damage. The dive is usually divided between the bow section and the stern section; in the former you can swim through the hull at a depth of about 70 ft, be prepared for darkness. In calm weather it is possible to snorkel part of it.

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