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You’ve likely heard the expression “When pigs fly!” right? Well, it’s a good thing “swim” was not the word choice. If that was the case, an awful lot of people would be SOL if they had said they wouldn’t do something or that something couldn’t happen until pigs swam.
I learned about the swimming pigs of the Exumas while watching Hoda and Kathie Lee. They were in the Bahamas a while back and one of the unique experiences they covered were the swimming pigs.
THE EXUMAS
The two biggest islands are Great Exuma and Little Exuma, but the Exumas consist of 365 islands and cays. It was also the location of two James Bond films: Thunderball and Never Say Never Again.
The area’s primary industry is farming and fishing, but it has had a diverse history. It has been everything from a salt mining colony and cotton-producing colony to a haven for pirates.
THINGS TO DO
There is a ton of things to do in the Exumas, especially for eco-tourists and sun and water-worshippers.
There are no shortage of beaches. The ones that sound most intriguing to me are Hamburger Beach/Volleyball Beach and Shroud Cay. Apparently the place you want to eat at on Hamburger Beach (after you’ve worked up a hunger playing volleyball?) is Dora’s Conch and Hamburger Stand on Hamburger Beach. Shroud Cay is a white sand beach surrounded by mangroves with Camp Driftwood overlooking it from a hill. There’s also a natural whirlpool on this beach.
Snorkeling, diving, boating and sailing, kayaking, bird watching, cycling, even dancing…all can be enjoyed in the Exumas.
And, of course, there are the swimming pigs.
If swimming with pigs takes your fancy then such delights are possible. Guests staying at Royal Plantation Island, at Fowl Cay can take a boat out to Big Major Cay and head to the southernmost beach – Pig Beach. From mainland Exuma there are boat excursions, for example: Four C’s Adventure – the Four C’s stops at a variety of cays and sandbars, for example at Guana Cay you can feed the local colony of Iguanas … only grapes, no nasty high fat foods, then sail to Thunderball Grotto for snorkeling the crystalline waters featured in the James Bond film Thunderball, from when the grotto earned its name.
The cruise stops for lunch at Staniel Cay, close by on Big Majors Cay are the swimming pigs, proving that there’s more than one way to make a pig of yourself.
~From The Exumas on The Islands of the Bahamas.
I would love to do the tour. Feed grapes to iguanas and see pigs swim? Better yet, get in the water with them and put my PlaySport to more use. Oh yeah, this is for sure on the travel list now.
I was hoping to do this during the Halloween cruise, but I won’t have enough time. Swimming with pigs will have to wait until another trip to the Bahamas. One that won’t have me on a somewhat strict schedule.
DARK TOURISM IN THE EXUMAS
It’s not quite haunted travel, but I would classify the Hermitage and Rolle Town tombs, among the cultural sites in the Exumas, as haunt jaunts material.
The Hermitage Tombs have grave sites belonging to the Ferguson family and date from the late 1700s to the mid-1800s. There’s also an unmarked grave some believe may belong to a slave.
The Rolle Town Tombs belong to the McKay family. There are three of them, one for Ann McKay, her husband Alexander McKay and their infant child.
Courtney Mroch is a globe-trotting restless spirit who’s both possessed by wanderlust and the spirit of adventure, and obsessed with true crime, horror, the paranormal, and weird days. Perhaps it has something to do with her genes? She is related to occult royalty, after all. Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo practitioner of New Orleans, is one of her ancestors. (Yes, really! As explained here.) That could also explain her infatuation with skeletons.
Speaking of mystical, to learn how Courtney channeled her battle with cancer to conjure up this site, check out HJ’s Origin Story.
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Swimming pigs is all new to me too. Wonder what they think when they get a mouthful of salt water.
I visited the Exumas years ago when pregnant with my first. Enjoyed great biking, the beaches and delicious – even memorable conch fritters.
How cute! Everyone knows pigs are clever, and why shouldn’t they be able to fly…. I mean, swim.
Oh wow! I would love to go swim with the piggies – I’d like it a lot better than swimming with the fishes! 😉
Growing up on a farm, I know pigs are pretty smart and can be very sweet animals too. We treated our farm animals like family members. I’ve got pics of my grandma rocking a young pig to sleep in our living room, me taking our pig LuLu-Bell for walks around the neighborhood on a leash as you would a dog. I never once thought to see if she’d like to go swimming with me! hahaAnd Hamburger Beach – that sounds right up my almost-4-year-old neighbor kid’s alley. He loves hamburgers! LOL
What a fun idea for a story! I’ve never heard of swimming pigs before!
I hadn’t either, Michael, but now I sure want to go see them!
DITTO, Kimberley! Well, sort of. I like swimming with fishies too. I’ve heard pigs are smart. My dad said he had a pig growing up named Pete. LuLu-Bell is a HILARIOUS! Love it. Do you have any pics of you walking her? I bet that’s cute!
I wondered the same thing about the salt water, Leigh! I wonder if it makes their tummies upset at all? Conch fritters…yum! We used to eat those a lot when we lived in Florida. Neat you’ve been to the Exumas too. And so has your first in a way!
Well, I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes:)And yes…conch fritters are the best…
Those pigs are adorable! I would love to see them swim and swim with them 🙂 I have never heard of this before so I really appreciate you sharing.
Of course, when I said “swimming with the fishes”, I was referring to the idiom meaning being dead, murdered. 😉 Okay, which boyfriend was it that made me watch mobster movies with him. LOL
What a great place to visit! Those pigs are too adorable. This is the kind of offbeat attraction we would love to do. That video was awesome! Swimming with the pigs would make such cool Christmas cards that will have everyone talking and smiling =)
Mary, Christmas cards? Oh why didn’t I think of that?! Holy smokes what a great idea. I will now be on the lookout for other crazy Christmas card photo opps. Thx!
Ha Ha! I wondered if that’s the reference you were making, Kimberley. I almost left a different comment but then I thought, “What if that’s not what she meant?” Shoulda known it was!
Aren’t they too cute, Debbie? I was smitten when I saw it too so I knew I had to write about it.
And D.J.- yep. I’m with you. If someone had told me I wouldn’t have been half as impressed as after seeing it. And now I’m craving conch fritters since everyone keeps talking about them.. lol
Swimming with the pigs looks like fun, as long as nobody mistakes me for one of them. I’m just as likely as they are to follow a boat out to see if somebody’s throwing me food.
Fantastic post. Definitely a bucket list add.
Haha I never would have thought of pigs swimming, although I guess that makes perfect sense! Definitely a unique experience.
Swimming pigs are awesome!
ROFL, Steve! I’m with you…where there’s food, you’ll find me. GREAT comment. Thanks for the chuckle!
Megan & Scott: Yes, you both said it: unique and awesome. Thanks for the comments!
There isn’t a lot of novelty left out there but this one definitely ticks the box!
Really charming 🙂
That would be a fun place for travelling with kids, too.
Hey Robin! Novel…that is a great word for it.
And Sophie, you are so right. Kids would get a HUGE kick out of seeing swimming pigs I bet. The kid in me sure would!
I would totally be up for playing with swimming pigs as well – what a unique experience!
I know pigs like mud. I guess this is kinda like mud, right? Hahahaha, very funny and cute!!!