The Atlantic Ocean and The Caribbean Sea at Eleuthera

Eleuthera is one of several islands that lies within the archipelago in The Bahamas, about 80 km east of the capital city Nassau. It is long – about 180 km – and thin - only about 1.6 km wide in places. The light blue waters of the shallow Caribbean Sea on one side of the island stand out in stark contrast to the deep blue of the Atlantic Ocean thousands of feet in depth. One of the best places to see this extraordinary juxtaposition is at the Glass Window Bridge.

The Glass Window Bridge is about two miles east of Upper Bogue and joins Gregory Town and Lower Bogue at the narrowest point on the island. It is one of the few places on earth where you can compare the rich blue waters of the Atlantic Ocean on one side of the road and the calm turquoise-green waters of the Exuma Sound (Caribbean Sea) on the other side, separated by a strip of rock just 30 feet wide.


Over the natural rock bridge, a concrete bridge has been built that connects the northern and southern points of Eleuthera by a paved road. The Glass Window Bridge is one of the most visited places in the island.

For centuries, there was a natural stone bridge connection between north and south Eleuthera. Then in the 1940's, several hurricanes combined to destroy the land bridge and the concrete bridge was built as replacement. For decades, this bridge was kept functional by periodic repairs, but in 1992 and 1999 hurricane caused significant damage to the bridge. After the 1999 Hurricane Floyd, practically nothing of the original Glass Window Bridge remained. Although the bridge was repaired and Queen's Highway re-connected within a few months, the geography of Eleuthera was changed forever. Even after a decade, workers stay busy reinforcing the shoreline in order to re-pave the severely eroded asphalt.

One should take great care when visiting the Glass Window Bridge and the surrounding cliff areas. Rogue waves have been known to arrive unexpectedly and wash over the bridge and nearby cliffs. Since there are no immediate reefs along the ocean side to break up these rogue waves as they arrive, the waves can hit with great force and have been known to not only wash people out into the ocean, but vehicles as well.

Land is undergoing continuous erosion from the force of water that pounds from towering heights. On the left, approaching the bridge from the south, is a blow hole that spews water fantastically high, hinting at the power of the water beneath.

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Beachy Head — Suicide Rock

Beachy Head is a chalk headland in Southern England, close to the town of Eastbourne in the county of East Sussex, immediately east of the Seven Sisters. Beachy Head is located within the administrative area of the Eastbourne Borough Council which owns the land. The cliff there is the highest chalk sea cliff in Britain, rising to 162 m (530 ft) above sea level. The peak allows views of the south east coast from Dungeness to the east, to Selsey Bill in the west. Its height has also made it one of the most notorious suicide spots in the world.

Waves gradually erode the rock, which is why there are small avalanches of stones. Large landslides are less common. The last major cliff collapse occurred in 2001, due to strong spring rains.

Suicide spot

There are an estimated 20 deaths a year at Beachy Head. The Beachy Head Chaplaincy Team conducts regular day and evening patrols of the area in attempts to locate and stop potential jumpers. Workers at the pub and taxi drivers are also on the look-out for potential victims, and there are posted signs with the telephone number of Samaritans urging potential jumpers to call them. Deaths at the site are well-covered by the media; Ross Hardy, the founder of the chaplaincy team, said this encouraged people to come and jump off. Worldwide, the landmark’s suicide rate is surpassed only by the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and the Aokigahara Woods in Japan, according to Thomas Meaney of The Wall Street Journal.

After a steady increase in deaths between 2002 and 2005, in 2006 there were only seven fatalities, a marked decrease. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (whose Coastguard Rescue Teams are responsible for the rescue of injured jumpers and the recovery of the deceased) attributed the reduction to the work of the Chaplaincy Team and good coverage of services by local media. In 2008 at least 26 people died at the site.Between 1965 and 1979, there were 124 deaths at the location. Of these, S J Surtees wrote that 115 were "almost certainly" suicides (although a coroner's verdict of suicide was recorded in only 58), and that 61 percent of the victims were from outside East Sussex. The earliest reports of deaths come from the 7th century. wiki

Beachy Head suicide phone booth

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