Part Four - The Conclusion of the
2009 Beach Walk

Our long beach walk was definitely tiring.  We worked up quite an appetite.  Having finished about two-thirds of our journey, the Dirty Dozen was more than ready to have lunch at the Royal Palms, a popular outdoor restaurant that does a thriving business with the cruise crowd. 

The Royal Palms is located about two miles from the ship.  Many people from the cruise ship taxi over to the Royal Palms, but not us.  I imagine we were the only ones from our cruise ship to taxi PAST the Royal Palms and walk back to get our lunch. 

Once we reached the Royal Palms, I started to relax a little.  The Royal Palms had marked the start of my solo journey the year before.  Back in 2008, I had covered this distance in an hour.  This year I remember having a good two and a half hours remaining to get back to the ship.

As a result, we took our time eating lunch and were able to complete our journey without feeling the sense of urgency that had terrified me the year before.

As you can see, the Royal Palms does a thriving business.
Sad to say, four members of our group decided to call it a day here.
Our group was down to eight. 
 

Here Sam and Marla prepare to leave together.  Thanks to his white hat, white shirt, and height, Sam was a welcome landmark all day long whenever I lost sight of the group.
 

Seagull Condominiums 1
 

Seagull Condominiums 2
 

Seagull Condominiums 3.  Those Seagulls sure own a lot of property
but even they don't come to visit.
 

Private property.  I found those burglar bars to be very disconcerting.
This place was so yuck, I couldn't imagine anyone bothering to rob it.
 

On the beach, our group began to pass an entire series of private residences that didn't seem all that valuable.  Little did we know that much of the expensive real estate was hidden just beyond our sight.  They were built on those 'watery tongues' I talked about.

 Except that in the Caymans, those 'tongues' are called 'canals'.
Duh. Of course.  Why didn't I think of that name?
These canals are located right behind Seven Mile Beach.
They empty into the North Sound.  This place is a little Venice.
 

Like many places in this stretch, this condo was devoid of foliage out
 in front. No name, but it might have been the Cayman Sands.
 

I believe this is the Laguna Del Mar.  It is very plain on the outside,
but I read that it has a completely enclosed lagoon right behind it.

Regal Beach Club.
 

The Marriott.  It was attractive, but lacked the splendor of
the Ritz-Carlton and the Westin
 

If you look closely at the sign, you will see 'Marriott'
 

The Marriott featured a lovely outdoor restaurant.
 

You can see the "Lagoon" behind Laguna del  mar.
 

A work in progress next to the Marriott. When I was here a year ago
this place was had just begun construction. I would have thought it
would be completed by now.  Comfort Inn Suites?
 

Tamarind Bay
 

Tamarind Bay
 

Turtle Beach Villas (?)

Plantation Village was the only condo to advertise I saw all day. Tacky.
 

Crescent Point

This is a picture of Peggy and Kevin approaching the
mysterious "Beach Hog" property
 

This mysterious property comes so close to the water's edge that there is only about 5 feet of separation between the wall and the sea.
 

I took this Google Earth snapshot of the mysterious property back
in 2008.  Unfortunately there was a cloud cover when I went
back to take another look via Google Earth this year.
 

Here Wendy is stepping carefully.  Not much crawl space!
This place is surrounded by thick stone walls on either side. 
The narrow walkway btw the estate and the sea is
protected by a chain link fence and thick foliage.
 

Despite my intense curiosity about this place, I didn't learn much.
I took a picture of a small gap in the foliage. No people.
This place clearly values its privacy.  I don't know whether it is a nudist colony or a religious retreat or what, but I want to know!

The mysterious Beach Hog property had cut off our view of the ship.
We were all quite relieved to see it reappear on the other side.
 

I have no idea what the name is. 

Treasure Island
 

The Grandview Condominiums
 

As you can see, the mysterious Beach Hog property is shrouded by a cloud cover.  Considering the lengths this place goes to hide its activities, maybe they paid Google Earth to add this cloud.
 

Not much to see in the next property lot

I looked everywhere for a name but came up empty. 
It might be the Georgetown Villas.  Whatever its name,
I thought this was one of the best landscaped condos.
 

This was the last of the attractive condominiums.  I knew from memory that there wasn't much left to see.  We were approaching the end.
 

For a change, I was out in front of the group. 
We are on the home stretch now. 

Grape Tree Villas
Don't any of these condos have any guests at all?

The Conquest didn't seem quite so far away any more. 
Several times I idly wondered if I could swim that far.
 

Coco Plum Villas

The once lovely beach had disappeared.  There were now more rocks
than sand.  Plus there was a lot of ugly black lava rock
 

Poinsettia

Next we were faced with a large undeveloped field to our left.
However there was beach left, so we didn't bother to enter this area.
 

The end of the Beach Walk was this lovely pavilion up ahead
known as The Wharf

The Wharf was the final point of our Beach Walk.
 

The beach walk part of our trip covered five and a half miles.

The Wharf marked the end of the Fourth and final leg of our Beach walk. 
However, we weren't done yet.  Now we had to walk the city sidewalks of Georgetown to get back to our ship.  One more mile to go.

As you can see, our Dirty Dozen dwindled to eight survivors.  Hats off to our troopers!
They were bedraggled, but happy.  Well, kind of happy.  Some of those people were too tired to offer much of a smile.  Let's face it, we were really pooped!
 

At the Wharf the year before, I had walked across the building.  This year we discovered
a much easier route to the street.
 

Peggy and Sam take the secret passage to the street.
 

The front side of The Wharf
 

Back in 2008, I had crossed behind the Wharf and this Harbor View condo as well. Last year after I walked pass the Harbor View,
there was no beach left. 

  The first landmark after The Wharf and Harbor View is
Kentucky Fried Chicken.  Turn right and head to the ship.
 

As we walked the sidewalk along West Bay Road, we immediately passed a cemetery on the right
 

Next we came to an Esso Station on the corner of Eastern Avenue and West Bay Road.  Stay to the right
 

Trisha's Rose Shop is conveniently located near the cemetery
 

Who could resist a place as attractive as this? 
 

A lovely magenta-roofed professional building on our left
 

It was very comforting to see our massive ship looming in the distance. 
Seeing the ship meant two important things -
we weren't lost and the ship had not left yet.

Here is a picture of a tender boat shuffling passengers back to the Conquest.  The ship is simply too big to anchor next to the pier, so smaller boats serve as ferries for the passengers to and from.
 

As usual, I am pulling up the rear taking pictures.  The teal Strathvale House up ahead is a handy landmark. 
Sam and Wendy were nice enough to walk slowly so I wouldn't be completely alone.  I suspect Marla told them to keep an eye on me.

That is the Strathvale House on the left.  Further up ahead is a shiny blue building known as The Harbour Centre, another useful landmark
 

The Harbour Centre should be your main landmark
You can see it from a long way away and it is close to the end point
 

Harbour Centre will be on your left
 

Hammerhead's Bar will be on your right
 

Waterfront Centre will be on your left
 

Shopping area on your right. That opening leads to the Cruise Terminal

The Fifth and final leg added one more mile to our lengthy trip. 

Using Google Earth as my guide and marking Cemetery Beach as our starting point, I am fairly certain our Beach Walk was 4.5 miles long.  Adding the city walk, our overall trek was 5.5 miles.

If we add the extra Road to Hell as a future starting point, it would stretch our entire walk to six miles total.  One thing to keep in mind is that five miles in the beach sand is a much tougher walk than on a flat surface.  Don't forget to add in the sun and the heat. 

My conclusion is that Seven Mile Beach is a serious walk and definitely not one for sissies.  If you walk the full length, consider yourself to be a conditioned athlete.

In the future I would suggest to look for a nearby convenience store in the morning near the cruise terminal.  Take a backpack and stock up on drinks and munchies.  That would allow you to bypass any food service on the beach that you consider excessively expensive or crowded (who wants to wait?) 

I remember feeling quite overcharged by the taxi.  I would wait for a public bus instead.  You might save up to $8.  Any money saved could then be reinvested in a relaxing dinner at one of the attractive upscale beach-side restaurants such as the Beach Suites.  The Beach Suites actually came before the tourist trap Royal Palms which would put it closer to lunch time.

Unfortunately, I have no feel for the overall amount of time.  I can only say that if you are on a cruise ship's allotment of time, you should have enough time to get it done.  We made it back with time to spare, so you should too.

The final question is this: Would I do it again?   Absolutely. 

I have taken the walk twice and can't wait to do it again over Labor Day in 2011.  This is not only one of the most beautiful beaches in the entire Caribbean, Seven Mile is clean, safe, and easily accessible. 

There are few more iconic things about a cruise trip than taking a long walk on the beach.  The exercise is good for you and there is so much to see!   Best of all, it's completely free. 

Whether your walk is a romantic stroll with your lover or an adventure with a group of friends, it is pretty hard to beat the satisfaction that comes from a day well spent in such a beautiful setting as Seven Mile Beach.