Photos by Nicola Lugo; Captions by Peter Mendia

“This place got destroyed by two hurricanes a [few years back],” explained South Florida surf photographer and longtime Bahamas traveler, Nicola Lugo, about this island that we were, quite frankly, reluctant if not downright squeamish about exposing to the world. Until we heard the real story.

“Supposedly, after that storm most of the families and younger people left,” he continued. “Now there’s just abandoned houses and cars, and a small community of locals. The island is really in desperate need of some kind of income, so those locals [proposed] this surf camp to try and start up tourism. But there’s not one local surfer on the island. That’s why they called us in — to blow it up and bring the spotlight.”

We won’t provide this island’s name, or even vague coordinates. We’ll leave that to the people who live here, so they may take control of their own growth. But we will allow Peter to talk us through its unveiling, before this place becomes a thing. God willing.

View: Bahamas Forecast

Nearby: Waterways Dominican Republic Surf Tour