Hopping Aboard a Mail Boat to the Out Islands: Delivering goats, chickens, hardware, and food staples along with the mail, Bahamian mail boats greatly improve the quality of life for the scattered communities of the Out Islands. You can book passage on one to at least 17 different remote islands. All 30 boats leave from Nassau, and round trip takes a full day. For more information, call The Bahamas Tourist Office at tel. 800/224-2627 or the dock master at the Nassau piers at tel. 242/393-1064.

Visiting a Loyalist Town: About a half dozen Loyalist towns are scattered throughout The Bahamas. Each one was founded under difficult circumstances by disgruntled British colonists who did not cheer U.S. independence. Clapboard-sided houses resemble the saltbox cottages of New England, except for the bougainvillea climbing up the porch trellises. Life is gentle here, detached from the outside world, and rather charmingly old-fashioned. Suitable choices include Harbour Island, Spanish Wells, George Town, or Marsh Harbour.

Sea Kayaking (the Exumas): Modern sea kayaks are so small they let you experience the movement of the sea up close and personal. Since 1976, several tour operators have led kayak expeditions around the 365 islands and cays of the Exumas. Some tours feature a week of kayaking and camping on remote islands. For more information, contact Ecosummer Expeditions, 1516 Duranleau St., Vancouver, BC, Canada V6H 3S4 (tel. 800/465-8884).

Diving the Wall off Grand Turk (Turks and Caicos Islands): Some divers have compared this experience to jumping off a cliff top in the Swiss Alps. Only 300 yards from the shoreline of Grand Turk, the waters suddenly drop to uncharted depths of more than 7,000 feet below sea level. Only experienced divers should attempt this. Along the descent, you'll see colonies of black coral, rare forms of anemone, purple sponges, stunning gorgonia, endless forms of coral, and thousands of fish (with different species at different depths).