OFF THE BEATEN PATH KIMCHA VILLAGE
Wetlands
By David Newlands Photographs courtesy of David Newlands
Turks and Caicos Islands are one of the many destinations serviced by Bahamasair. Visit Bahamasair.com to book your next flight.
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Kimcha Village Birds
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up and away
magine this: You find yourself on a trail—to your left, the vibrant blues and greens of the wetlands stretch as far as your eye can see; to your right, dunes of white sand and clusters of trees offer their shade. Just beyond the trees, you can see an undisturbed beach, and the view of beautiful turquoise sea. Welcome to Kimcha Village, where nature is calling. Will you answer? Located on Providenciales, you would be forgiven for not realizing that you were on the most developed island in the Turks and Caicos. Sheltered in the farthest western reaches of the North Shore, it is unspoiled by the chaos of most of the island, as it is miles from the bustle of Grace Bay. Where the main road ends, visitors will venture onto a coastal dirt road that guides you towards your final destination. After a few minutes of driving, you realize that the Providenciales you knew ended where the tarmac stopped. The homes and storefronts have been replaced by Casuarina and Sea Grape trees, and where you would have seen people, you instead see birds of every shape and colour. The sound of traffic and car horns has been replaced with the sound of crashing waves on the shore. You are greeted by a gate with a hand-painted sign, which reads “Welcome to Kimcha Village”. You finally made it. Built in the wetlands of Wheeland, Kimcha Village is dotted with several large ponds, and offers winding trails, a beautiful shoreline, and privacy and seclusion unlike anything that can be found elsewhere on the island. Kimcha Village was not always a beautiful nature preserve. Originally, the site was an undeveloped plot of Crown land that was used for dumping and a quarry for sand. But as fate would have it, the owners of Kimcha Village, Charmaine and Kimmit, stumbled across the site when looking for a place to picnic. They
