Only 12,000 people reside on Abaco, an island 100 miles long and two to four miles wide, with dozens of little offshore islands called "cays." The emerald-green water and cays that make up the Abaco Archipelago are distinctly different from anywhere else. Abaco is 180 miles east of South Florida in the northeastern Bahamas, an hour's flight from Fort Lauderdale, Miami or West Palm Beach. Common activities include boating, fishing, beach-combing, diving and snorkeling. Friendly resort staffs and uncrowded, picturesque beaches are also characteristic of Abaco.