Plant of the Month: In the LIME light, that's the KEY!

Key Limes are an island favorite and they grow right here on the Silver Sand's grounds. We have one beautiful, fruitful tree, the KEY is finding it on the property! The tree is in the gardens right outside of #35, with your back to the sliding door, walk straight ahead until you hit the main patch of garden and keep your eyes out for those little sweet treats.

Key Limes start out green when they are on the tree, and ripen to a nice lime green/yellow color. They can be harvested right off the tree or the ripe yellow ones can be picked up off the ground.




Here are some vacation friendly key lime recipe suggestions:

Limeade:

• 10 key limes, plus a few for garnish
• 1/2 cup sugar or honey, add more to taste

Instructions

1. Roll the limes back and forth over the counter with the palm of your hand. Cut limes in half, and juice them by hand or with a juicer; reserve rinds. (You should have about 1/2 cup juice.) Transfer juice and rinds to a large pitcher.
2. Bring 1 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add sugar or honey, and stir until dissolved. Pour syrup into the pitcher, and add 4 cups water. Stir until well blended. Add more sugar or honey, if desired. Refrigerate 1 hour. Discard rinds. Serve limeade garnished with lime slices.

Mojito (for adults only):

2 oz. Havana Club 3 Year Old Rum1 oz.
Simple Syrup¾ oz. Lime Juice (1-2 key limes)2 Mint Sprigs4 oz. of Sparkling Waterdash of bitters

Instructions: In a tall glass, add 2 teaspoons of sugar, the juice of half a lime, 2 mint sprigs and 4 oz. of sparkling water. Muddle gently. Add 2 oz. of Havana Club 3 Year Old Rum and the ice cubes. Stir well. Finish with a dash of bitters.

Key Lime Pie:

5 egg yoks, beaten
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup key lime juice
1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. Combine the egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk and lime juice. Mix well. Pour into unbaked graham cracker shell.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Allow to cool. Top with whipped topping and garnish with lime slices if desired.

Photos by, Heather Holt Photography

Summer Splash!

Summer days in Cayman are calm, relaxing and cheap! Check out the Silver Sands website for our Special Summer Splash prices and pull up a chair and join us!

Silver Sand's Tennis Court: Playing in Style

The tennis courts here at Silver Sands just got revamped not too long ago and are smooth playing for the whole family! The courts are artificial turf with sand, there are new nets and even seats for spectators. Come and enjoy yet another fun feature on our grounds.

For those that are more serious tennis players there is the Cayman Islands Tennis Club in South Sound. There you can always see who might be up for a match!

Photos by Heather Holt Photography

Red, White and Blue!

Happy 4th of July to all our visitors, owners and neighbors to the north! We hope to see you at Silver Sands soon so you can enjoy all of the Cayman reds, whites and blues!

Plants of the Month: The Desert Rose, Bougainvillea & Oleander

This month we are featuring the Pink Trio! These three pink plants are some of the most colorful plants on the grounds, and they are all quite different. See if you can identify them in the Silver Sand's lush gardens.

If you are interested in doing a day trip to see more of Cayman's natural flora and fauna and get informed on Cayman's natural vegetation, check out the Queen Elizabeth Botanical Gardens. It is located about half way up Frank Sound road, about a 40 minute drive from Silver Sands, and is a great day trip for the whole family!

Desert Rose: This beautiful plant can be found at the pool in 2 different pots. It is a gorgeous and hearty succulent plant that thrives in direct sunlight, and adds a bright splash of color to our Caribbean blues and garden greens.

Bougainvillea: This traditional tropical bush is very common all around the islands and is a garden favorite for its brightly colored petals. It is also easy to manage and care for and can be grown into a tall bush, small shrub, trained to climb up a trellis and even put into a small pot. The plant is not only pink but yellow, orange, white and more! See if you can pick it out of the Silver Sands grounds.

Oleander: This stunning plant can grow from 6-12 feet tall and wide and is a great garden filler due to its love for warm weather and sunlight. Be careful tho! These enticing blooms might be beautiful but the plant is poisonous to humans and animals if ingested.

Photography by Heather Holt Photography

Floating Your Troubles Away

Here at Silver Sands there is always a warm and watery place to float with a killer view (or a killer whale!). On a typical Cayman day the water is flat, the sand is white and the sky is as blue as can be. You have your choice between the pool or the sea and now the question is which floatie do you choose???

Photography by: Heather Holt Photography

Quick Guide to Fish ID: 10 Favorites

The following quick guide to fish identification will hopefully help you identify not only some of the usual suspects out on the Cayman reefs, but also some of the more elusive favorites as well. This guide is in no particular order and hopefully will help you in your diving and snorkelling adventures here in Grand Cayman. Once you are ready to get out there check out our past post Grand Cayman's Snorkelling Secrets, which should help you to find the very best the island has to offer.

#1 Yellow Tail Snapper - Very common and very friendly this guy can be seen solo or in loose groups around the reef. They tend to be curious and may come close to check you out. 

#2 Nassau Grouper - Cayman's sweetheart, these friendly fish are more like underwater puppies than a fish filet. Unfortunately due to overfishing they are more and more scarce on the Cayman reefs. Everyone wants to help the grouper and not only is the Department of Environment doing its part but you can too. Check out our past post for more information: 

Cayman Grouper Need Our Help and Groupers Galore

#3 Southern Atlantic Sting Ray - These guys are also a favorite among everyone! STING RAY CITY!! Fun for all ages and one of Cayman's only designated Wildlife Interaction Zones, which means you can feed and touch the stingrays. Going to see these animals in the wild is not only a wonderful day out on the boat, but also a cool experience getting close to these beautiful creatures.

#4 Grey Angelfish - These beautiful and common reef swimmers are curious and fun to dive with. You may also see their cousins out there the French Angel and the Queen Angel.

#5 Tarpon - You don't even have to get wet to see these large silvery guys. Sure they swim around the reefs, but they are also fed at various Waterfront Watering Holes such as Rackams. They start to gather around dusk and wait patiently until they are fed the fishy kitchen scraps. In the wild they tend to hide out in caves during the day, coming out at night to hunt around the reefs.

#6 Parrot Fish - These colorful reef dwellers are some of the most common fish you will encounter in Cayman waters. Not only do they swim around the reefs in decent numbers, they are also in the shallows and rubble. There are many different kinds, sizes and colors of parrotfish, however you can easily identify them by their parrot beak like mouth.

#7 Sergeant Major - Another very common reef fish these guys are abundant in Cayman waters. Watch out though, they have become accustomed to humans, some people actually feed them (which is highly frowned upon!!) and that can make them a little too friendly at times!

#8 Mutton Snapper - This species of snapper is a bigger fish seen on the reefs. They are mostly silvery with a hint of red and yellow, and have a black dot on their back side body. They are also very friendly and will tag along with you while you are exploring the underwater world.

#9 Spotted Drumfish - These beauties are very elusive and seldom seen. They tuck themselves into the cracks and holes in the reefs and can only be seen if you have a keen eye. The above pictured drum is a juvenile, characterized by its long stripy fins which it waves gracefully back and forth like a ribbon. Once it is fully grown its fins shrink, it turns black and developes its name sake white spots.

#10 Seahorse - Last but not least, and certainly the most rare of the bunch, these odd shaped swimmers are the favorite of many. They are masters of camouflage and if they do happen to be clinging to something on the reef, chances are you will miss them. 

Photography Credit: Heather Holt Photography