Blue Hills is one of the coolest ‘off the beaten path’ areas in the Turks and Caicos. A 15-minute ride from the heart of Grace Bay, it’s world’s away from the glitz and glamour of Provo’s main strip of hotels, condos and restaurants.

As one of the original settlements on the islands, it still maintains a rustic old world Caribbean charm. Most everything you need to see or do is located right along the scenic seaside road that meanders for about 2-3 miles from the turnoff at Millenium Highway to the junction where you can go one way toward Amanyara or another way to Northwest Point.

Along the way you’ll see some of the original homes built on Provo, old churches and cemeteries, craft markets peddling native made goods, any number of folks set up roadside selling local food, and native sloops skipping across the surf.

Right near the end of the Blue Hills road (past the basketball court and old Texaco station), in an area the locals call Wheeland, Blue Hills entrepreneur Froggie Williams has opened up the most recent addition to the beachfront bar scene in TCI. No sign yet (power still comes from a well placed generator) but Froggie says the joint will be called “Froggie’s on the Da Beach” – that’ll work since his colorful wood structure and sprawling deck rest right on the sands of the Blue Hills beach.

Froggie’s is a nod to the rum shacks of days gone by in the ‘old’ Caribbean. Don’t look for fancy tablecloths or high priced menus. Cold beer out of an iced down cooler, local Rum, and fresh fish on the grill are the fare here. It’s a great place to catch up on local gossip, and just enjoy the sun and cool breezes that whisk across Grace Bay to provide Blue Hill’s with its ‘natural air conditioning’ all year round.

Forggie plans to move his other business – an ATV rental and touring services – to the bar’s locations. His ATV tours have become a popular way to see a truly undiscovered part of the islands.

Make a day of it in Blue Hills. Other notable stops are Horse Eyed Jacks, where full moon parties have been known to last an entire lunar cycle; Da Conch Shack, where you can watch the fine art of conch knocking as you wait for a delicious conch salad; Sailing in Paradise, whose colorful decks reach right out into the waters of Blue Hills; and this writer’s favorite, 3 Queens – the oldest bar in Provo, home of the TCI Conch Festival and where you can always get the latest news, great local food and a lively game of dominoes (ask for Dick and tell him I sent ya).