Providenciales Webcam – Turquoise Water off Leeward

The Providenciales Webcam looks out from Leeward, the residential district at the eastern end of Provo in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Thick green coastal scrub and feathery casuarina trees fill the bottom of the frame. Beyond them, a sheltered stretch of turquoise water runs right across the picture to a low, tree-lined cay with a thin rim of pale sand along its shore. The top half of the view is open sky, which makes this a good camera for reading the weather: trade-wind clouds drifting in from the east, the hard blue of a dry winter morning, or a squall darkening the channel in the wetter autumn months. The water can shift from pale aqua over the sandy shallows to a deeper blue in the channel as the light and the tide change. The framing has not moved since at least 2023.

About Providenciales

Providenciales, nearly always shortened to Provo, covers 98 square kilometers (38 square miles) and had 23,769 residents at the 2012 census. It is one of the islands of the Turks and Caicos, a British Overseas Territory with a total land area of 616.3 square kilometers (238 square miles). The territory shares the Lucayan Archipelago with the Bahamas, and the nearest Bahamian island, Little Inagua, lies about 48 kilometers (30 miles) from West Caicos. Leeward Highway runs east from Downtown Provo to Leeward, one of the island’s larger communities.

Leeward sits on the edge of Princess Alexandra National Park, a coastal and marine protected area off the northern and eastern coasts of Providenciales. The park takes in Leeward Beach, Grace Bay Beach, the Bight Beach, Bight Reef and Smith’s Reef, along with the iguana sanctuary on Little Water Cay and the wetland islands of Mangrove Cay and Donna Cay.

Little Water Cay, just northeast of Leeward, covers 116.2 acres (47 hectares) and holds about 3,000 Turks and Caicos rock iguanas, an endangered species endemic to the islands. Ospreys, brown pelicans, shorebirds and bananaquits are among the birds on the cay, and southern stingrays are often seen on the sand flats along its south shore. The operator does not say which cay sits on the far side of the water in this view, so this page does not name it. Little Water Cay and Mangrove Cay both lie off this end of Provo.

Weather and Climate in Providenciales

Providenciales has a tropical savanna climate with steady warmth all year. December to March is the coolest stretch, with average highs around 28°C (82°F) and nights near 23°C (73°F), and February and March are the driest months of the year. Winter mornings on the camera tend toward clear skies and bright water. Spring warms gradually, with highs near 29°C (84°F) in April and 30°C (87°F) by May, when the first heavier showers of the year arrive.

Summer is hot and humid. Average highs reach about 32°C (90°F) from July to September and nights stay near 27°C (81°F), though summer temperatures rarely climb past 33°C (91°F). The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June to November, and September to November bring the most rain, so this is when the camera is most likely to catch towering clouds and passing squalls over the channel. October still averages about 31°C (89°F), and November cools to around 30°C (86°F). Winter nights rarely fall below 18°C (64°F).

Things to Do Near Providenciales

Little Water Cay, known locally as Iguana Island, is the obvious trip from Leeward. A boat ride there takes about 15 minutes, and some visitors paddle across by kayak. Boardwalk trails lead through the iguanas’ habitat, and the Turks and Caicos National Trust asks visitors to stay on them and never to feed or touch the animals. West of Leeward, the beaches inside Princess Alexandra National Park run on into Grace Bay, a beach about 8 kilometers (5 miles) long with the island’s resorts along it.

Farther west, Cheshire Hall Plantation stands on a hilltop near Downtown and holds the best-preserved plantation-era ruins on Provo. The Loyalist planter Thomas Stubbs built it in the late 1700s to grow cotton and sisal for export. On the southwest side of the island, Chalk Sound National Park protects a turquoise lagoon about 5 kilometers (3 miles) long, scattered with hundreds of small rocky islands, which suits kayaking and paddleboarding on calm days.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

More island and shallow-water views from the Turks and Caicos, the neighboring Bahamas and the southern Caribbean:

• Villa Renaissance Webcam
• Elbow Cay Webcam
• Sorobon Beach Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Providenciales located?

Providenciales is in the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British Overseas Territory that shares the Lucayan Archipelago with the Bahamas. The camera is at Leeward, on the island’s eastern end, at the far end of Leeward Highway from Downtown Provo.

What can you see on the Providenciales Webcam?

Green coastal scrub and casuarina trees in the foreground, a wide band of turquoise and blue water across the middle, and a low, wooded cay on the far shore, all under a large sky. The view is fixed. It shows no buildings, roads or beach crowds, and no beach up close.

Does the Providenciales Webcam show Grace Bay Beach?

No. Grace Bay lies west of the camera along Provo’s north shore, and its 8 kilometer (5 mile) beach and resort strip are out of view. This camera looks over the quieter water at Leeward, at the eastern end of the same national park.

Does this webcam show Providenciales airport?

No. Providenciales International Airport (PLS) is about 12 kilometers (7.4 miles) west of Leeward, and no runway or aircraft appear in this view.

What is the weather like in Providenciales?

Warm all year. Average highs run from about 28°C (82°F) in winter to 32°C (90°F) in late summer, and nights stay above 22°C (72°F) on average. February and March are the driest months, September to November the wettest, and the Atlantic hurricane season runs from June to November.

Is Providenciales on Grand Turk?

No, they are separate islands. Grand Turk, home of the territory’s capital, Cockburn Town, lies roughly 110 kilometers (70 miles) east-southeast of Leeward across open sea.

How do you get to Iguana Island from Providenciales?

Iguana Island is the local name for Little Water Cay, just northeast of Leeward. The boat trip takes about 15 minutes, and some visitors kayak across. Visitors keep to the boardwalk trails and must not feed, touch or chase the iguanas.

Is the camera live at night?

The stream runs around the clock, so the player works at any hour, but the scrub, water and cay are only clearly visible in daylight. Morning and early afternoon local time give the brightest view of the channel.

Source: Marius Vultur