Jamaica: Physical Geography

Jamaica lies in the Caribbean Sea about 140 kilometers (87 miles) south of Cuba and 190 kilometers (118 miles) west of Haiti, and is the third-largest island in the Greater Antilles after Cuba and Hispaniola. The island covers approximately 10,990 square kilometers (4,244 square miles) and stretches about 235 kilometers (146 miles) from east to west, with its width varying between roughly 34 and 84 kilometers (21 and 52 miles). Jamaica's terrain divides into three broad regions: a mountainous east, a limestone plateau covering about two-thirds of the island, and narrow coastal plains that ring much of the coastline.

The island's highest point is Blue Mountain Peak, rising to 2,256 meters (7,402 feet) in the Blue Mountains, which climb from the coastal plain over a horizontal distance of only about 16 kilometers (10 miles), producing one of the steepest terrain gradients in the world. To the north of the Blue Mountains lie the John Crow Mountains, while the island's interior limestone plateau contains Cockpit Country, a rugged karst landscape of conical hills and deep sinkholes considered one of the most dramatic examples of its kind anywhere in the world. The Rio Minho, at about 93 kilometers (58 miles), is Jamaica's longest river.

Jamaica's coastline runs roughly 1,022 kilometers (635 miles). The north coast is lined with narrow plains, white sand beaches, and a raised plain of ancient uplifted coral reef, while the south coast alternates between small plains with black sand beaches and limestone cliffs that in places drop nearly 300 meters (980 feet) to the sea. Offshore to the southwest lies Pedro Bank, a large shallow fishing ground dotted with small cays.