Scotland Bay, Trinidad
MALARKEY
Jo & Trevor Bush
Mon 5 Mar 2007 13:30
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We are still experiencing the 'wild life' in
Trinidad, but this time it is the David Bellamy 'down in the jungle'
type.
We relaunched the boat after a wash & brush up
and Malarkey is looking good again. This will only last a couple of weeks and we
will be wondering whether it was all worth while.
Bee jeepers it was hot out on the hard at Coral
Cove. Work on the boat was hard graft and if it wasnt for the marina pool and
the aircon unit on the boat, I think we
definately would have succumbed to the cool delights of the nearby
bar.
As soon as we launched we moved round to Scotland
Bay to unwind and what a treat it proved to be. It was a regular nature reserve.
The rain forest came right down to the waters edge and with it came all the wild
life. During the day we watched exotic birds like the yellow tailed weaver bird
feeding their young from strange nests hanging from a flame tree, and
watched pelicans and the local stingray chase leaping fish around the
bay. We knew it was a stingray 'cos we actually saw it leap out of the
water after the fish, a rare sight I think. There was also a black sea
eagle plunging from great heights to catch fish right alongside the boat. I
managed to take a picture of it eating its prey on a large mangrove
tree.
   The jungle in Trinidad is also host to the Howler
Monkey. It is not a particlarly big beastie but he makes up for his lack of
stature by making a hell of a din. While swinging from tree to tree they
make a sound like the mating call of a silver back gorilla. I might be
exagerating about the swinging from tree to tree bit cos we never actually saw
them doing the tarzan thing but their calls were impressive to say the
least. In fact it was darn right eerie especially in the black of night and
the giant fruit bats swooping around the boat taking a bath didnt help to
calm our nerves either. Oh bye the way, these
fruit bats like the odd banana. They will fly into the boat, scoff your bananas
and crap everywhere before leaving. Pleasant little critters.
When we visit Venezuela, we will have to deal
with another type of bat,- the VAMPIRE BAT gulp!. These little 'suckers'
are renouned for flying onto boats and making a meal out of you. We are planning
to sail up the Orinoco in June so no doubt we will have some close
encounters with some of Count Dracula's 'little children'.
In the mean time, we are checking out of Trindad
soon and heading back north through the islands. We plan on partaking of
the 'moules & frites' ritual on the French Island of Martinique and
watching the regatta and possibly joining in the Antigua Race Week. Will keep
you posted.
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