Southern Grenadines alias South Armagh.
Oriole
Mon 6 Apr 2009 19:53
|
Chatham Bay, Union Island, St Vincent
& The Grenadines. 12:36.311N 61:27.075W
We have long viewed the border area
between the St Vincent Grenadines and the more southerly Grenadines of Carriacou
and Petit Martinique which belong to Grenada as a relatively lawless zone.
In the past, the boat boys have appeared to be a bit out of control, but maybe
it was our reaction to high pressure sales techniques that gave us this
view. Over the years there have been incidents in this stretch of water
and group of islands which look at each other across the three mile wide
channel. The locals move freely across the border but we yachties are
subject to strict Customs and Immigration control. That the small islands
have thrived from smuggling in the past and possibly still do is subject to an
official Nelsonian eye. John has doubtlessly become more diplomatic
in his approach to the boatboys and in very friendly negotiations we have
managed to get the price of lobster down to 25EC$ per pound and red snapper to
10EC$ per pound. This compares to the 40EC$ and 20EC$ per pound
respectively at which negotiations have previously started and stalled somewhere
in between!
After Frigate Island we spent two
nights anchored off Petit St Vincent (PSV) where the whole island is a small and
exclusive resort started in the 1950s. A few drinks in the bar at sunset
would buy a good meal for two in most of the places we frequent but we sat and
enjoyed an hour there with Lorna and Dudley one evening.
Grenadines Wildlife
  A
Frigate bird delicately snatches his
breakfast
............while below lurks a stingray
 ............ and a squid.
We had heard reports that around a
week ago a yacht in this anchorage had a Molotov cocktail lobbed into its
cockpit, it fortunately did not go off, but the occupants were showered with
petrol. A few nights later another yacht had an empty wine
bottle tossed into the cockpit with broken glass everywhere. The
authorities have done little or nothing and one is left wondering what
provocation might have produced this action. The thoughtless activities of
a small minority of fellow yachtsmen would make this a mild response and
murderous thoughts by the skipper of Oriole are not unknown. So
it is by no means clear who the perpetrators might have been.
 Twilight over Chatham
Bay.
However this is a wonderful area,
with some beautiful anchorages and the world economic situation has rendered
them very quiet and the weather is perfect. Chatham Bay is normally very
popular and totally undeveloped but when we sailed in on Friday the friends we
had come to meet were the only yacht in the bay. This is the bay where the
colourful local character James aka 'Shark Attack' barbeques fish or
lobster on the beach. In company
with of Dave and Carol from Overstreet we indulged last
night.
 One last drink before boarding for
Barbados.
Sadly, we have said goodbye to Lorna
and Dudley who flew out of the little airport on Union Island to Barbados on
Thursday en route for the UK and eventually home to Cape Town. We had
thoroughly enjoyed their company and Lorna as a semi-vegetarian had tolerated
our lobster preparation with equanimity. Although non-sailors they soon
picked up the Oriole routines, again with complete
equanimity!!
|