St Lucia
After southerly cruising overnight, dawn saw us off the northern tip of St Lucia, which is for many the most spectacular islands of the Caribbean. The spectacle is the result of vulcanism, for this small island is an active volcano, one overdue for eruption, according to vulcanologists, as its last major eruption was back in the eighteenth century.
After a morning's sailing in brisk conditions along the lee shore of the island, the peaks of the greater and lesser Piton came into view, marking our entrance to the great bay at Soufriere. This is an island that references Caribbean history in microcosm. Charted by Columbus, it still has a surviving community of pre-Colombian Caribs. The subsequent rivalry of European maritime powers was such that the island had changed hands 14 times before it finally became British in 1815. It has been fully independent since 1979. The locals speak English, therefore, but also Creole, and the predominant religious affiliation is Roman Catholic. The islanders speak with pride of the fact that Josephine Beauharnais, wife of the Emperor Napoleon, was born on the island. In more recent times, they can be proud of having produced two Nobel Prize-winners for literature, Garth St Omer and Derek Walcott.
Our afternoon tour took us to the sulphur springs from which Soufriere derives its name, effectively a drive-in volcano with a visitor center and walkways beside the hissing and bubbling pools situated within the collapsed caldera. The second stop was less malodorous, the delightful Diamond Falls Botanical Garden where we were expertly guided through a profusion of tropical flora. We saw cocoa pods, coffer beans, cinnamon and mace; yams, sweet potatoes, bananas and plantains.
At the nearby Toraille Falls, we were able to take an invigorating plunge under a fresh water waterfall, an effective back and shoulder massage for those willing to brave the elements. The reward for all this activity was rum punch and local delicacies served at a magnificent overlook, with the bay of Soufriere and the Pitons before us in the setting sun. For the birders, this last stop also offered a chance to look for the three hummingbirds native to St Lucia.
After southerly cruising overnight, dawn saw us off the northern tip of St Lucia, which is for many the most spectacular islands of the Caribbean. The spectacle is the result of vulcanism, for this small island is an active volcano, one overdue for eruption, according to vulcanologists, as its last major eruption was back in the eighteenth century.
After a morning's sailing in brisk conditions along the lee shore of the island, the peaks of the greater and lesser Piton came into view, marking our entrance to the great bay at Soufriere. This is an island that references Caribbean history in microcosm. Charted by Columbus, it still has a surviving community of pre-Colombian Caribs. The subsequent rivalry of European maritime powers was such that the island had changed hands 14 times before it finally became British in 1815. It has been fully independent since 1979. The locals speak English, therefore, but also Creole, and the predominant religious affiliation is Roman Catholic. The islanders speak with pride of the fact that Josephine Beauharnais, wife of the Emperor Napoleon, was born on the island. In more recent times, they can be proud of having produced two Nobel Prize-winners for literature, Garth St Omer and Derek Walcott.
Our afternoon tour took us to the sulphur springs from which Soufriere derives its name, effectively a drive-in volcano with a visitor center and walkways beside the hissing and bubbling pools situated within the collapsed caldera. The second stop was less malodorous, the delightful Diamond Falls Botanical Garden where we were expertly guided through a profusion of tropical flora. We saw cocoa pods, coffer beans, cinnamon and mace; yams, sweet potatoes, bananas and plantains.
At the nearby Toraille Falls, we were able to take an invigorating plunge under a fresh water waterfall, an effective back and shoulder massage for those willing to brave the elements. The reward for all this activity was rum punch and local delicacies served at a magnificent overlook, with the bay of Soufriere and the Pitons before us in the setting sun. For the birders, this last stop also offered a chance to look for the three hummingbirds native to St Lucia.
