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The Grenadines
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Typical of the local boats used for fishing and other purposes |
Click on this icon for an enlarged map of The Grenadines |
 The Grenadines to the south between St. Vincent and Grenada
form a magical cruising ground for novice and initiates alike. One of our
favorite cruising areas, the header photograph for our web site is from picture
perfect Salt Whistle Bay at the northern end of Mayru island, a place of immense
charm and magnetic personality that draws us back time after time. On the way
between St. Vincent and Mayreau is Bequia, an island with glorious scenery,
gingerbread architecture and old-Caribbean charm. |
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Click on the following links to view brief descriptions of
the smorgasbord of island delights available for visiting during your dream
vacation through St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
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Saline Bay |
Fidelity in Admiralty Bay |
Sippin' time |
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Happy fella |
Bequia
The Gingerbread Bequia Restaurant, Bar and Suites in Port
Elizabeth symbolize Admiralty Bay on this, one of the three largest islands in
the Grenadines, with its ornate but not overdone latticework on a structure
known for its comfortable elegance. Bequia is also known as the home of eyeball
ship building in the Caribbean and Bequian boats can be found as far west as
Puerto Rico and as far south as Trinidad.
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Local boat |
Ferry boats run frequently from Admiralty Bay to St. Vincent
as well as to other neighboring islands although an airport provides quicker, if
more expensive, service. This part of the world is known for its winter whale
mating and child bearing and Bequia still acts as the center for occasional
forays for open-boat whaling in the old style. The small capital city sports
numerous restaurants, book shops selling nautical charts, t-shirt vendors,
craftsmen selling model boats and hulls, the latter being a specialty of the
island. You will also find a gallery and ice cream emporiums as well as
suppliers of local crafts. An afternoon walk through the town around the bay
will take you past a combination of open air markets and more formal purveyors
of goods of all kinds. |
Beach to remember |
Hikes and tours will provide you with panoramic views of the
lower Grenadines as well as a visit to Moonhole, a somewhat isolated and
whimsical community on the southwestern point of the island where no wall is
either vertical or parallel to another. To the southeast, Friendship Bay is home
to a number of local, hand-crafted boats with a lovely beach and several
beachside restaurants and bars.
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Mustique
 Mustique is a private island for the wealthy. Expensive to
visit, expensive to purchase goods, Mustique also sports gingerbread abodes and
establishments common to this area of the Caribbean. The island does not
encourage visitors.
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Canouan
 The highest point of this, one of the larger islands in the
Grenadines, is a little over 500 feet elevation. Charlestown Bay is the main
anchorage on the island that has only a few, somewhat inaccessible beaches.
Ashore are several restaurant/bar combinations serving local cuisine.
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Mayreau
  From Canouan, we sail south to the island of Mayreau, the Tobago Cays and Union Island to travel the extent of the Grenadine islands. Mayreau, with a population of some 200 souls, has only one road traveling from Saline Bay on the west side of the island to the south, up over the top of the main hill. Here breathtaking vistas of the entire Grenadine group await you looking back down to Salt Whistle Bay to the north.
 It's good exercise to walk from the beach up to the top and over to the other side. On the other hand, Dennis will pick you up at the beach at either end of the road and transport you to his house of Creole and seafood, including the local conch (lambi from Neptune's horns). Joseph Ford, a proud but quiet member of one of the six major families on the island, will be glad to prepare a lobster dinner on the beach done to perfection.
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Tobago Cays
This uninhabited, low-lying group of islands form a national
park just a little over one mile east of Mayreau are one of the most peaceful
places in the world to drop the hook and enjoy a lunch and an afternoon swim and
snorkel. You will be sure to be approached by local vendors from Bequia, Union
Island and Mayreau in fast, outboard-powered open boats that seem to come in a
multitude of colors.
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Union Island and Palm Island
 This dramatic little island of volcanic origin is a little
over 1000 feet high, having a volcanic core visible from the east. Its center,
the town of Clifton, is protected and almost completely surrounded by reefs to
provide the perfect anchorage. The cosmopolitan little village has a number of
restaurants serving anything from continental to local cuisine. There are also
local art galleries, shops selling local crafts and clothing, and several
internet cafe's each having high speed capabilities.
Immediately adjacent to, and southeast of Clifton Harbor,
lies private Palm Island where the resort is the main attraction. However, the
anchorage is fine in reasonable weather and the eating ashore both allowed and
excellent in quality. During the day, swimming on the beach is as near perfect
as the Caribbean can be while snorkeling on the nearby reefs is every bit as
good as any.
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Petit St. Vincent
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Petit St. Vincent & Petit
Martinique
Not a place to stay over night, Petit St. Vincent, a "private
resort island hideaway for special people," provides excellent daytime anchorage
with spectacularly beautiful scenery and waters. A few dinner tables are reserved for
visiting yachtsmen but otherwise, no cruise ships, crowds or calypso
fire-eaters. Nearby Petit Martinique, northernmost part of Grenada but only a
half mile from Petit St. Vincent, offers a small, seafaring community with a
restaurant in a picture-perfect setting with a sunset view on the beach.
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