Favourite Islands Part 3: Saba to Montserrat

Moving on to the inner arc of the Leeward Islands:   these are rugged, more sparsely populated islands that are primarily of Dutch and British history.

Here's the first instalment and second instalment of this series if you missed them.

Saba
We first fell in love with Saba (The Unspoiled Queen) when we visited by plane on our initial sailing trip to the Caribbean in 2008.  Since then we have sailed there once in 2012 and visited by plane again in 2014.  Saba has a well-earned reputation for being a difficult place to visit with your own boat:  the island is steep-to which means that anchoring is pretty much out of the question unless you carry about a kilometre of chain.  There are lots of mooring balls but unless you get to visit in a dead calm with no northern swell, you will not want to spend much time on the boat.  But, that's the reason we visit Saba.  We want to get off the boat and explore this pristine and quaint little island that appears to have stepped right out of Gulliver's Travels.  You can hike to the highest point in the Kingdom of the Netherlands at the top of Mt. Scenery, or you can dare the near-vertical descent of the The Ladder to relive history and the path of absolutely everything that came to Saba prior to construction of the port.  We adore hiking on this island and for a long time called Saba our favourite.  Now there are rivals but it will always hold a special place in our hearts.
     Love:  a tiny encapsulated island where you're certain everyone knows one another
     Hate:  the reputation of the anchorage puts people off

Saba rarely reveals it's crown

The little village of Windwardside perched on the saddle

The Ladder - with the Customs House perched above.

St. Eustatius
We only visited Statia for the first time this year and really enjoyed it.  This is another island with a rolly anchorage if there is any north swell.  Our first impression of this island is that it is much like Saba with it's Dutch history only rougher round the edges - there's a certain 'outback' kind of feel to Statia.  This was once a huge busy port but is now a sleepy backwater that sits under the presence of Quill, it's dormant volcano.  The main town is lined by weathered clapboard houses along cobblestone streets with small signs of improvement in places.  We have climbed Quill and explored it's micro-climate crater but have yet to branch out to other areas of the island.  We will definitely return for more of this friendly laid-back isle.
     Love:  this history of this place
     Hate:  another rolly anchorage makes long stays in the winter months difficult

Oranjestad overlooked by Quill

Many choices for hiking in the park

Quiet streets of Oranjestad.

St. Kitts
We visited St. Kitts in 2015 on our way south and have to say that this island did not leave a really good taste in our mouths.  There are some great sights to see and Brimstone Hill Fortress should be visited at least once - it is the only UNESCO World Heritage site in the Eastern Caribbean.  However, after driving around the entire island and spending a couple of days on the streets of grubby Basseterre we never really felt welcomed to the island.  This is the only place where I have been acutely aware that I was the only white person in sight.  I will give St. Kitts it's due that this was the first 'new' island we visited as we started our travels south and perhaps now that we have experienced more of the British heritage islands (Dominica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Grenada) perhaps we would have a different opinion of St. Kitt's.  There is also no really good anchorage with easy access to town so you have a choice of either a rocky, rolly anchorage at Basseterre or being miles from town but more protected down at Whitehouse Bay
     Love:  Brimstone Fortress (too bad it's not on another island)
     Hate:  the feeling of being an outsider

The Circus in bustling downtown Basseterre

Beautiful batiks at Caribelle.

Brimstone Hill with Telca Marina below.

Brimstone Fortress - a formidable defence structure.

Nevis
Nevis is paired with St. Kitts as a dual-island nation and yet couldn't be more different than her neighbour.  It helps too that we have friends with a cottage on Nevis and so we've been treated to a 'local' view.  However, the island has a great mooring field within easy reach of the main town of Charlestown, the population is laid-back and friendly and the island has some great history and geology to explore.  As with all these islands, it can get rolly here with a north swell.  Nevis was once the largest sugar-producing island in the Caribbean for the Brits so there are umpteen old ruins to explore, there's some good hiking and Nevis Peak is said to be one of the most difficult Caribbean volcanos to ascend (we have yet to do it.)  This is also one of the few islands where you will find monkeys (the locals consider them a pest) but for those of us who don't have to live with them, it is quite exciting to see them in the wild bounding through the trees or stopping to screech at you from the branches above.
     Love:  this island is just the right size
                - small enough to be accessible but large enough to still offer a challenge
     Hate:  there's no real dinghy dock at the town dock

Welcome to Nevis!

The town square - a great place to lime under the Flamboyant tree.

Church ruins - some of many on the island.

Love em or hate em, there are monkeys on Nevis.

Montserrat
Montserrat is a unique experience in that it is the only island with a currently (and sometimes violently) active volcano.  The volcano has been erupting since 1995 and has now completely destroyed the original capital city of Plymouth and rendered about two thirds of the island uninhabitable.  People come to Montserrat to view the awesome power and destructive capability of Mother Nature but there is much more to discover on this island.  From the northern anchorage at Little Bay you have little indication of what you will see south of the Central Hills but this really gives you a sense of the resiliency of those islanders who have remained on Montserrat - rebuilding and carrying on with their lives.  The northern part of the island encapsulates a wide variety of landscapes from rugged cliffs, dry scrubby savannahs to lush rainforest in the mountains.  Hike around, take the bus or lime at a local watering hole to get a real feel for this island before gawking at what we've all come to see - the eruption of Souffriere Hills volcano.  If you manage to get to Montserrat in March, you will have a unique experience with St. Paddy's day celebrated among the most Irish influenced, Guinness drinking islanders.
     Love:  incredible contrast and the power of nature
     Hate:  when people miss the rest of the island, and when the tour guides encourage them to do so!

The anchorage at Little Bay with a small surf rolling in.

We were lucky enough to catch a local cricket game - boy was it dry that year!

The north end of the island from atop the lush Central Hills rainforest.

Looking south - to the destruction at Plymouth.

One thing all these islands have in common is that most of them have small anchorages that are prone to roll when there is a northern swell.  If possible, visit them as late in the season as you can to reduce the risk - perhaps on the way south in the April-May timeframe if you have heading south for hurricane season.  The rewards are worth it though as these islands are quite distinct from the other more populous islands and a world apart from the French islands.

One more instalment to come - the Windward islands down to Grenada.

One Country - Two Islands

Before moving on to Nevis, let me catch up with a few more photos I missed on my post yesterday from St. Kitts.

As we approached St. Kitts at the northern end of the island, Dutch-owned St. Eustacia was on our right marking our entry to this particular sweep of volcanic tip islands, starting with Saba in the north-west and sweeping in an arc through Stacia, St. Kitts, Nevis, Redonda (more on that one later) and ending at Montserrat about 80 miles to the south-east.

St. Eustacia - fondly referred to as Stacia.

Rounding the western end of St. Kitts we marvelled at the verdant green landscape, before sailing past the menacing fort on Brimstone Hill.  The pictures from the sea really give a feel for the extent of the fortifications that was impossible to capture on land.

St. Kitts western end and an unclouded view of Mt. Liamuiga.  The greenest areas are sugar cane, although the industry has now collapsed on this island.

Brimstone Hill, home of the UNESCO Brimstone Fortress site.  The Drydock 'marina' below hauls boats and with a travel lift right across the main highway to their yard.

Looking up at the 1000' hill, the fortress site is really extensive and we're only seeing a part of it. 

We returned our rental car with its (almost) missing pieces and then took a final walk through Basseterre and back to the main dock in the centre of town.

We had a good laugh, but were glad we were able to pick up the bits that fell off the car as we left the lot.

In Basseterre, Independence Square.  The fountain was dry but quite pretty and the trees in the garden  created lots of shade for locals to come and 'lime'.

We're starting to see Flamboyant trees in flower all over the island - so stunning!

The circus is basically a roundabout in the centre of town with a small clock tower.  It's a chaotic area that people seem to know where they're supposed to drive and as pedestrians we just walk through the middle of it.  Lots of little restaurants and shops around this bustling area.

Cruise ship in town today so the vans and buses are out in force.

Old buildings abound in this little capital, although many of them are quite shabby.  The museum puts on quite a show.

St. George's church was open for visitors.

I love the simplicity of these island churches and they are quite astounding in their constructions when considering the elements they must survive against.

Now on to Nevis, sister island in the Federation of St. Kitts & Nevis.  Similar to St. Kitts, Nevis is a volcanic island, top blown off to form a crater that is often shrouded in clouds.  This brings up the origin of the name of the island which comes from Columbus who originally named it Nuestra Señora del las Nieves (Our Lady of the Snows), some say because the clouds reminded him of the snows on the Pyrenees Mountains and others as the name of his favourite church.  Regardless, Nevis is the result and the clouds are a constant that affect the view and the weather.

Nevis Peak, with a light dusting of clouds.

Anchored among the fishing boats at Charlestown.

The main town is Charlestown which runs about four blocks back from the water and about five blocks wide before abandoning any form of organization to the streets and branches out into the country.  Similar to St. Kitts there is just one road encircling the island and its main peak which rises over 3000’ into the air.  Both Mt. Liamuiga on St. Kitts and Nevis Peak rank in some of the top hikes in the Caribbean, not for the cloud shrouded (non) views but for their sheer difficulty in the rainforest.  Perhaps one day…

In the meantime, a quick tour around this charming little town sufficed and after a visit to the tourism office we followed a little self-guided tour to see the sights.

Another beautiful Flamboyant tree in the central 'square' - triangle? of Charlestown.

The Nevis Museum is housed in the birthplace of Alexander Hamilton.

Charlestown Methodist Church - built by ex-slaves after emancipation, although it is reported that they used child labour to complete the construction!

The Jewish Cemetery - in 1720, 25% of the white population was Portuguese / Spanish jews.

Alexandra Hospital - the most auspicious residence in town and once home of the local governor.

The Flamboyant Nursing Home - not sure this name would go down well at home ;-)

Carrying on down the road toward the hot springs, we encountered some of the local wildlife, some of it a bit more energetic than others.

Loved the local 'fire station dog'  - he was flat out.

Finally got a good pose from one of the Vervet monkeys.  They move on so quickly.

More local 'wildlife'.

 Nevis once hosted hordes of Europeans who came to take the restorative baths at the Bath Hotel, making it one of the oldest hotels in the Caribbean - if it were still standing in a usable state.  The baths themselves consist of three pools, the coolest of which is scalding hot and I didn’t dare dip my toes in the hottest.  The hot water bubbles up through the ground and apparently in the evenings, Nevisians gather here to wash away the cares of the day and to discuss their local island politics.

Nevis hot springs or The Baths as they are known.

To round out our little tour of Charlestown, we followed the goats to the end of the point and found the ruins of the old British fort that dates back to the 1600s.

Remains at Fort Charles.

Mowzer still sitting pretty in the once well defended bay

Bleached out tree - such a ghostly spectre.

Thursday morning we’ll check out of St. Kitts & Nevis and head for the final island in this chain, Montserrat.

Liamuiga - The Fertile Land

Liamuiga is the old Amerindian name for the island of St. Kitts and on first glance it certainly seems that the island lives up to this name.  The mountain range that makes up the spine of the oddly whale-shaped island rises to a massive height of 3,792' and almost constantly wears a cap of heavy cloud, although we considered ourselves very lucky to have a view of the top of the peak and the volcanic crater as we sailed down from St. Barts.  The central mountains plummet down in a beautiful green curve to the ocean, seemingly just to slip calmly into the seas.  Only at the southern end of the island are there significant cliffs that provide one or two sheltered bays.  From the distance, the slopes are a patchwork of varying shades of green, most prevalent the emerald fields of sugar cane.

At one time, the majority of the arable land on the island was cultivated with cane fields, originally worked by an incomprehensible number of slaves, but then in modern times the government got into the business and when sugar prices fell in 2005, they exited leaving the fields for the most part to return to nature.  Today as we drove around the island we saw some cultivated fields and a few small-holdings with various fruits and provisions being grown, but for the most part St. Kitts has turned it's face toward off-shore banking and tourism as a way to make money.

The history of St. Kitt's is primarily a history lesson in the struggles between the French and English, at times the two nations living with strained peace on the one island and at other times involved in all-out warfare.  Basseterre, the capital, was our arrival point on Monday afternoon and after checking in with customs and immigration we had a quick wander around town.  The town centres around "The Circus", a roundabout with a small clock tower but beyond that it sprawls along the waterfront, somewhat squalid in the town centre and giving way to only slightly more affluent homes at the outskirts.  It was a super-busy time of day with parents picking up their kids from school and heading home from work.  The old buildings appear somewhat dilapidated and most structures look like they could do with some repair or a new coat of paint, giving the whole town a somewhat shabby air.  The other thing we noticed is that other than a very small number of tourists, there were absolutely no other non-blacks on the streets or in the stores.  We're used to feeling in the minority these days but it was noticeable here in Basseterre that among the well-heeled business people, stall vendors, taxi-drivers, shop keepers, government officials and all others, we didn't see a single white person.

Tuesday, we picked up a hire car for the day to tour round the island.  Navigation is easy here, there is only one road so the choice comes down to whether you want to circumnavigate in a clockwise or anti-clockwise direction.  We picked the first, and headed up the south-west coast to our first stop at the Wingfield Estate and Romney Manor.  Here, the Earl of Romney oversaw a massive plantation with a sugar mill and built an estate with extensive gardens that are now on show.  The old manor house is no longer there, but a small batik dying outfit now occupies the site with workshop demonstrations and a gift shop.  The gardens are serenely beautiful, culminating in the spreading limbs of a 400 year old Saman tree.  Given that much of the history on St. Kitts has succumbed to fire, earthquake and/or hurricane, it is mind-boggling that this massive tree has managed to survive.

At the base of the chimney for the steam engine, built from locally quarried stone and ballast stone from the sugar-ships.

The old steam boiler with the ruins of the separating room.

Like the tree, the chimney has survived all these years and now plays host to bromeliads (air-plants).

Originally the sugar mill was water-driven with water diverted from the river - obviously this had challenges in the dry season which is when sugar cane is harvested.

The arching limbs of the Saman tree.

The only remaining bell-tower on the island.  The bell towers signalled time to the slave workers and were destroyed at the time of emancipation as a symbol of the control the plantation owners had over them.  Earl Romney was seen as more benevolent, so his bell tower was left standing.

A little batik demonstration.

The more colours used, the more expensive the batik cloth - these ran in the $60-range!

Absolutely beautiful none-the-less.

Henry taking a moment before we moved on.

From the gardens we headed further north-west to Brimstone Hill and the old british-built fort that is now a UNESCO site.  This extensive and massively built fort sits atop this strategically situated hill on the south shore and apart from a short period when the French prevailed, has been held by the English throughout it's 300+ year history.  When the French did manage to breach the walls of the fort in 1782 they allowed the remaining British soldiers to surrender and leave with honour - how gallant.  However, the English were back in less than a year and took what they had learned in their defeat to strengthen the fort even further.  Today it has been beautifully restored and we explored the site, often being reminded of Fort Henry, Fort York and Quebec City back in Canada.  Interestingly there are a lot of parallels in the two countries' histories and even today, we hold the same status within the British Commonwealth.

Even after driving up to what felt like the top of the hill, this steeply stepped ramp led to the garrison at the top.

Thick walls, gun emplacements, numerous canon and strategically placed firing stations, all designed by the Royal Engineers and built for the most part by slaves.

No chance of slipping by unseen with views like these - unless in the dark of night!

Looking north along the coast, Dutch-owned St. Eustacia on the horizon.

Massive cannon cover all approaches.

The deepest interior of the fortress.  Notice the drains running down to the centre?  Rain water collection and waste management was of paramount importance.

Protected by canon but open to the skies above, with stunning views in all directions.

We continued on around the island stopping occasionally to catch a glimpse of an old sugar mill and enjoy a refreshing shower on the north end of the island.  For just a few miles, the landscape was significantly greener, attesting to the amount of rain that falls as the clouds pass over the mountains.  If we were staying longer, we would most definitely arrange to hike up into the rainforest but as this can only be taken on with a guide, will have to wait for a return trip.

Young sugar cane growing around the ruins of an old sugar mill.

Funny story about our rental car.  As we reversed out of the parking lot, the hub-cap fell off.  I retrieved it and put it in the back seat, then closed the door as I got back in the car.  Another clatter and out I went again to gather up the plastic from the back of the side mirror, which joined the hub-cap in the back seat.  Guess it pays to drive with your windows open so you can hear the parts as they fall off your car!

Looks okay from here :-)

Finally, to round out the day we headed to the south to what looks to me like the whale's tale when looking at a map of the island.  The locals call the area outside of Basseterre that we had just travelled through, "The Country", and it is pastoral with numerous little towns of varying degree of shabbiness dotted along the coast.  As we passed the airport and crested Bird Rock, we looked down upon the extensive resorts and golf course and now understood where the money has come to roost on St. Kitts.  All compressed into a low lying triangle of land that gives way to a narrow rugged pass that brings you down to the very southern end of the island.  It was along here that we finally spied some Green Vervet Monkeys that now live all over the island.  Boy are they fast!

I took about six fast-action shots to get one of this guy zooming through the trees.

Cockleshell Beach at the southern end of the island gave us a beautiful view of Nevis, the other island in this Federation and our next stop down the chain.

Nevis, just two miles away across The Narrows.