The Caribbean is a place of boats....work boats, race boats, cruising boats, fishing boats, sailing boats, powerboats, row boats, cruise ships, and more. Some are made of steel, others fibreglass and most of the local boats are made of wood. Some are made in factories, some are built by do it your selfers and many of the locals have the skills to build their own traditional wooden boats. Some are big, some are small and some are incredibly huge. What they all have in common is that they are central to the lives of the people of the Caribbean, both those of us who just are passing through and those people that make their living from the sea. I believe that is why the Caribbean holds so many regattas. The racing events are a celebration of boats as well as the skills of the people who sail them. Boats are revered on these island and in most cases very well looked after.
The following is a pictorial celebration of boats of the windward islands from Bequia in The Grenadines to Grenada.
This schooner came into Chatham Bay, Union Island to say hello to the English boat next to us.
This wooden sail boat is a working boat in the village of Ashton, Union Island.
These fishing boats were along the waterfront in Ashton.
These wooden boats in Petit Martinique are at the ready for fishing.
The next two pictures show wooden fishing boats made in Petit Martinique and kept on moorings. The colours of blue and orange are a favourite in the Caribbean.
This is the catamaran Black Swan that anchored beside us in the Tobago Cays and made us feel small. Notice the size of the crew on deck.
This large power boat was another big visitor to the popular Tobago Cays anchorage. The tender beside it is almost as long as Celebrian and probably worth several hundred thousand dollars?!
Another beautiful schooner visits the Tobago Cays.
The clipper ship line is a popular way to cruise The Grenadines. Certainly if you enjoy sailing and living in luxury this ship is the way to travel. The best of both worlds ....a boat that can sail well and the comfort of a cruise ship. Of all the larger sailing cruise ships that we saw we liked the clipper the best. She was rigged to sail and not just pretend to sail.
Local working boats in Bequia.
In Bequia there is a floating diesel and water boat available. Bequia was very yachty and lots of services were available for cruisers...diesel or water delivered to the boat, the usual bread and fish and my favourite...Daffodil's Laundry Service.
Bequia race boats out for a practice.
The clipper ship stopped in Bequia while we were there. What a great sight it was to see it as the sun went down and its lights came on.
You can buy hand made wooden ships in Bequia. This was a beauty and priced close to a thousand US.
Many of the smaller race boats at the Bequia Regatta had obvious sponsorship. Their crews were young people from the French islands as well as Barbados.
This beautiful wooden race boat was from Petit Saint Vincent and was racing in Bequia.
This monohall was one of the larger single hull boats we were anchored nearby. Once again notice the size of the crew on deck to get perspective.
Launching one of the 28 foot wooden double enders in Bequia.
Carriacou has a long tradition of boat building.
Three beautiful wooden boats built in Carriacou and anchored off of Windward, Carriacou.
This is a floating welding and aluminum shop anchored in Tyrell Bay, Carriacou.
Several days a week there are cruise ships anchored off of St. George's, Grenada.
Goldberry is our family car and gets almost daily use whether its going to shore for chores or pleasure. She also provides water scaffolding for the captain when he is varnishing.
Our favourite boat and the one we love deh most....Celebrian.
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