Discovering Chateaubelair, St. Vincent
It was with some trepidation on May 15th, 2010 we sailed Discovery V, our 57’ Bowman cutter rigged ketch, from Port Elizabeth, Bequia up to Chateaubelair, St. Vincent. My family (husband, Kirk, 11 year old twins, Claire and Wesley and Portuguese Water Dog, Skipper) sailed from Toronto July 1st, 2009. As a cruising family we employ a good measure of common sense and caution in our planning and decisions regarding choice of anchorages and have enjoyed a high level of personal safety throughout our travels.
Like many other cruisers, we purposely bypassed the island of St. Vincent because of concerns over reported crime and aggression aimed at yachties. We landed in Port Elizabeth, Bequia and fell in love with the island and the people. From the Bequia Easter Regatta, our visit to the whaling station, participation in Cheryl Johnson’s Reading Club, making new friends and meeting up with some old ones, we managed to while away the better part of two months in Bequia. Occasionally the topic of sailing to St. Vincent came up among fellow cruisers and I summarily dismissed the possibility. It was a risk I preferred not to take, especially with two children on board.
My mind was changed largely due to the influence of our new friends, Ellen and Jim aboard “Boldly Go” and our relationship with Cheryl Johnson at the Bequia Book Store. Miss Cheryl, a former resident of St. Vincent, encouraged us not to miss out on St. Vincent and the experience of Dark View Falls. Ellen and Jim had recently spent time in St. Vincent and not ones to shy away from an adventure, suggested we go together to anchor in Chateaubelair Bay. Cheryl gave a heads up to her friend Gail, who runs The Beach Front Restaurant and Bar on the beach in Chateaubelair Bay, to expect us. Knowing we had a friendly face with a local presence gave me a greater comfort level and we set a date to go.
We had a beautiful sail up to Chateaubelair on May 15th made even better by the fact that our children had jumped ship to sail there on “Boldly Go”. It was the first time since leaving home, almost 11 months prior, that Kirk and I were alone on our own boat! We anchored quite near the cliff at the north end of the bay in about 30 feet of water as the swells seemed a bit smaller in this location. We were later advised by those on shore that it was preferable, for security reasons, to anchor in the middle of the bay closer to the town dock. As it was, by this point we were more concerned about the roll than security and decided to stay put.
The island itself reminded our family of Portsmouth, Dominica in its lush rain forests, dramatic mountains and cliffs, and every colour of green imaginable. “Discovery V” and “Boldly Go” were the only two boats in the bay. We were setting anchor as three boat boys made their approach on make shift surfboards, some paddling with their hands. The boat boys turned out more curious than aggressive. After greetings, conversation and negotiations for some limes (John delivered a fresh picked shirt full for 5EC) they let go of the side of our boat and backed off a few feet to where two of them loitered on their surfboards for hours until just after dark.
One of the boat boys was 15 year old George. I was surprised to learn his age as he was slim and small (Wesley at 11 was about the same height and probably close to twice his weight). George lived in a house on the beach, not attending school as he lacked the requisite uniform and had no means of buying one. He had a list of items he said were being sent by others he had met and was excited about getting to go to school. George had definite plans for education and career and volunteered that he did not do drugs but cocaine brought in from Venezuela was a huge problem in his town. We gave George one of our backpacks to contribute to the back to school efforts and Kirk and Jim were happy to provide the necessary materials and labour to patch up his inflatable kayak (he had paddled out to our boat on three wooden planks tied together with vines).
With plans made to visit Dark view Falls the next morning, we slept with our ladder up, gates closed, the dingy and our dog Skipper on deck. The next day we locked the boat up tight, left Skipper on deck and George in charge of our dinghy which we pulled up on the beach beside his home. George agreed to keep an eye on the boats and said if anyone approached the boats he would get the police and then tell Miss Gail. Feeling like things were as well looked after as possible, we began the hike up to Dark View Falls.
The relatively easy walk, mostly on roads, would take about 30 minutes for normal folk but we took twice that time as we had lots to look at and much fruit to eat along the way. How wonderful to come across a huge Wax Apple tree laden down with the ripe fruit. We also sampled some oranges and avocado from trees by the road. Paralleling our trail was a water pipe which runs water down from the falls to the hydro electric power generating plant near the town of Fitz-Hughes. The pipe was quite full and had several small leaks in it where the kids enjoyed drinking the water as if from a water fountain. As we got closer to the falls the bamboo stands were like none we had seen before and closer to the falls became forests that towered over us and the trail. The bamboo suspension bridge spanning the river was a highlight as the kids raced on, jumping to make it sway back and forth...oh my nerves!
Dark View Falls is actually two falls, the higher one feeding the lower one. Swimming in the cool fresh water pool of the lower falls and dunking our heads under the waterfall was a nice break from warm salt water. Climbing the trail to the upper falls, we hung out playing a game of Scrabble and enjoying our picnic on a big flat rock. The place was all ours for an hour or more and we passed just a few other visitors as we descended.
On our return walk back to the boat many local people exchanged greetings with us and a few walked with us for a while to have longer conversations. As in Dominica, some people we passed walked with their machetes in hand to cut fruit or clear a path. There were offers of fruit but almost always something asked for in return. Did we have an electric drill we could lend? Could we spare any fiberglass or plastic paint to repair aging dinghies?
Groups of uniformed school children walked home and as we passed the younger ones would stop and stare, some with mouths hanging open. When we spoke to them we would get huge smiles and laughter. The teenagers were quite bold and a few asked if they could swim out to our boats once they got home from school and changed out of their uniforms. Three did swim out and were invited on board “Boldly Go” for a game of Scrabble.
We stopped for a cup of tea at the Beach Front Restaurant and Bar and to chat with Gail after our hike. The chalkboard menu announced the usual fish and chicken fair and we spied the cooks eating big plates of wonderful smelling delights. The restaurant is the only one on this beach and has a large seating area set up on a raised patio looking over the beach. We walked through the towns of Fitz-Hughes and Chateaubelair and the locals were friendly and cordial. This is definitely not an area that sees many tourists and there was not much going on by way of shopping and provisioning.
On the third day we sailed Discovery back to Bequia feeling good about our adventure to Chateaubelair. Some of the crime issues we heard are related to the marijuana growing season, (in between seasons money gets tight) and the trafficking and use of cocaine. This may be true, but like so many of of our experiences on other islands we found if you treat people well they will more often than not, show you the same courtesy in return.
Originally Published in Caribbean Compass, 2010