Your
attention swings from wonders to marvels
and back again. You begin to say things
to yourself, gasps of surprise, inarticulate
sounds of awe, you are troubled with a
terrible sense of loss that (as the case
maybe) 20,30, or 50 years of your life
have passed and gone without you knowing
of the ease of entry into this new world...All
I ask of each reader is this- don't die
without having borrowed, stolen, purchased
or made a helmet of sorts, to glimpse
for yourself this new world...this unsuspected
realm ofgorgeous life and colour existing
with us today on the self-same planet
earth." William Beebe, Beneath the
Tropic Seas, 1928
Picture St. Vincent, the largest of these
sister islands, as a kite floating in
a sea of blue, and the Grenadine islands
of Bequia, Mustique, Canouan, Mayreau,
Palm, Union and Petit St. Vincent, as
the ribbons of this exotic kite's tail.
Scattered liberally in between these inhabited
islands are deserted cays, rocks, sand
bars and lagoons all teeming with sea-life
and alive with colour. Diving takes place
all along this precious chain. |
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St.
Vincent & the Grenadines is one
of those all too rare, virtually undiscovered
dive destinations. The diving ranges from the
gentle, even lazy, to the exhilarating, and
efforts are always made to ensure that you never
dive the same dive site twice... unless, of
course, you want to! Most of the dive sites
are close to the dive shop bases, a mere ten
or fifteen-minute boat ride away. Others, however,
may require a slightly longer journey, but one
that's filled with the most beautiful Caribbean
scenery in the region. And all are well worth
the trip. Due to the sharply rising shorelines,
there is no shore diving here and this helps
to keep the sites in pristine condition. All
the dive boats are well equipped, easily accessible
and captained by experienced and helpful staff.
The dives are Divemaster-led, and this helps
to enhance not only maximum diver safety, but
also maximum diver enjoyment.
St.
Vincent, home to a volcano and a rain forest,
boasts an almost infinite selection of wall
diving sites, and the underwater scenery, complete
with pristine corals, will take your breath
away (though hopefully not for long!). Nicknamed
"Critter Country", make sure you have
a fish I.D. book close at hand.
The
odds are, however, that when you've spotted
all the frogfish, slipper lobster, chain morays,
octopus and scorpion fish therein, you'll have
to start writing one of your own. Fish behaviour
will fascinate you - friendly spot fin butterfly
fish may treat you as a protective floating
reef and sargeant majors may chase you from
their eggs. Even the end of the dives in St.
Vincent are stunning, with sheer cliffs plunging
to the depths, and century plants clinging precariously
- a death-defying hanging garden. Bequia, with
its beautiful beaches, friendly people and gentle
nature, offers a wonderful array of sloping
reefs. The pelagics range from Hawksbill turtles
to black-tip sharks and eagle rays. In the shallows,
take time to spot the near invisible little
creatures like sea horses and basket stars,
the harlequin pipefish and the odd grumpy bat
fish. Mustique, "escape island" of
the rich and famous, also presents underwater
relief from sunbathing and ice cream sundaes.
Sloping reefs and flat expanses of coral reveal
shy spotted drums, spiny lobsters, and banded
coral shrimp gathered ready for action at a
cleaning station.
Canouan
is a sleepy island that recently woke up with
a smart new hotel development. Here there are
underwater rock formations covered in a variety
sponges and soft corals. Schools of permit duck
and dive, whilst bar jacks keep their distance
along the comfortable shallow dives.
Mayreau literally has gardens
beneath the waves and it is here that the aptly
named garden eels are found swaying grass-like
in the sand. Crinoids creep from behind giant
tunicates, while flamingo tongues graze on vari-cloured
sea fans. Sometimes waterlogged tree trunks
provide homes for blennies and gobies, and then
sometimes that "waterlogged tree trunk"
is in fact a nurse shark! Union Island rests
at the gateway to the incredible Tobago Cays
and offers reefs jutting dramatically from the
sand. Partially hidden southern sting rays watch
with Steady eyes as shoals of sprats race in
rivers above them. Drifting along, that feeling
of being watched will probably be a barracuda
easing alongside.
St.
Vincent & the Grenadines is also the perfect
place to discover diving itself. The waters
are clear and warm, and teeming with life and
even if you arrive as a non-diver, you'll likely
want to take a morning to go on a Discover Scuba
Diving course, so that you can see what all
the excitement is about. The dive shops are
experienced and professional, and qualified
instructors take pride in introducing new divers
to the phenomenal world of diving, as well as
teaching Advanced and Specialist diving to those
already certified.
Take
time to visit all of the islands, each has much
to offer, and the locals are pleased and proud
to help you enjoy your stay. In St. Vincent,
combine a dive with a trip to the Bat Cave or
to the Falls of Baleine, only accessible by
boat. After your dive in Bequia, check out the
deserted beach picnic haven of Isle de Quatre.
Hope to rub shoulders with a rock star on Mustique
as you clutch your apres-dive cocktail. If you
still feel energetic after your Canouan dive,
you could try a round of golf. Dry off after
your Union and Mayreau dives whilst marveling
at the Tobago Cays and watching for that ever
elusive green flash at sunset.
Join the lucky few who have discovered St. Vincent
& the Grenadines diving... you'll be pleased
you did!
Links
& Sources:
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