Tobago Cays

I've been dreaming about sailing to the Tobago Cays for 30 years, since I read an article in Outside Magazine about how you could rent a boat and sail to this paradise. It wasn't in the cards for me then, but I kept it in the back of my mind. So, as I motor in through the southern passage, being very alert to the color of the water, since I read about how many boats have gone aground entering this way, I am actually excited! I like to tell people that I don't get that way, but this is one of those dream come true moments, and the scenery doesn't let me down. The Tobago Cays are five small islands, four of which are protected by the appropriately named Horseshoe Reef, which, in turn, is protected by the equally appropriately named World's End Reef, about two miles out. Beyond that, it is 2500 miles to western Africa. I can see both breaks, with astonishingly varied shades of blue all around.

The entire area is protected as a national park, with no fishing or hunting allowed. As a result, the waters are full of turtles - at one point while snorkeling, I saw four at the same time, with a large sting ray swimming under them. The reef fish are some of the best I've seen in the eastern Caribbean, as is the water clarity (vis, for my diving friends). I hike on one of the islands and find it well populated with iguanas and even see (and pick up, of course) a red footed tortoise which weighs at least 20 pounds. It's amazing how life recovers when harvesting is strictly regulated.

Even though its a national park, the government permits concessionaires, so a boat pulls along side in the morning and sells me a fresh baguette. I spend most of my time snorkeling, and this time of the year, the water is still so warm that even I don't get cold! Words can't do it justice, so here are a few pics:

 

 

 

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