Seeing the Real Montserrat: 4 Jun 09
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| Nearly there.... |
Montserrat is not on everyone’s list of must-do places in the Caribbean, however an article in the local cruising rag, Compass (Jun 09), gave us an itch that we needed to scratch. So, the pick was set in 20 feet and black sand in Little Bay on the north end (safe zone) of the island. Needless to say, the Cap’n was swamped by a clutch of tour guides when he reported to customs to clear in. We did sign up for a four hour tour, realising later (as you do!) that 2 hours would have been sufficient. There’s not a whole lot of the island left that isn’t off limits.
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| A personal welcome |
Citrus-seeker Joe in Avalon was our appointed guide. We met his wife, chatted to his son, saw his new house and I'm sure we met all his friends!! We did some touring too, to fill in any empty moments between waving and tooting all and sundry!!
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| Is this really Avalon? And is this the real fountain of youth? |
Joe’s friend, Theresa showed us her fabulous garden, high up on the hills overlooking Little Bay. She runs a guest house and enjoys cooking with the bounty of her fruitful garden.
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| Theresa's bountiful garden |
Theresa also has a strong interest in medicinal herbs, so we passed by a good hour combing her garden beds. Whilst so occupied, Joe cut a coconut for us to drink and sliced off generous pieces of mammy apple, a fruit that was new to us. It tasted a bit like mango mixed with apricot. Of course, we stopped to refresh ourselves by tasting pure (running) spring water. Oh, no! Not another blasted fountain of youth? Her Crabbiness reports that this one didn’t work either!
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| Vocanic Montesrrat under cloud cover |
After seeing the lushness of north Montserrat, we had an “up close & personal” look at the devastation caused to the south by this still active volcano. After “sleeping” for over 400 years, the Montserrat volcano erupted in 1995 with a roar. Further eruptions took place in 1997, 2003, 2006, 2007 and yes, as reported in our Antigua post, 2008 just as we were exploring Antigua. The photo (above) seems peaceful enough but belies its explosive nature. Joe had a great photo of the mountain belching huge volumes of dust and smoke with local people calmly shopping at market tables (in front of these shops) for their daily supplies. No panic, just a calm reserve. If we ignore it, perhaps it will it go away.....  |
Image by Ivan25 - Own work, Public Domain,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10880736 |
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| Monserrat shows her strength |
The extent & depth of volcanic dust that has settled over these years is amazing. The exclusion zone was filled with ghost houses and resorts, empty and neglected. Joe had plenty of “before” photos that he was able to show us, so that we could see the true extent of damage from the various vantage points that he took us. He also drove us up to the Observatory where volcanologists observe and record the daily life of this very active volcano. It was all incredibly impressive but most of all you really have to admire the stamina of the people to live around it, and in spite of it. Sobering reality!
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| An up close and personal tour with Joe |
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| Remains of a dock in what once was a busy port |
There are plans a plenty to develop Montserrat; particularly a new, safe site for a capital and then as a tourist destination. Workers toiled and massive modern machinery pulsed as acres of concrete are shaped into a modern community. Still, when we saw the imposing prison complex resting high up on a cliff edge (with undoubtedly the best view in Montserrat) we wondered where the funds were really coming from to support this infrastructural flurry. If you’re into conspiracy theories, Montserrat has 7000 citizens. How many can be really that bad??
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| WJ3 afloat in Little Bay |
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