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This Could
Happen to You
You’ve just had a spectacular
day in Paradise. Everything has gone perfectly. The
sun was bright, the sky was blue, the water was crystal clear,
and the beer was ice
cold. You had a spectacular afternoon nap. And now, as the sun
has just set, you’ve changed into your favorite “parrot”
shirt and poured yourself a pre-dinner cocktail
as you anticipate an evening of fine
dining ashore. Life does not get any better than this. You pile 8
people into a four-foot dinghy and make your way towards
shore. As you approach the dinghy dock, you observe that
it is jammed with other dinghies and there is simply no room
to slide in there. Your growling stomach reminds you
that you are not going to be denied, so you press
on. You shine your flashlight and try to find a spot
somewhere in the maze of outboards and tangled lines.
After muscling several dinghies aside, you finally arrive at a
rotting structure with sharp rusty spikes haphazardly sticking
out to ensure that your inflatable doesn’t remain so.
Your perfect day is slipping away. A
shadowy figure leaps from the darkness and insists on helping
out. “Give me da rope,” he says. Of
course his fee will be discussed later, as will the fee for
guarding your dinghy. Scaling the four-foot wall to
the dock platform is no problem for Spiderman, but your
guests, who haven’t turned a cartwheel in decades, find the
going a little tough. After a few tense moments, you finally do get everybody
ashore without falling in, tearing their shorts, or soiling that
new Parrot shirt. Of
course there is no part of the dock structure solid enough to
run the security wire through, so by default, that shadowy
figure becomes your security strategy. In a nutshell, it’s $10 EC or
face the prospects of swimming back to the boat later and dealing with
the police report in the morning. Later,
when you return, the four-foot drop is now six because the
tide is low. You somehow have to get your party, who
have had exactly one too many Rummers, down down down into
that tiny dinghy which
is no longer there. Sound
familiar?
Wide Range of Facilities
This scenario is of course
extreme, but parts of it happen with amazing regularity. I am surprised that higher priority is
not placed on adequate docking facilities at popular tourist
locations. Local establishments work hard to attract
your dollar, but it seems that you need military training to
reach them. I have
compiled a list of the 5 outstanding dinghy docks in The
Grenadines. Study it carefully:
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Most of the remaining docks in
the region are quite reasonable, while a few are downright
dangerous. The dinghy docks on Carriacou have yet to be
rebuilt after their total destruction from Hurricane Lenny, so
they don’t rank as of yet.
I have compiled a list of the
major dinghy docks in The Grenadines, with a summary
of their strengths and weaknesses in the following major
categories: general condition, ease of loading/unloading,
exposure, lighting, and security. There is a total rating,
measured on the Rummer scale, that Internationally recognized
standard of measurement.
1. Britannia Bay, Mustique
Probably the best dinghy dock in
The Grenadines in my opinion. This unit has plenty of capacity on both
sides, and is equipped with a lower step to make climbing in
and out a breeze. Rails on both sides provide adequate
space to tie up and lock up. Mustique is a very safe
destination, so security is not a big worry. There is
some lighting provided by a nearby streetlight.
Surprisingly, The Mustique Company has not done anything about
the one youth who insists on collecting money to “watch” your dinghy. For this reason, I have
“docked” a half point off the perfect score of 5 and rated
it a
4½.
  Rating:
4½ Rummers
2. Petit St. Vincent
Another great dock with plenty of capacity, protective side
boards, security cleats, and night lighting. PSV is
already a secure destination, so you do not have to
worry. Capacity is not usually a problem, as there are
never usually that many people ashore at any given time.
Rating:
Rating: 4½ Rummers
3. The Frangipani, Bequia
The dock at The Frangipani is
third best, hands down. This establishment is extremely
generous, given that the majority of people who use their dock
do not frequent their bar or restaurant. The dock is well
lit, and its close proximity to the bar means that there are
people around, lowering the risk of something happening to
your dinghy. There are plenty of rails to tie up and
lock on to. The only drawback is the limited space, as
one side of the dock is reserved for water taxi loading and
unloading. Some nights, it is next to impossible to find a
spot, and for that reason, it ranks a 4 out of 5.
Rating: 4 Rummers
4. Barefoot Yacht
Charters,
Blue Lagoon, St. Vincent
Barefoot has an excellent dock
with a step, making it somewhat easier to reach the elevated
platform. There are charter base staff around during the
day and a night watchman (nicknamed “Watchie,” of course) on duty
after hours, making it reasonable safe. The dock is also
lit at night. The dock and step are fairly high, necessary
because of the tides and exposure, making it a
little difficult to get in to the dinghy late at light, especially
after a few too many of bartender Utan’s famous rum punches.
Rating: 4 Rummers
5. Salt Whistle Bay, Mayreau
The dock is primarily used for
the launch that ferries guests to and from the Salt Whistle
Bay Resort, but they have been so kind as to make it
dinghy-friendly. The bay is very well protected, so the dock
is close to the water, making it easy to get in and out of the dinghy.
It is also lit at night, which is a help, although Salt Whistle
is not a place where you have to worry much about security.
You do have to thread your lock wire through the slats of the
dock, as there is no rail. Side boards to prevent your
dinghy from going under the dock would be necessary for it to earn
that perfect 5 rating.
Rating: 4 Rummers
6. Palm Island
The dock at the Palm Island
Resort is not really
a dinghy dock. It was constructed as a terminal for the
launch that ferries supplies and guests to and from the
resort. Its industrial-strength construction and high
walls were built to hold larger boats, so it is not really
dinghy-friendly. That first step can be a killer, and
you have to rely on the easterly breeze to prevent your dinghy from
going under the dock. Although it only ranks a 3 out of 5, it is totally useable for
a quick afternoon stop on the island.
Rating: 3 Rummers
7. Anchorage Yacht Club, Clifton
Harbor, Union Island
The dock at Anchorage Yacht
Club is the most popular of the three in Clifton Harbor, as
the club is the most popular destination of many charter
guests. There are plenty of Dinghy Mafia representatives
onsite, however they will only harass you to take your garbage
or refill your gas can. The dock is watched by Yacht Club and
Charter Company staff and is lit at night, making it
reasonably safe and secure. The major problem with this
dock is that there are no side boards to
protect you from the razor-sharp shards of rusted metal that
protrude from underneath the dock. Keeping your
inflatable inflated is a major concern. You must also rely on the easterly breeze to keep your dinghy
from going under the dock and shredding itself to death.
There is also a chronic lack of rails to tie and secure your
dinghy. I can only rate this dock a 2 out of 5.
Rating: 2 Rummers
8. Bougainvilla Complex, Clifton Harbor,
Union Island
The dock at Bougainvilla is
strategically located near the center of town, Customs, and
the Bougainvilla Complex, making it an ideal stopping place
for your dinghy. The dock is a floater, so it is relatively
easy to get on and off, however it is in a state of
extreme disrepair, requiring you to carefully watch your step.
There is a Dockmaster on duty during the day, so your dinghy
is relatively safe, or so it would seem. Because the
dock is also used as a water refueling station for yachts,
there may be one or more of them stern-to at the dock.
Consequently, the Dockmaster will ask that you not lock your
dinghy in case he needs to shuffle things around. I have
personally seen dinghies “coming loose” and finding
their way conveniently in the hands of the local Dinghy
Mafia, expecting a reward for the rescue. One particular
representative of this organization has been described to me
as the “village robber,” although this was never
substantiated. When he once charged me $60 EC to refuel my
half-empty gas can, I began to see what they meant. The
uneasy feeling you get when you use this dock earns it only a
2 out of 5.
Rating: 2 Rummers
9. Lambi's, Clifton Harbor, Union
Island
My pal Lambi has a great thing
going, however his dock cannot be classified as a dinghy dock
no matter how many Rummers you’ve had. The main dock is
solid concrete, designed to berth a yacht, not a
dinghy. That first step is a killer, and there is no way
to prevent your dinghy from going under the dock and thrashing
itself to death. There is absolutely no possible way to
lock your dinghy, even if you have a degree in mechanical
engineering. There are plenty of Lambi’s staff around,
so you have to rely on them for security. This is not a
great place to land a dinghy.
There is also another spot on the right side of the building
that can accept one dinghy, provided there are no water taxis
there already. The wooden dock has totally rotted out
and numerous rusty nails await those who are not extremely
careful. You must use the rafters of the building if you
want something to run your locking chain through. No
kidding. You must also spring the dinghy front and aft
to prevent it from going under the building and destroying
itself. This is not a pretty place, and I’m hoping
someday that Lambi will take steps to improve this. As a
result, poor old Lambi’s facility scores a half on the Rummer scale.
Rating:
½ Rummer
10. Saline Bay, Mayreau
Saline Bay on Mayreau has two
docks, neither of them are even close to acceptable for landing a dinghy. The
first dock is the commercial pier on the north end of the Bay. This concrete structure is not a dinghy dock at
all, as it was designed to accept larger cargo boats.
There is a lower concrete pad near the shore that people use
as a dinghy dock, however it is really intended for use by
local fisherman and water taxis. You really should not leave a
dinghy there, else accept the consequences of somebody moving
it out of their way while you are ashore. Because the pad
is on the windward side of the pier, your dinghy will most
certainly end up
under the dock if anybody moves it, resulting in severe damage
to your outboard as it smashes against the underside of the dock with
each wave. This dock is not lit at night and it is pitch
black there, making it a
security concern. There is usually one mentally handicapped
youth from the village named Colin who will ask to “watch” your dinghy. He is totally reliable,
and I usually spot him a few EC, more as a friendly gesture
than a necessity. He is not associated with the
Grenadines Dinghy Mafia. This dock barely scores at all on
the Rummer scale.
Rating:
½ Rummer The
second dock is located in the middle of the beach area.
Although recently upgraded, it was built to handle a passenger
launch from the cruise ship and not a dinghy, so the side boards
just a
little too high. You cannot leave a dinghy there during the
day when cruise ships are in port, as it will be reduced to
subatomic particles as a result of the hordes of people crawling
over the facility. At night, this dock is in total
darkness and somewhat exposed to sea swells, meaning that your
dinghy will likely be found later under the dock, smashed to
bits. You could throw out a dinghy anchor, but I have had
bad experiences with this plan when other traffic has fouled
the anchor, cutting the anchor line - the dinghy still ended up
under the dock. This is not a place to leave a dinghy.
Rating:
½ Rummer
As a result, a beach landing
near the commercial pier is your best plan for coming ashore in
Saline Bay. Hopefully, each of your party are trained Navy
SEALs and have the beach landing drill done in total darkness down
cold. Fail to execute this maneuver perfectly and you will
end up with wet clothes, a dinghy full of salt water and sand,
and a fouled propeller. I
have spoken to Dennis from Dennis’s Hideaway about the lack of
dinghy facilities in Saline Bay, as his business might be
somewhat impacted if it is only accessible to highly-trained
individuals. He assured me that he would not
consider anything until the Government put electricity on the
Island. With that promise being fulfilled in the Fall of
2001, all eyes will be on Dennis.
11. Tobago Cays
None of the islands on The
Tobago Cays have dinghy docks, and that’s OK with me.
These deserted islands really do not require any form of
development, as they are great the way they are. By day,
the lack of docks provide an interesting opportunity to hone
your beach landing skills. By night, you’re on your
own.
12. Carriacou
As previously mentioned, the dinghy docks on Carriacou have yet to be
rebuilt after their total destruction from Hurricane Lenny, so
they don’t rank yet. The plan for Tyrrel Bay is quite
impressive. Once the road is rebuilt along the beach at
Harvey Vale, a protective barrier will be constructed,
followed by thatched huts. At that time, landowners will
then be permitted to rebuild their dinghy docks.
Conclusions...
In summary, most of the dinghy
docks in The Grenadines meet the basic requirements of the
charter guest making a trip to shore. Some work is
needed in Clifton Harbor, and a whole lot of work is needed in
Saline Bay. Hopefully, somebody will get the message. *
* *
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