The Carib Canoe Project Leg 2: St. Lucia to St. Vincent

Day 8, May 20

After another successful morning hussling around the two boats at Pidgen Point, we sailed beezily against the current to Castries in St. Lucia. As the wind totally died at the harbour mouth, we gladly took a tow from a fellow Gommier into the harbour.

Some of the crew spent the afternoon selling craft alongside the canoe and others went to the Folk Research Center, where we showed the video of the Gli Gli's construction and slides to a selection of students from five schools. The response was excellent and the students asked intelligent questions.

We did our best explaining of the regional importance of Carib culture and started the job of breaking down standard myths about Caribs that have been propagated over the past 500 years. It was an extremely satisfying experience and, although spontaeously put together, served as a good trial for what we would like to accomplish - to educate peoples of the region about Caribs and Carib culture.

In the evening we received sad news that Son, the basket maker of the expedition, had to return to Dominica because his child was seriously ill.

Day 9, May 21

The morning was spent in Castries organizing Son's departure and using The National Trust's ideal office facilities. Local businesses gave us a generous supply of chicken, juices and fresh vegetables. In the afternoon we sped over the flat water down the leward coast enjoying the beautiful scenery and, as usual, watched for gusts.

Tim, a friend from Tortola, passed on advice he read from an 18th century sailing guide for the windwards, which suggested either sailing a mile off shore or within a "pistol shot" of shore. We can confirm the value of the pistol shot theory. It seems the coastal current is not so strong, except on the points, and the breeze, although sometimes gusty, is more forthcoming close to shore.

The sail into Souffriere Bay was one our most spectacular and amusing so far. The beautiful town - set deep in the bay north of the Pitons - had the whole population of school pupils out to greet us. The beach was black with children all screaming and wailing.

As we neared the jetty the children's exitment grew, but as the Gli Gli turned to use the wind to guide it in (thus facing the other way) there was an instant lull when the childern wrongly thought we were headed for the other dock along the beach. In an instant there was mass rush to the other dock. When we turned back to glide into the original spot they had been waiting, they swarmed back to meet us!

Carmela came into the bay as the sun wassetting and we settled into a peaceful night after the buzzing crowd disapated.

Day 10, May 22

All day we were in the hands of the National Trust representative at Suffriere who organized school visits and more school visits - all of which we managed to pull off with conviction.

We also had an interesting visit to Pralin, a town on the south east coast, where Carib-style Gommier canoes are still made. Chalo, Morlin and Prince took a keen interest in their techniques but found them to be a little different from their own. The canoe makers of St. Lucia make a longer pince to their canoe .

Although gommier trees are left in St. Lucia, an increasing amount of fiberglass boats are being used. Building Gommier canoes seems to be a dying art even though it is still a source of pride for the few communities involved.

After stopping in Vieux Fort, we had an inspiring visit to the Carib pottery makers on the south west tip of the Island. They demonstrated their ancient techniques amongst beautiful wattle daub (wickerwork plastered with mud or clay) huts. To make their pots, they dig, clean and pound the clay on the spot at their pottery studio and at once handbuilt them (no pottery wheel). The pots are then dried and burnished - ready to be fired in an open fire.

The older mixed-blood Caribs in this community were happy to meet their fellow tribesmen and had much to talk about. We found out that they had once been great canoe builders (though there is not a tree in sight these days). They passed on useful advice about sailing across the channel to St. Vincent and warned us of the strong currents coming down from Vieux Fort. It was hard to leave them.

That evening we bathed by moonlight in the incredible hot springs under the Pitons. - completing the magic of our stay in St. Lucia.

Day 11, May 23

An early start in the Gli Gli took us down past the awe inspiring Pitons as we set out under full sail. Watching for the heavy down blasts that come off the mountains, we sailed into a strong current as we began the crossing. After a couple af hours we cleared the current and could ease off a bit and head for St. Vincent's volcano. It was a long but peaceful crossing in ideal conditions, even though we didn't catch any fish.

We reached the leward coast of St. Vincent as the sun was going down and instead of going into Chateaubelair, we decided to take a tow from Carmela to Kingstown.

Day 12, May 24

On waking up in Kingstown we began by organizing the expedition up to the Carib community in Sandy Bay. Pat Frajer, leader of the Carib cultural group, gave all of the Carib crew and three of us non-Caribs a warm welcome.

The rest of the afternoon some crew hung out in the village chatting and making friends with the "Black" Caribs and others went fishing in the heavy Atlantic swells. The Black Caribs are known as such because when a slave ship wrecked on the shores of St. Vincent before Europeans colonized the island, the survivors became part of the Carib community. Their spirit of apartness and "Caribness" is still strong.

The evening was spent with the Carib cultural group drumming (we bought some of our own) all around the village. The atmosphere was fantastic and the brotherly/sisterly feeling between the two groups of Caribs was strong and binding...like the rum!

Day 13, May 25

The St. Vincent Caribs took us on an amazing drive in the back of a pick up along the cliffside road to the village of Fancy. We passed the "Bloody Bridge" where the famous Carib leader Chatonyer was killed by the British during the Carib Wars in the late 1700s. His legacy lives on and the glimmer of his spirit of resistance can be felt.

This is a rugged area and clearly a last desperate stronghold of a people forced from their tribal lands. The hillsides are cleared (sadly,no more Gommiers here) and planted in near vertical terraces of peanuts, arrowroot, cassava and tomatoes. The visit to Fancy was quiet but interesting. We saw stone tools that villagers had discovered in their fields.

In the afternoon we cooled off by the Salt Pond - a saltwater pool set in the rocks on the rugged coast. The Caribs of the group spent the night at Sandy Bay while we non-Caribs returned to Young Island where the Carmela and GliGli was awaiting us. The connection has been forged and friendships made that will hopefully strengthen the unity of the Carib tribe in the future.

Day 14, May 26

We gathered provisions in Kingstown and awaited the return of our Carib crewmembers. New crew arrived from Tortola, by boat and plane.

Day 15, May 27

We got an early start as a good breeze sent Gli Gli flying across the channel to Bequia. On entering Admirally Bay, we met the biggest flottilla yet with much horn blowing and cameras snapping. After a speedy and gusty sail up the bay we rowed in under escort to the Frangipani Hotel where an amazing reception was organized for us by Otmar Schaedle, Tom and Sally Erdle and other generous residents of Bequia.

We drank, partied and sold crafts the rest of the day. In the evening we were entertained in splendor surronded by the rubbings of the St. Vincent Petrogliphs at Schaedle's hotel "The Old Fort" - an amazing night which topped off a wonderful day.