St Lucia

December 2017

Tuesday December 12th – St Lucia

Captain’s Log: “As the sun rose for another stunning Caribbean day, Azura made her approach into Castries with the local pilot boarded at 06:02. Once the pilot was on board and clearance to enter the channel was given, Azura proceeded into Castries harbour, passing Vigie airport on our Port side. Captain Evans Hoyt then manoeuvred Azura, bow to Port, in the swinging basin and berthed Starboard side to quay at Pointe Seraphine.” St Lucia lies in the eastern Caribbean about 21 miles south of Martinique and 26 miles north east of St Vincent.

The P&O Blurb said “Lush valleys of coconut and banana plantations, golden sandy beaches and majestic mounts of the Pitons, St Lucia is a delight to explore. Take a coastal cruise to the Caribbean’s only ‘drive in’ volcano, see the charming bay of Marigot or take one of the more adventurous options to discover the island’s inner beauty.” It continued “St Lucia is one of the Caribbean’s little treasures. A medley of sights is just waiting to be discovered – colourful fishing villages, secluded beaches, magnificent rain forests and exotic blossoms. The scenery is stunning. Dazzling beaches surround a patchwork in shades of green, made up of tropical fruit fields, rugged jungles with wild orchids, giant ferns and bird of paradise flowers.”

It did look very inviting as we docked. Gingerbread houses hugged the hillsides, surrounding the shops and busy harbour. I was off the ship as soon as possible and walked out of the port along a busy road until I found a Hertz office. A local said they had no cars available. The island was busy for Xmas and all car rentals as far as they knew, were booked, They did me the favour of calling half a dozen companies who all said they were completely booked. I walked back to the terminal. Independent companies were doing their own tours of the island so Wendy and I booked onto one. It was better than nothing and we would see the Pitons.

A small minibus containing about a dozen ship passengers were driven by our guide Randolf. It would be a 5 hour tour covering various sights. The island was discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1502 but he did not step ashore. It had a turbulent history and for centuries was fought over because of its strategic position, changing hands 14 times between the English and French. Eventually becoming self-governing in 1967 it became fully independent in 1979 but remains a member of the British Commonwealth. Tourism had surged ahead of agriculture as the main source of income.

Cruise ships berth at the magnificent landlocked harbour at Castries. The city stands at the head of the bay with the hill of Morne fortune (850ft) on one side, and the promontory of Vigie Peninsula and its airport on the other. The population of St Lucia is about 182,000 with around 70,000 living in the capital. The city has been burnt down or partly destroyed by fire so many times that few old buildings remain.

As we passed through Castries, Randolf pointed out the Parliament Building and the Derek Walcott Square renamed in honour of the 1992 winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. This was an open space of about three acres, with the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (1899) at its east end. There was also a large 400 year old Samaan tree. Castries has suffered four major fires over the last 200 years.

The Mountain of Morne Fortune rose behind the capital city and its name, chosen by the French means “Hill of Good Luck”. On the way up to the top of this steep hill was the Governor General’s residence, one of the few British colonial style buildings left on the island, from which there was an excellent view of the city. We got out at the viewpoint for photographs while various souvenir sellers offered goods in a non-aggressive manner. The remains of the strategically located Fort charlotte (1794) stood at the top of Morne Fortune and was the scene of much of the British and French fighting.

To the South of Castries, the winding, hilly Le Toc Road took us into the Cul-de-Sac Valley. Forested and mountainous, St Lucia has numerous rivers which flow into valleys of orchids, roses, hibiscus, begonias, frangipani, passion flowers, bougainvillaea and tropical fruit. We passed large banana plantations along the way and stopped at one. There are also 90 species of bird. Not that we saw any of importance. St Lucia was certainly an attractive lush island which we rated very highly.

After passing the attractive beaches of Anse La Raye and Canaries, we descended the steep switch-backing road and stopped for a magnificent view of The Pitons. These are St Lucia’s most famous landmark and dominate the landscape. They are thought to be spines of lava that were thrust up from the craters of two volcanoes. The steep slopes are covered in tropical rain forests. Named a World Heritage site in 2004, they have come to symbolise St Lucia’s untamed beauty. Gros Piton is 771 m (2,530 ft) high, and the Petit Piton is 743 m (2,438 ft) high. They are linked by the Piton Mitan ridge. On a clear sunny day (like today), I think they are the most magnificent sight I have seen in the Caribbean. It would be worth coming to St Lucia just to see them.

Soufriere, was St Lucia’s first settled town and former capital during French Rule. It is now the third largest town and 20 miles south west of Castries stands at the head of a deep bay overshadowed by the twin peaks of Gros Piton and Petit Piton. Despite a fire in 1955, it still looks typically West Indian with a colonial atmosphere and picturesque surroundings. We didn’t stop.

Behind Soufriere the land rises for about two miles inland to the crater of a sleeping volcano (‘Sulphur Springs’). This is the caldera (Collapsed volcano) that allowed you to drive directly into the seven acre crater. We were taken to another guide who lead us down a steep staircase to view the steam and bubbling springs (from a distance). Having seen a lot of these in Iceland and Indonesia, the scenery was lovely but it was a pity we couldn’t get close to the bubbly steamy sulphur springs.

Our next stop was the Toraille Waterfall. After getting through the entrance hut and paying the entrance fee, we walked the short distance through a small botanical garden to the waterfall, which was fronted by man-modified plunge pool designed for a dip beneath the falls. The falls were around 10m tall. We changed into our swimwear and then took turns to stand under the thundering water. Great fun. We stopped at a garage to fill up with fuel. They sold ice cold ‘Piton’ beer and I bought a couple. In the sweltering heat, they tasted magnificent.

Towards the coast was Marigot Bay, a palm fringed cove in a true tropical setting where lush foliage covered hills descend on every side to the water’s edge. This has been the location of several Hollywood movies (e.g. Dr Doolittle 1967) and is a popular yachting harbour. We were only 7 miles south of Castries and returned back to the port terminal. It had been an excellent tour.

Late afternoon as we departed, there was another P&O cruise ship leaving. All passengers were invited up to the 17th and 18th decks for the “Great British Sail Away”. Union Jacks were handed out and English. Scottish, Welsh and Irish songs played over the loud speakers. We pulled out at dusk and it was strange to look down on the spot lit airport runway which was so close it felt as if you could touch it from the ship. That night was the final Black Tie evening. We dressed up but went to the Venezia buffet instead.

Captain’s Log: “Since departure from Martinique until arrival at St Lucia, Azura steamed a distance of 86 nautical miles. With all departure checks complete, Azura was thrust off the berth to Port. She then proceeded to sail out of the harbour, passing the end of Vigie Airport’s nearby runway. Shortly after, Azura was altered to a South-westerly heading as we made way toward our next port of call, St Georges, on the island of Grenada.”

We rated St Lucia very highly, our second favourite island. I fell there would be enough to do here to justify a return and a week’s holiday. We probably barely scratched the service. It is a very lush attractive island with mountains, volcanoes and the local people were friendly and laid back. Recommended.