That's not just haze out there people.. it's African dust.

This one is a repost from March 2007. I thought it would be good because today when I got up and look outside there was a blanket of African dust over Antigua. In fact, it's so thick that I can hardly see Jumby Bay, Long Island. I don't know how long this one will last but the photographers won't be so happy today. If you would like to learn more have a read of the following old blog post:

So ya...the purple haze from yesterday's post is all here..

This morning the haze isn't as bad as it was yesterday thankfully, but its still there and we won't be seeing Montserrat today on the south side. "Sahara Dust" also known as African Dust comes across the Atlantic every year blanketing the region in haze. Many people think incorrectly that the haze has something to do with Montserrat's, but the world's most studied volcano, Soufriere, has nothing to do with it. What happens is that high winds blow massive quantities of dust from western and northern Africa up into the sky. Millions and millions of tons a year of it comes across the Atlantic passing through the Caribbean traveling on the same trade winds that brought the original European settlers here. The dust reaches the south-eastern part of the usa too. There is loads of info on all of this on the web these days and after googling "african dust" i came across many articles on it. Anyway, what most of them agree upon is that since the early 1970s the mass and content of the dust has changed dramatically. Yesterday there was yet another terrible report about glaciers melting, but equally scary is how the deserts are growing. Extreme droughts possibly to do with the "green house effect" as well as changing land and water use has resulted in more land losing its vegetation. Of course this results in more dust getting into the air, but that isn't the worst of it. Since the 1970's there has also been a change in the composition of the dust. There is now all kinds of pollutants contained inside the dust and many scientists are now attributing much of the decline in our coral reefs to this increase in african dust. It’s quite logical actually because we all know that when coral is covered with silt of any kind in can die, so with african dust filled with pesticides and all the other nasties covering the coral each year, it’s not hard to make the connection. Poor coral! There are so many things killing it off that i think much of it is gone forever. Sadly, i remember when i was a teenager just 15 years ago snorkeling on huge coral forests teaming with life. See the movie Finding Nemo....that's what the reef was like here back then. All of a sudden we had a few mega-hurricanes and most of the reef was gone. Many people blame the hurricanes which were stronger than Antigua had seen in over 2000 years (a fact that i will talk about another time), but the reef's decline wasn't just because of the storms. If you are interested in reading more then bookmark this link on coral and african dust.

I suppose it will take more time and study to find out all the negative effects of this increase in african dust, but there is at least one positive result. Kind of... Using satellite imagery, the NAOAA people predict when we in the Caribbean will get "african dust surges", and we actually know days in advance when it will be hazy. This is an image of dust coming off Africa.

Check here for more of these images. They have done many studies on the effects of the dust on our weather and have concluded without a doubt that increased levels of the dust can hinder hurricane formation which is wildly interesting to me. Considering the fact that due to "global warming" we are forecast to have more conducive conditions for extreme hurricane formation, it is also interesting that also due to global warming the increase in dust helps to deter these storms from forming. The way it works is that the dust doesn’t come across the Atlantic in a constant stream and instead comes in big waves almost like weather fronts. If good hurricane forming conditions and the dust appear in the same area, then water droplets inside the clouds become too heavy when mixed with the dust and fall out of the sky before they get a chance to become huge thunderstorms. The dust kills the storms before they get a chance to turn into hurricanes. There are many articles on all of this here if you are interested.
Other issues that you may not think about which are due to the dust have to do with the mess it makes. My boats are covered in brown clay like dust after weekends like this. I know that we will have to clean them tomorrow morning because of this hazy weekend.

I am glad i don't have to clean sails! Many of the yachts doing crossings come in with dirty sails and even aircraft have trouble on the leading edges of their equipment.
My eyes have given me more and more problems over the past few years and i sometimes wonder if it’s due to all the time i spend in the outdoors in contact with this increased dust. According to several studies, an increase in certain diseases can also be attributed to african dust. Great!...another thing to worry about right? If you are one of those people interested or worried about germs...check this out: Sorry:) There is another interesting health report on This one too.
Anyway, there is a hell of a lot interesting info to digest on the whole "Sahara dust" topic and i hope you found it as interesting as i said it would be. It’s a good thing it’s not all negative though. That thing about the hurricanes is gonna make me sleep better in the summer. One of the other cool things that can happen as a result of the dust is the sunsets.

They even have articles on that. The pics above are of cool dusty sunsets. The satellite one is of dust coming off Africa.

Response to recent Tripadvisor review

Hi there, I hear what you are saying about the numbers of the tour, and agree that the tours would be more enjoyable if the 52 foot boat (built by Cooper Marine in the USA and US Coast Guard Certified for 49 people) only took a dozen people. This isn't practical at all for a huge number of reasons including the simple fact that doing business in Antigua is way way way more expensive than doing business back in the USA or in Europe or the UK. Our margins are very small and when we take 12 people out on the boat we make a considerable loss a the end of the 40 mile round trip from the marina.
That all being said, we don't pack 49 people on the boat as the other similar boats made by Cooper marine and passed by the US Coast Guard do in the us. We keep the numbers considerably lower. During peak season there are days when the boat carries up to 31 people (we have seating for 31 without people sitting on the gunwale or on the cabin tops which is where many end up sitting to get better views up in the mangrove areas and off shore islands). There are many days during the season and way too many in the off season where this tour takes half that number by the way. I would rather not add more seats but after these two latest reviews I think we will add more aluminum pipe seats just so people have more options on where to sit and so people don't have to sit next to people they don't know. Dont forget this isn't a private charter though and sitting next to strangers is what happens on our tours unless you have private chartered.
One more thing on the seating. This boat is 52 feet long and 16 feet wide. It is mostly open with plenty of space for more seats. As far as seats per sqaure foot I would bet that we have the lowest seat density of all excursion boats in Antigua. We have competitors who have smaller boats with almost as many passengers and all of the boats our size and larger carry significantly more passengers. We operate a sailing cat the same size that takes 49. All of the sailing catamarans take more passengers. Usually at least one person per foot is the norm. I know of an 85 foot cat taking over 100 people. We don't have a crouded boat. I challenge anyone to go on a boat of similar size to our one during peak season and compare the two. We are significatnly less crouded with space to walk around and move around the boat. Visit our facebook page where we put hundreds of images up from tours that we have done over the past year. You see it looking crouded? Well if you were expecting 12 people on a boat that can carry 49 then yes 31 may appear crouded.
At the end of the day the boat is only a bus to get you to the hike, to get you to hells gate, to get you to our snorkeling spots.
As you can see from the other reviews, most people like the way the activities are split up between eco talks, hikes, caving, snorkeling and sight seeing. Some people want to snorkel only. I had a couple call me yesterday saying that they were only interested in snorkeling and not much else. I told them to rent a car and told them where to go and explore. My tour wasn't for them. This is an eco tour which has the best mix of a bunch of activities that me and my cousins got up to as kids in the beautiful North Sound. I still think that according to most definitions this tour is an eco tour. Some complain that we spend too much time talking about mangroves, turtles, snakes and nesting birds.... Adventure Antigua's Eco Tour can satisfy your every desire. We will always endeavor to do our best to make sure that it was the best day you experienced during your holiday.

“Too many people on the excursion”

Reviewed February 6, 2012 NEW

It was advertised as an eco tour with not to many people to give it a luxurious tinge.
There were to many persons on the catamaran, hard for everyone to find a seat.
The snorkeling was very short and to me it wasn't quite sure what eco meant.
The talk about turtles? The tour through the mangroves?
The trip through Hells Gate was great. Friendly hostesses.

Visited January 2012

As seen on TV in the USA this week.

A nice little video showing off our little adventure/snorkeling tour company (and me).  

www.adventureantigua.com

Great photos of our Eco Tour from last week here in Antigua.

These photos are taken each day on our Eco Tour by our captain JD. He just uses his I-Phone and puts them on our facebook page. Click here for that page.
These images were from the Eco Tour on Wed January 25th and as you can see the weather made for a lovely trip. Read more about this tour on our website: http://www.adventureantigua.com/tour.html#EcoTour
This trip is perfect for the family and both young and not so young can enjoy this snorkeling tour out on the water. Text or call from your mobile phone to +1 268 726 6355 or just visit the site above.
We operate most days and pick up from many of the west coast hotels and from the cruise ship dock.
We are also on google+ and twitter.

www.adventureantigua.com

The People’s Republic of China and Antigua and Barbuda - South-South Cooperation OR a NOT SO Benign Dragon?

I have spent almost a year researching the subject of China’s diplomatic relationship with Antigua and Barbuda (AG) and the environmental consequences of this relationship. The recent heightened interest in this subject in AG has prompted me to write this piece.

Much of China’s interaction with large developing countries, such as within Africa and South America, has been well documented due to China’s huge appetite for natural resources to support their economic growth (Saich, 2011). With the exception of the issue of the ‘One China’ policy and Taiwan, a neglected theme throughout literature has been China’s policy and influence towards small developing nations especially towards small island developing states (SIDS) like AG. The recent increase in the level of Chinese attention in the small island nation of AG has piqued the interest of many. From the perspective of SIDS the implications of this developing diplomatic relationship could not only be extensive but could also be very important for the future of both national and international environmental standing as China appears to not have received much in return so far (Fieser, 2011). This is a concern because AG lacks any natural resources of significance and no country gives financial aid without it being ultimately beneficial to them. The result could be detrimental to AG and there is a fear of SIDS like AG being in a state of perpetual aid dependency.

First I am going to outline the environmental situation of AG as an integral part of the Caribbean and as a nation itself and I will then move to the beginning and subsequent development of AG’s diplomatic relations with China and the resulting impacts on our extremely important and sensitive environmental systems. Finally I will argue that if it were not China's presence in AG and the region, another country would fill it's place. Historically it has been shown that every country providing aid to the region has had their own agenda.

AG and it’s sensitive environment

Since the beginning of colonisation in 1632 by England the twin island state has been plagued with environmental destruction and degradation through the conversion of the natural vegetation into tobacco, cotton and sugar plantations and as a result AG and the Caribbean region as a whole currently maintains only 11.3% of its original biological habitat (Mittermeier et al., 1999). Even with this historical degradation, the Caribbean region and AG in particular have been highlighted in numerous reports and multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) as having high levels of endemism, high numbers of species per unit area and many regionally important habitats. Therefore as a region the Caribbean “could arguably be considered the highest-priority hotspots of all” (Mittermeier et al.,1999: 53) for biodiversity conservation within any global strategy (GoAB, 2008; Sullivan Sealey and Bustamante, 1999). Further, there is a strong economic dependence on the important linkages between the terrestrial and marine environments (Conway and Lorah, 1995) and conservation should therefore be of high priority within any government agenda.

AG unfortunately has a lack of protected areas and even the areas that are under protection suffer from a major lack of monitoring, regulation and enforcement (Albuquerque and McElroy, 1995). Today the main contributor to AG’s GDP is the tourism sector which again, more often than not, is associated with severe environmental degradation due to unregulated development and lack of monitoring and enforcement by government institutions. There are over forty pieces of legislation in AG that govern different aspects of the environment none of which give the Environment Division any authority. The Environmental Protection and Management Bill has been in draft form since 2003 leaving the Environment Division with no real legal basis to be able to carry out their work. Most of the forty plus pieces of legislation are legislation which “is out-dated and needs to be reassembled and realigned in a more coherent manner, and does not reflect the changes required by the regional and international Conventions to which the country is Party” (GoAB, 2008: 17).

The weak national agenda to protect AG’s environment is in direct contradiction to AG’s strong standing in the international community regarding to its involvement with the majority of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs). As a small developing country, AG is not only vulnerable to the impacts of global environmental change, but is a minor contributor to these problems. Yet, as a member of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), the Group of 77 and China, and Group of Latin America and Caribbean Countries (GRULAC) among others, AG is at the forefront of many environmental MEAs including climate change negotiations representing the most vulnerable. This position has unfortunately been compromised in the past as a result of financial aid provided by other countries e.g. with Japanese aid and AG’s voting in the International Whaling Commission. If AG can change its position at the IWC as a result of financial aid received from the Government of Japan, it is arguable this could also occur within other international agreements in which a donor country has its own agenda.

AG and China

AG established diplomatic relations with China in 1983, soon after independence from the British Empire in 1981. Over the following decades the economic and political power of China has been ever increasing, as has its interest within the Caribbean region and Latin America. In 2009 trade between China and the Caribbean reached US5.5 billion and China’s foreign direct investment into the Caribbean region reached US8.6 billion (Shooman, 2011). China generally promotes a ‘dollar diplomacy’ throughout the Caribbean and traditionally in exchange these countries which have good diplomatic relations with China, side with China in the ‘One-China’ policy within the UN (Sutter, 2010). Recently there has been a massive increase in Chinese aid in the form of loans and grants, received for developmental projects in AG. All of these projects have been designed by Chinese architects, constructed by Chinese labourers, made of imported Chinese materials and funded by Chinese dollars, which is normal procedure for Chinese aid (Sanders, 2010). The following are the projects that have been funded by China to date (the environmental implications of one of these will be discussed in detail below):

• Rehabilitation of Big Creek bridge
• Renovation of Grays Farm gutter drainage
• Chinese Multipurpose Cultural Centre in Antigua
• Electrification of KV-69 cable
• Development of the Free Trade Zone
• Reconstruction of Darkwood Beach bridge
• Mount St. John’s Hospital
• Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium
• Government to Government scholarships
• Green Castle Nursery
• Grays Farm Reservoir
• Island Wide Street Lighting Project
• Generators for APUA
• Chinese Cultural Centre in Barbuda
• Construction of new airport terminal

Island Wide Street Lighting Project (First Phase)

There have been several major environmental concerns about the implementation of the first phase of the Island Wide Street Lighting Project that have been voiced by environmental activists, NGOs and Government Agencies within AG. The first and most ecologically important implication of the street lights is that they run along many of the most important beaches for turtle nesting in AG, especially for the Critically Endangered Hawksbill and Leatherback Turtles. Direct lighting on or near beaches creates a high risk for nesting turtles and hatchlings as they are naturally attracted to illuminated areas. There have been several documented instances in the last year where baby turtles have been found dead on these roads travelling away from the ocean. Many of the street lights are also placed along mangrove ponds and swamps in which many internationally threatened birds species nest and so could have displacement impacts on these resident and migratory populations.

Apart from the negative implications that the lighting project has and will have on the ecology, the project does not appear to be in line with the newly formed Energy Desk that resides within the Office of the Prime Minister. The Energy Desk, established in the beginning of 2010, is mandated to ensure energy efficiency and develop a National Energy Policy and Sustainable Energy Plan for AG. A Government press release in February 2010, stated that "the National Energy Task Force will play an essential role in advising the Government on prospective energy-related research and development projects and in identifying and championing key activities geared towards increasing energy efficiency and conservation" (GoAB Press Release, 2010). The street lighting project may have been implemented prior to the formation of the Energy Desk but this does not alter the fact that no consultations were carried out with the any of the Government Agencies able to provide environmental advice on either national environmental issues, or obligations and objectives in the international arena. Further to this, China is the “world’s leading manufacturer of solar photovoltaic technology and it vying to take the lead in other critical renewable and low-carbon technologies” (Saich, 2011: 356) and this technology should have been requested as the highest priority. All of this said without even mentioning the current state and upkeep of these lights by APUA plus the fact that this is only the first phase of this project.

The cost of this project to the country in economic and environmental terms is extensive. First and foremost there is the obvious environmental cost of this project: light pollution, the impacting and killing of internationally threatened and endangered species, increase in emissions and other associated environmental power production costs from the amount of electricity needed to power the lights. The economic cost not only comes from the of the upkeep of these lights and the energy cost of running these but also the subsequent burden and cost of changing these lights in the near future to hopefully be in line with the objectives of the “National Energy Policy and Sustainable Energy Plan”. While the rest of the world are turning off their lights and switching more energy efficient means, we are doing the exact opposite.

Let’s hope that within the second phase environmental concerns are taken into consideration prior to implementation to avoid the negative impacts resulting from the first phase.

With great thanks to the work currently being carried out by CaribArena on the APUA generators, it is obvious from their reports that there are many questions to be answered by the GoAB, APUA and Ambassador Shoul regarding this project and many others. Is this technology dumping? Why weren’t renewable or energy efficient technologies requested? Have these projects been through the correct procedure i.e. the tenders board? Why is China so secretive about these bilateral agreements? 

It is apparent that the many of the projects implemented with financing from China do not correlate with national and regional environmental policies. It is therefore essential to implement projects financed by China or other donors, in AG with an integrated approach that falls in line with the policies currently under implementation within each of the government agencies, especially those that have the enormous responsibility of managing our limited natural resources.

South-South Cooperation OR A Benign Dragon?

Many developing countries have looked to China for FDI at a time where investment flows from other countries are declining, especially because China expresses commitment to not attach conditionalities to its loans and investment and also to not interfere in internal governance practices of the recipients (Lintner, 2010; Saich, 2011) as the IMF does. It is therefore essential to question the more recent underlying motives of China within AG and the broader Caribbean region as a whole as we move into a world where natural resources are becoming more scarce and the pressures on emerging economies such as China to combat environmental problems such as climate change are ever increasing. This has been a topic of international discussion since 1987 with Chan (1987: 22, cited in Taylor, 2006: 205) arguing that “the question to be asked is whether ... the Chinese were truly interested in solidarity with the Third World, or whether they were interested or more interested, in securing a position of safety or power ... which, among other things acted to protect China.” China has become a growing partner in the region, becoming a permanent member of the Organisation of American States (OAS) in 2004, a permanent member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) in 2005, an observer to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and a member of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), with a member on the Board of Directors.

As a percentage of GDP the international funding figures (including the vast amounts from China) are extremely high (UN ECLAC, 2010), especially when considering the value of what China is apparently receiving in return i.e. the ‘One-China’ Policy. Professor Terrence Wesley-Smith of the Centre for Pacific Islands Studies at University of Hawaii at Manoa stated that “China is active everywhere on the globe and it’s active everywhere in pursuit of its own interests - for the most part those interests are economic ... It’s in Africa because there are resources; it’s in the Middle East because it needs oil and so on and so forth. There are practical reasons for China to be active all over the world” (cited in Reeves, 2008). Despite this growing activity by China, there has been little to no detailed examination of the discourses emerging around China’s interest in SIDS like AG which have no recognised natural resources of interest (Potter, Barker, Conway and Klak, 2004) beneficial for China’s economic development.

With the current rate of growth of China’s economy, accessing natural resources is a top priority i.e. minerals throughout Africa and even scrap metal out of AG. Africa and many SIDS are therefore ideal partners for not only these resources but also providing markets for China’s low-value manufactured products. Jubany and Poon (2009) argue there is a significant political dimension with financial aid being used as a means to sway governments to vote with China in multilateral bodies. Developing countries provide a large support base for votes at the UN; each country carries one vote no matter how large or small they are.  

If China wasn’t providing financing somebody else would, where by conditionalities for better governance and institutional reform are usually tied to financial aid. China is therefore currently AG’s preferred partner. The evolving diplomatic and now financial relations between AG and China have, to date, been able to give the Government of AG space to manoeuvre at a time where they are financially constrained. This financial aid has allowed Governments of AG and the wider Caribbean region to finance big developmental projects and subsequently create employment for their public, which is essential for retaining political power. As Sir Ronald Sanders argues, this relationship so far has proven beneficial for Caribbean Governments but has not yet proven to be beneficial for AG and the Caribbean region. It is extremely important within an ever globalising world that SIDS need to maintain their autonomy over their natural resources, ensuring that leaders within these states take charge of their future development and allow for healthy ecosystem functions for the future generations.

The agreements between China and AG should be open to the public of AG for scrutiny as the public have a legitimate right to be concerned as to what the GoAB are agreeing to on their behalf.

NOTES

It should be noted that within this study when referring to ‘China’ the author is speaking of the Government of the People’s Republic of China. Further when referring to AG within the text, this is speaking of the Government of Antigua and Barbuda, unless stated otherwise.

REFERENCES

Albuquerque, K. de and McElroy, J.L. (1995). Antigua and Barbuda: A Legacy of Environmental Degradation, Policy Failure, and Coastal Decline. Environmental and Natural Resources Policy and Training Project EPAT/MUCIA, United States Agency for International Development (USAID) July 1995. Supplementary Paper No.5.

Conway, D. and Lorah, P. (1995). Environmental protection policies in Caribbean small islands: some St Lucian examples. Caribbean Geography, 6: 16-27.

Fieser, E. (2011). Why is China investing Billions in the Caribbean? Global Post [online]. Published 22nd April 2011. Available at: <http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/110325/china-caribbean-investment-tourism?page=0,1>. Accessed 24th May 2011.

GoAB (2008). Demonstrating the Development and Implementation of a Sustainable Island Resource Management Mechanism in a Small Island Developing State (SIRMM). Environment Division, Government of Antigua and Barbuda. UNDP Project Document.

GoAB Press Release (2010). Antigua & Barbuda Establishes National Energy Task Force. Published February 2nd 2010. Available at: <http://antiguapressreleases.com/antigua-barbuda-establishes-national-energy-task-force>. Accessed July 15th 2011.

Jubany F. and Poon, D. (2006). Recent Chinese Engagement in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Canadian Perspective. Canadian Foundation for the Americas (FOCAL). Research Report, March 2006.

Linter, B. (2010). The South Pacific: China’s New Frontier. In: A. Brady (ed.) Looking North, Looking South: China, Taiwan, and the South Pacific. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing Company, pp.3-33.

Mittermeier R. et al. (1999). Hotspots: Earth’s Biologically Richest and Most Endangered Terrestrial Ecoregions. Mexico City: CEMEX: Conservation International.

Potter, R. B., Barker, D., Conway D., and Klak, T. (2004). The Contemporary Caribbean. Harlow: Pearson Education Ltd.

Reeves, R. (2008). China Brings Austerity to Laid-Back Rarotonga: Islanders, academics question Chinese motives in Pacific. Pacific Islands Report, Pacific Islands Development Program/East-West Center [online]. Published July 16th 2008. Available at: <http://archives.pireport.org/archive/2008/July/07-16-ft.htm>. Accessed August 13th 2011.

Saich, T. (2011). Governance and Politics of China. 3rd ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Sanders, R. Sir. (2010). Chinese Take Away? Sir Ronald Sanders [online]. Published November 19th 2010. Available at: <http://www.sirronaldsanders.com/viewarticle.aspx?ID=204>. Accessed 18th July 2011.

Shooman, J. (2011). Chinese continue to invest in the Caribbean. The Observer on Sunday [online]. Published September 4^th 2011. Available at: <http://www.compasscayman.com/observer/2011/09/04/Chinese-continue-to-invest-in-the-Caribbean/> Accessed 19^th January 2012.

Sullivan Sealey, K. and Bustamante, G. (1999). Setting Geographic Priorities for Marine Conservation in Latin America and the Caribbean. Arlington, Virginia: The Nature Conservancy.

Sutter, R.G. (2010). Chinese Foreign Relations: Power and Policy since the Cold War. 2nd ed. Plymouth: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

Taylor, I. (2006). China and Africa: Engagement and Compromise. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge

United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (UN ECLAC) (2010). Foreign Direct Investment in Latin America and the Caribbean. Briefing Paper. Unit on Investment and Corporation Strategies of the ECLAC Division of Production, Productivity and Management. United Nations: New York and Geneva.

Another great Review on Tripadvisor by a Senior Reviewer

Anita0822

Ottawa, Canada

Senior Reviewer

9 reviews

9 helpful votes

“FANTASTIC!! TWO THUMBS UP!!”

Reviewed January 16, 2012 NEW

 

We spent a fabulous Friday the 13th on the Xtreme Circumnavigation tour with JD, Trevour and Natalie. Hand down, one of best excursion experiences I have ever had. I don't like big crowds, and the other circumnavigation catamaran cruises would not have been as enjoyable for me.

Other reviewers have detailed the stops - Stingray City, Green Island, Nelson Dockyard, Pillars of Hercules, and Rendezvous Bay. My husband says I have to say that a plus for us was the pick-up and drop off at the resort. The old adage that the "journey" is as much part of the experience as the end destination definitely applies to this tour! The boat ride has to be mentioned as a big "plus" of the day, if you like being on the water - it was a windy day when we were out, and the ride was riot!! (and a little wet!)

The tour was a great way to see some highlights of the beautiful island of Antigua from the water, and the group was small enough so that you could ask the team your questions to learn more about what you were seeing. They were friendly, knowledgeable and fabulous guides. You can tell they are proud of their island and they wanted each and every one of us to come away with a positive impression.

We loved the snorkelling at the Pillars of Hercules - thanks for a great "tour" underwater, Trevour! And Rendezvous Bay (secluded, quiet, untouched!) was a nice contrast to Dickenson Bay where we were staying at Sandals.

A great day out. We won't be soon forgetting this excursion!

• Visited January 2012 

www.adventureantigua.com

Biggest failure of Antiguan politicians IMHO

For the past few days I have been thinking about something I didn't write earlier in the week. In my last blog post I mentioned that during a live chat show where I was a guest, we had a phone call from a minister in government. He's a strong politician who does well in his community. He defended his position in The Ministry of Environment and mentioned several projects that they are working on. I had one question for him when he finished speaking. I asked him that if he became Prime Minister, would he give the incredibly important Fisheries Ministry, The huge and overwhelmingly challenged Ministry of Agriculture, and the equally challenged and important Ministry of Environment to one minister. Of course he now is that minister who has all of these jobs, and I said that if I was elected and was asked to do all of these things all at one time, I would run!
He said that the PM "in his wisdom" felt it necessary to put them together and that since his government was trying to make government smaller, that it wasn't a bad decision. (This didn't answer my question, but it was good enough.) He went on to say that in all of these ministries there were Permanent Secretaries, sometimes two, and sometimes Junior Ministers, and all sorts of technicians to do the work and manage the work to be done. This was a good answer, and it was the kind of thing that has been done for years in government.
The big problem was and still is that in reality things don't quite work that way here in Anitgua. All of the "underlings" working in these ministries answer to him, and he makes decides what happens or doesn't happen. The legislation and the general status quo makes it almost impossible for many of these these highly educated and very proficient career professionals to get things done unless the Minister is in agreement. The buck stops with the Minister, and we have seen time and time again glaring examples where Fisheries and or Envionment officials make decisions which are then ignored or overruled by Ministers at the top.
It's no secret that I have written about many of these examples in my blog over the years, and of course this type of thing has been going on for even longer all across both the ALP and UPP governments. At one point I even said that the government should just close down the Ministry of Envirionment since they have no power to do much good in the current situation.
Ministers need to start trusting their own people. There is no good reason why they shouldn't, but apart from that no one person can or should be expected to make all the decisions across three huge ministries all at the same time.

Why do people put political party before country?

Yesterday I was invited by the Observer Media Group (OMG) to appear on their most popular radio program "Voice of the People" from 12 until 2 pm. The topic was a broad survey of Environmental issues that came up in 2011 and were either dealt with successfully or not. 

As is usually the case with our local media the extremely complex and massive subject of the environment was piled into one conversation, but Julian Rogers who was running the show did a great job of trying to focus on to several narrow themes. 

Dr. Brian Cooper from the EAG and Arika Hill from the government's Environment Division were also guests on the program. 

Of course, Arika Hill works for the government and has to tread carefully around many topics that come up. As the person in charge of education within the ministry of environment, she focused on some of the great work they are doing in trying to spread the Good News of environmental stewardship among the youth of Antigua and Barbuda. We all agree that if the country's youth better understand our rich environmental assets and the ongoing threats that these assets face, they will be better equipped to manage these resources in the future. In fact, one caller even went as far as to say that the older generation is so set in their ways that they are almost incapable of changing for the better. She said that we just need to focus on the kids. 

I don't agree entirely with that and feel that change can happen if the decision and policy makers at the very top start the process or ARE FORCED TO START THE PROCESS. 

Dr. Cooper and I both intimated that the lack of political will was and has always been a major stumbling block. Example after example is there for us all to see where great ideas, speeches, programs, laws, regulations, policies have been brought before the public by politicians, but almost none of these turn into visible action on the ground. I mentioned the NEMMA which has failed to produce any visible change in the Marine Protected Area apart from unmanaged mooring balls for yachts. 

All three of the guests spoke about the Environmental Management Bill (I think that's the proper name for the bit of proposed legislation). This bill was worked on my a huge team of consultants and civil servants for years. Of course this wasn't done for free and plenty of hard earned tax payers money went into the construction of that bill. Dr. Cooper himself said that back in 2003 he had spent considerable time on the bill. The EAG has worked on it with the government as has many others, but it still hasn't been pushed through parliament. Why? Well some of the reason was that there were other bits of legislation which crossed over the bill, but we feel that the main reason that it hasn't been sent to parliament is that it will finally give some teeth to the Environment Divison and to anyone else who cares about environmental protection.... like you and me. Can you imagine that there are critically endangered species which have no legal protection here in Antigua? Madness. Anyway, Julian Rogers did a very good job of extracting a clear picture of how the bill works and why it hasn't gotten its final stamp of approval. 

Several people called in to ask questions and generally we were fairly diplomatic about what we were speaking about. I mean, I didn't say that the leading party were doing a terrible job or spend any time slamming the Minister of Environment, Hilson Baptiste who also is Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Fisheries. Lord knows that it wouldn't be difficult to be very critical of the way Fisheries and the Environment Division has been managed, but I tried to focus on the idea that a shift in the political policy was what was needed. I stressed over and over that Antiguans and Barbudans need to understand the inalienable connection between proper environmental protection and economic survival. Julian asked something along the lines of why i felt that the Leaders of Antigua and Barbuda had not lived up to their promises. I said that as a new Dad who is constantly changing my boy's diapers, I liked the saying which compared diapers and politicians. It suggested you change them both as often as possible.

George Ryan who is a regular caller on the program called in shortly afterward to offer support and encouragement for the panel. He is a highly respected businessman in Antigua and sits on many boards locally. Anyway, he suggested that since I was suggesting that the politicians had dropped the ball and walked away from the game of Environmental protection, that I should offer myself as a candidate. I laughed as I have no interest at the moment in diving into the degree of service and commitment that is required of a political representative. He pushed and said that i would be surprised as how many people would be following me.
I guess this was the straw that broke the camel's back. The next caller was The Minister of Agriculture, Environment, and Fisheries, Hilson Baptiste who was still on the last day of his Christmas holiday. He did a good job of highlighting some of the areas that he and his ministry in the Environment Division were working hard for Antigua. He also pointed out that he was working with the EAG and that he had worked with me when he was Jr. Minister of tourism.
Shortly afterward a few of his party's loyal supporters called in applauding the Minister and his efforts. Blinded by what is actually going on out at sea, along the coastline and on the ground, these political followers support party first and can never see shortcomings. The same callers always seem to call in whenever anyone dares suggest that a better job can be done. This GroupThink mentality is what has ruined empires, political parties, great companies and all sorts of groups. Being critical without suggesting solutions isn't the right way, but not accepting any criticism because you feel that your party of political position is threatened is so much worse. I think to sit by and accept everything without offering suggestions on how things could be done in a better way is unpatriotic. I will always put country before party. It's the patriotic thing to do especially when it comes to conservation and environmentalism.

Some new reviews of our tours just in.

“Educational AND Fun - An Eco-Experience that can't be beat!” by nathuhbelle

Reviewed January 3, 2012 NEW

We took the Adventure Antigua Eco-Tour while on our Caribbean cruise this December. Despite a change in our ship's departure time, they made sure that we made it back to our ship with time to spare.

The tour is excellent - incredibly informative, educational, and most of all, full of great activities in the water. It takes you around the coastline and into the mangroves; it also includes some hiking on Bird's Island and snorkeling. We had the opportunity to climb Hell's Gate, and this is definitely a don't-miss activity even if you don't enjoy heights. When you're on the top of the gate, you can look out and realize that the next piece of land that you will reach is actually Africa which is over 4000 miles away. The crew is very friendly and willing to answer any questions that we had.

Lunch consisted of BBQ chicken, a green salad, pasta, and lots of juice. There was definitely plenty to eat. On the way back, we got to enjoy some great rum punch.

Thanks for the great time! :)

• Visited December 2011 

Another one:

“Killer Tour - don't miss it!!”

Reviewed December 29, 2011

We took the Xtreme Circumnav Powerboat Tour during our stay at the Verandah in November and it was incredible! The great facts about the history of the island, the beaches, snorkeling at the Pillars of Hercules, the Stingrays!! The tour staff was accommodating, kept the tour moving at a good pace and had great tidbits to share about the history of Antigua. And I don't know if it's been mentioned before, but the lunch they served was DAMN GOOD! Especially the banana bread. Thanks guys (and Nicola) for a wonderful experience!!

• Visited November 2011 

Another one:

“The Eco-tour is a great way to spend a day in Antigua”

Reviewed December 21, 2011

Visited December 2011
We booked this tour independently while traveling on the Queen Elizabeth.
The boat was not crowded and provided plenty of both sun and shade. The trip to Hell's gate was great and the climb across the top something that will be long remembered. Our Hosts were fantastic,they provided plenty of information about conservation and the ecosystem of Antigua. The did some snorkeling but didnt see many fish as on other islands.
The secluded beach at Bird island where we swam and had lunch was very nice. Snorkling lessons to those who were not that comfortable were provided.
This a wonderful tour with great photo stops and a variety of interesting locations and activities along the way plus very educational, plus swimming snorkleing and food. I would say this tour is a must do and would recommend it to all.

• 
• 
• 

• Visited December 2011

“The only way to see Antigua...”

Reviewed December 20, 2011

1

person found this review helpful

We did the Extreme Circumnavigation Powerboat tour during our stop in Antigua. We had a great time and really enjoyed our experience. We enjoyed multiple stops including StingRay city and some downtime in Rendezvous Bay. Eli's staff of Ross, Trevor, and Serge took great care of us and we felt in good hands the entire day. Would definitely recommend and can't wait to go back.

• Visited December 2011 

Another one:

“Adventure is the perfect word.”

Reviewed December 19, 2011

1

person found this review helpful

We went on the Eco-Tour with J.D., Trevor & Nicola on December 16th. We couldn't have had a more fun experience, from the wild boat ride (waters were choppier than normal, but it was a lot of fun), to the climb on Hell's Gate, to the hike on Bird Island, the delicious lunch, & great conversations. We were still grinning about it for hours after dinner. We hope to do more tours with Adventure Antigua on our next trip to the island. GREAT value!

• Visited December 2011 

www.adventureantigua.com

2012 off to a running start

Our season here in Antigua has been fairly slow compared to past ones and it wasn't until a few days before Christmas that things got busy for Adventure Antigua. In fact, busy isn't the best word. IT was manic with tours, charters and half day trips being requested at an incredible rate. Needless to say, we have been very very busy and to make things slightly more exciting, it was very windy.

"The Christmas Winds" were making for choppy seas exciting sailing. As I mentioned in a recent blog post, we damaged our classic yacht.

Today the sun slowly approached the horizon from under a much calmer sea and when light finally won it's fight against the darkness, it looked like a perfect day for boating. In fact, the weather forecast on windguru is looking very good for the next seven days. Click here if you need a better explanation on how to use these long term forecasts for Antigua.

Two boats are out again today and our crew is probably excited to see such beautiful power boating weather. Later today, we will have a meeting which is the first one of 2012. We have some new faces and some updated to be made to our now outdated crew list.

Things are looking good for 2012 and we've made some changes to our team and to our operation. More news to come. eli  

www.adventureantigua.com 

what a morning i had yesterday!

 

This image of pure serenity yesterday morning was what i was feeling at the time while on the tiller of Ocean Nomad, our traditionally built Carriacou Sloop. These classic yachts have been built as work boats since the colonial sugar days of years gone by. Caribbean Helicopter pilot, Greg, took this image as he was leaving Jolly Harbour on his way to see the volcano over in Montserrat. I was skippering a private charter for two enthusiastic guests who just wanted to day sail on a wooden boat, have some lunch do some snorkeling and enjoy hearing stories about how it was traditionally built here in the Caribbean. This image's peaceful feel didn't last long for me and isn't how the day started. Over the weekend the boat's engine tore up a fan belt and because we had several days of public holidays, the skipper who was using the boat at the time couldn't find a proper replacement. It probably was going for a while and the batteries were not getting a proper charge. Anyway, my first mate had arrived at the boat early to check everything and prep the boat for the trip. The engine started just fine and he went to the fuel dock to top up. I met them there and once we were ready to push off we were surprised to find the battery dead. It was 9:10 am and our pickup was at 9:30. We went to A1 Marine engineering and left our battery to be charged while collecting an old used one which we hoped would get us going. After rushing back to the boat, hooking it up we were rewarded by a engine that wouldn't turn over. Next it was a mad rush back to my truck to take it's battery out. I had sent the third crew member over to our guests to let them know we would be a few minutes late.
After hooking up the truck battery, the engine fired easily to life and we cast off dock lines headed for the other side of the Jolly Harbour Marina.
Our two guests were excited to see us and not at all bothered by us being 5 minutes late. In no time we were out the harbour and setting sails. A few minutes later Greg passed overhead and took the image above. We had just seen several large greenies (green turtles) come up for air and while passing Darkwood Beach the light winds gently guided us onwards to Cades Reef.
As we tacked up inside Cades Bay some dark squalls started roll down the coast toward us. The winds went from about 12 knots to about 20 knots fairly quickly. I left the tiller to one of our very happy guests who had owned a wooden boat when he was a teenager. He was loving it. I walked around the boat to get a better view of the squall and noticed something very alarming.
The stainless steel stem fitting was coming lose. It's the integral part which is where the forestay cable coming down from the mast attaches itself to the boat. This was the photo i took:

If the stem fitting pulled out, the mast could very well come falling down. In there would be a way too many other things that could go badly wrong if this happened. I had the crew ease the sails to spill some of the power. We did two more tacks to get close up to a nice protected cove while I monitored the stem.  As soon as we were close enough we dropped sails and motored in for anchor.
As the anchor dug into the sandy bottom below very strong gusts from the passing squall helped it to dig deep. I was glad we were not out in the squall which probably was pushing gusts up to 30 knots. Trevor took the guests snorkeling while Jourdain and I started putting up the awning which would give us shade for lunch. At the back of the boat I had to pull the cover very tight to the end of the boom. I have done this hundreds of times, but this time was going to be different. The little stainless steel shackle burst as i was pulling as hard as i could and in a second i was falling over the transom and into the "drink"! It happened so quickly but while in mid air i was thinking about my phone still attached to a pouch on my hip. The line I was pulling was still fixed to the boom and although i hit the water I managed to spring back just enough to keep my belt above sea level. Jourdain leaned over and was able to grab it for me and i released the line to fall back into the sea. It was refreshing for a split second until i though about the morning so far. Wow! What else was going to go wrong today.

My beautiful son Skye had kept me up for hours during the middle of the night and while pulling myself out of the water and up the ladder I thought of him comfortably sleeping in now while I was out here dealing with all these issues. I missed him and wished I had stayed in bed with him and my wife. At just under 8 weeks old, Skye provides way way more happiness that I was having at that moment.
My keys, check books, wallet, and phone all were rinsed and put out to dry in the sun which was coming out. The day was going to get better for sure and after we had set up the awning our guests arrived back from snorkeling.

They had enjoyed it and the clouds cleared as they dried of to get ready for lunch. After lunch we reefed the main sail and attached a smaller jib.
The weather gods must have felt sorry for me because by the time we were ready to sail back down the coast the winds eased. With the winds lighter and the less powerful sails I felt confident that the stem would hold up until we were back in port. If it picked up again we would have to just abandon sailing. It didn't and the we sailed down the coast spotting birds, plenty of turtles and even a jumping spotted eagle ray who seemed to want to come into the boat. We got back just before sunset and our guests seemed very happy. Thank goodness that the afternoon was easier than the morning. All the Adventure Antigua crew met up for drinks at Al Porto afterward and we all laughed at my fall. The best part was last night my phone started working again. It's just the camera that's busted. Time for the newest Android phone!

www.adventureantigua.com

http://www.sailing-antigua.com/

Happy Holidays From the Adventure Antigua Team

We have seen some big changes again this year and once again we are greatufl to have had support from our team mates, partners and guests. Adventure Antigua has said goodbye to some of our long time team members this year with Chirs and Captain Shamel recently moving into new ventures. We wish them luck while at the same time welcoming Natalie and Jourdain to the team. It's time for a new team photo and I hope to have one before the new year. We will be introducing a new boat in the new year which is very exciting. All in all 2011 has been a great year and we expect 2012 to be challenging but as rewarding.

The Christmas Winds which I longed for each year during my competitive winsurfing years have been here this year with a vengeance and unfortunately we have had to cancel quite a few tours over the past week. It's always difficult making decisions to cancel tours and luckily it happens only a few times a year. This week has been tough though. The weather is forecast to calm down from tonight and then things should get back to normal. Remember if you have photos of our boat or tours please put them on our facebook page.

Anyway, we hope you enjoy the holidays and make it out with us in the new year. Here is a little gift for your computer's wallpaper. Click on the image and save if you like.

www.adventureantigua.com

Adventure Antigua wins "Best Caribbean Excursion Company".

+Adventure Antigua is "Best Caribbean Excursion Company" according to Caribbean Travel and Leisure Magazine's Readers Choice Awards: http://caribbeantl.com/best-of-the-caribbean-readers-choice-awards-2011
Thanks to all of our supporters and followers for voting for us. Antigua should have made top honors on some of the other categories too but we're happy to have clinched one top spot.

I am not sure that we are the best excursion company doing day trips in the Caribbean but with all the good reviews we have gotten over the past year and with this award, I know that our team at Adventure Antigua is doing something very right at the moment. Please visit our website to learn more about our snorkeling day tours and charters.

www.adventureantigua.com

A fun slide show of interesting images

I am working on a little project and created this slide show to help with it. While checking it out I thought it would be nice to share the photos on my blog. Most of them are from Antigua and Barbuda but some are from further away. Enjoy!

 

www.adventureantigua.com

Another high quality company worth checking out. VIDEO

Roddy Grimes-Graeme and I went to school together here in Antigua and have always been very close friends. When I first decided to turn our childhood adventures into a real company, Roddy was there to build our first website using primarily his photos. His high end photography became his career and then diversified into video with the help of another friend Iain McGlashan. Their company www.acquafilms.com shoots the worlds most luxurious and famous yachts primarily but they also do things as varied as weddings, corporate functions, private homes, hotels, nature documentaries, and even excursion companies. You see their videos on my website. Click here.

As many of you know Antigua is one of the main destinations for luxury yachts in the winter months and our Charter Yacht Show just finished. Here is a little video shot by them during the event:


Flying over the Antigua Charter Yacht Show 2011 from acquafilms on Vimeo.

Some great wallpaper for your computer and info about writing a review about our tour.

 

First, a great photo taken of our Eco Tour as it made it's unique Hells Gate stop.  Right click on the image if you would like to save it. People often tell us that they had the best time every on our tours. This week someone from Hawksbill took the time to call our office just after they got off the boat to tell Nell that it was the best day they have ever had on any holiday. This is awesome and we love to hear stories like that. It would help our entire team if these wonderful reviews made it to tripadvisor and other forums. IF you... have been out with us and enjoyed it please write a review.  Click here to write a review