Are there reefs in barbados

In January or February wind chill factor can operate. A waterproof top is recommended over your wet suit. While some Canadians laugh at the idea of being cold in Barbados, Alistair Reynolds and his party "could not wait to return to the calm, warm waters of the west" [3]. In reality the south east coast is one of the most wonderful round-the-year environments and climates for humans thanks to the Trade Winds, which moderate the immense power of the almost perennially overhead mid-day sun, but one of the most destructive for electronic devices, electrical gadgets and other man-made objects due to the salt-laden atmosphere.

Many savvy Bajans would not consider living over here for this last reason, so most of the inhabitants are either people who are "still here", or those so wealthy they enjoy the salubrious climate and can afford to replace their possessions very frequently, or the average local Bajan who values his human ambience more than the need for transient gadgets. Visitors should avoid direct exposure to the sun on naked flesh between and where possible and take advantage of the ample shade and delightful breezes.

Don't expose your gadgets to the salty breezes more than you need too or you will be cleaning salt and sand off them some time after you return home. In June there was a recurrence of the deposition of Sargassum Weed on the beaches inside Cobblers Reef. By February there is a significant arrival of the weed on the inshore beaches, with more floating in as can be seen.

Sadly it makes the beaches unattractive to many visiting tourists upon whom the island significantly depends. When swimming out to the reef it is only the first metres that seem to be affected by poor visibility and the annoying weed wrapping itself around the diver's neck, trunk and limbs.

It does not appear to contain stinging creatures. The weed seems to be a natural phenomenon that comes and hopefully goes. Most British and many Atlantic North American beaches exhibit seaweed. Booms have been proposed to control the deposition of weed on beaches.

But how thick is the layer and hence the required depth of such a boom?. The first picture was taken quite close up on a calm day in November off Crane Beach. The Weed appears coherent, organised and fairly compact. But there is no scale. To cope with this calculation weed was photographed in a pool against a standard credit card, the two pictures scaled approximately equally and pasted together. It can be seen that the card fits about ten times into the layer of weed which is thus about half a metre deep.

But what about using a 1-m wooden scale held by Rob, a 2-m diver from Ottawa, in the more normal rougher conditions and strong current in March This is trickier because visibility becomes much worse, and the complicated and high energy water movement rolls the weed, the model and the photographer in different and unpredictable directions, so that view-finding is almost impossible.

In this shot Rob's head is out of the water but weed is swirling round the scale and his legs to at least a metre below the surface. Sargassum weed was photographed in a pool against a standard credit card, the two pictures scaled approximately equally and pasted together. Measuring depth of weed in rough conditions and poor visibility using a 1-m scale and two metre diver.

Carol B reported in April that the Crane Resort had managed to install a small digger on Crane Beach to tackle the weed. She felt that a significant improvement in the state of the Beach might be hoped for. In late November Sargassum weed was miraculously absent from Crane Beach for several days. Only time will tell if it will recur, but the boom which had worked fairly well for about two months had to be brought ashore for repairs a week before the weed disappeared.

In late January , there was no weed, even though the boom was not fully deployed. A boat could be seen working on the south western end of the boom. Compressed diving air and cylinder testing is available from Caribsupply [4] at their manufacturing plant at Clapham near the Banks Brewery. Barbados has one re-compression facility with a chamber that can accommodate an attendant and the victims, and is at St.

Ann's Fort, on the south west corner of the Island; it is staffed around the clock full time by a team by four doctors, trained in Hyperbaric medicine and backed by Barbados Defence Force BDF personnel. It can serve a considerable portion of the south eastern Caribbean. Dr Michael Brown from Yorkshire England and trained at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, London, England, one of the original instigators of the chamber as a young man in , still turns out for emergencies, nights and weekends, to deal with decompression victims.

His day job is as a Family General Practitioner. He and his colleagues treat victims with skill, compassion and great knowledge. He is not prepared to see experienced divers repeatedly jeopardising their health by repeatedly taking unacceptable risks that they understand and ignore. The chambers also provide therapy for medical or surgical emergencies such as gangrene and severe burns, but sadly there is not the scientific evidence to treat multiple sclerosis which for once there was a fashionable vogue.

The Crane Resort overlooks the middle of the reef from its cliff top; it was previously Crane Beach Hotel founded , and probably started its life as the Marine Villa in [8]. Professor Charles Cleveland Nutting of the University of Iowa made a scientific sudy of the fauna of Cobblers Reef by dredging and fish pots. He enjoyed a stay at the old Crane Beach Hotel, especially the location and the sea food [9].

Smithsonian Atoll Research Bulletin. You will observe that there is no Elkhorn below this depth though plenty of other live hard corals, Gorgonia and sponges. At about the same time as Professor MacIntyre was working, web designer Clementine Ellasos, a Francophone North American, produced a very informative French-language website about the island, with a full illustrated page about scuba diving around Barbados.

It seems an excellent and comprehensive introduction to Barbados for her fellow French-speakers. She has collaborated with commercial aspects of diving in Barbados and also taken part in underwater research projects on the Island.

Even though locals may do it, solo shore diving on Cobblers Reef cannot be advised, so you need a buddy and perhaps a boat. Access to the reef using a dive centre The best place to start is with one of the 14 dive centres that have easily found websites on Google "Dive Barbados".

Seven refer in their websites to diving on the east coast in summer. None refer to the south east coast. They are all reviewed by tripadvisor and should be capable of organising diving anywhere on the island. For example, George, one of the senior instructors at Rogers Scuba Shack speaks of diving with his local friends based in Conset Bay on his days off in the Winter tourist season. The closest centre to the reef is Scotch 'n' Soda based in front of the Sandy Beach Hotel on the south coast, and operated by the very experienced R.

Edghill known as RAM. Most of the dive centres may have drawbacks relative to Cobblers Reef however, as many are based and keep their boats on the generally calm west coast, a long and uncomfortable boat ride to and from the reef in the tourist season. As commercial organisations, they are very busy in their own areas with divers of varying experience or inexperience staying in hotels or apartments in their vicinity. Most are very close to the cruise liner terminals.

To entice them to Cobblers Reef in the winter tourist season would be more expensive than merely the price of the extra gasoline and manpower. As a consequence most commercial dive boat operators seem reluctant to take tourist clients out here during the high winter season when strong easterly trade winds are prevalent. Even in the calm summer months when tourists are far fewer the boat ride from the west coast to Cobblers Reef is unduly long, and they can relocate temporarily to harbours in Oistins or Conset Bay, or charter local boats which are not built as dive boats.

If you want to dive Cobblers Reef with a dive centre advisable for most it would be best to come to Barbados in the Summer. Otherwise, you are probably on your own. Fortunately everywhere on the reef is dive-able and where you dive depends more on your point of entry and how much energy or fuel you or the boat owner wish to expend. A hand held waterproof GPS in the boat may be a useful adjunct to your dive computer for logging your dives and repeating them or avoiding repetition.

On the other hand, land marks and visible cross bearings may be just as good depending on your eyesight and memory, but less easy to describe to other divers. Treatment in a decompression chamber would be extremely expensive, comparable to the cost of a decent new car, in the event that your insurance company considered that you had breached their terms and conditions.

Failure to return to a safe beach or to be picked up by your boat would be even more dangerous. Facilities should include safe shelter in all but Hurricane conditions. Jetty, slipway, crane availability, fuel and fresh water. Adequate Security. Beach access. Divers may swim out to be picked up by arrangement by a boat launched or moored elsewhere. There are no harbours inside Cobblers Reef, however there are two significant harbours adjacent to the ends of the Reef.

Facilities do include safe shelter in all but Hurricane conditions. Jetty, slipway, crane availability, Fuel and Fresh Water. Shops, supermarkets, banks, medical facilities and restaurants, boat and marine engine repair yards. Royal Barbados Police and Barbados Coastguard local headquarters. Government offices. Accommodation, entertainment and hotels, public beaches and Bardbados Golf Club in the vicinity. Facilities do include safe shelter in all but strong northerly winds.

Jetty, slipway, boat crane availabile, fuel and fresh Water. Adequate security, local shops, restaurants and bars, locally provided accommodation in the vicinity. Even if you have access to a car it is probably better use of your valuable time on the Island to pay a local driver to take your tanks to be filled after the dives, unless you are diving sporadically.

This applies to Oistins, Consett Bay and all points in between. Oistins is much nearer to Caribsupply gas services at Clapham 7 km than is Conset Bay 20 km equivalent to a round trip difference of about 26 km by car for each set of air fills.

It is quite feasible to use buses to get to boat diving trips, as attested by regular visiting divers and locals, but it is easier if you do not have to transport your tank and weight belt as well as your other gear, however a car is recommended. Car Rentals are widely advertised on line, and some regular visitors even keep a car on the island. Both harbours can be accessed by routine bus services, but there are far more buses going to and through Oistins on far more routes than to Conset.

Conset Bay is reached on a rural route Highway 4 from Bridgetown, service number 9 which does not go through Six Roads. Detailed routes and timetables are published [11]. Stay on roads with regular "Out of City" bus stops. Do not take either of the two Right turns off Highway 3 going north west.

They are both signed "Conset Bay" but they are barely fit for a horse [12]. The Port of Oistins before the dive at 7 a. The ship takes crude oil from Barbados to Trinidad and returns added value refined fuels.

By 9th March she had almost reached her next destination Freeport Bahamas. Even in January boats are moored in Conset Bay. A small boat heads for the channel in rough conditions. Patrick the proud owner saw the camera and asked the photographer to take a picture of him with his boat at Conset Bay. The offshore reef protects Conset Bay, boats and jetty from all but the worst weather.

Boats get hauled up if a hurricane is forecast. These five beaches provide the shortest access to Cobblers Reef, but the boats are all locally and privately owned, generally pirogues and the owners do not publish information.

Two of the five beaches have vehicular access and may be suitable for launching as well as mooring or storing boats on land. At N The drive to Long Beach is not very easy, because once you leave the black top it is liable to be quite muddy after rain, and the final stretch is soft sand. Although boats might be moored here it is probably too near Oistins to be worth while as well as not easily watched.

A further drawback is that this is a significant turtle nesting beach, being probably the most desolate though very beautiful, beach on the island. It should be practical to shore dive from here and return safely, due to the length of the beach, though the reef seems more interesting further north east towards the Grantley Adams Airport. Bus 13B from Bridgetown via Oistins terminates at Long Beach, but the Bus Stop is a considerable walk from any part of the actual beach.

More information might be required to recommend it as a mooring beach but it is quite popular with Kite Surfers. In general its negative points probably outweigh its value as a potential dive access, by boat, road and swimming from the beach, and boats are not generally moored here, even though it would be possible.

Bajans do not favour it or use it for mooring in spite of the theoretical possibilities. Most diving on the reef off Long Beach is done from Oistins when the wind and seas preclude a longer boat drive.

It is much longer than Long Bay to the north east. Landmark, but don,t follow this sign to Long Beach. Take the road to the left north of the track illustrated. By co-operative action and manpower the locals overcome both these difficulties.

Pirogues may be stored or moored here. None of the bus-stops are less than m from the beach at Foul Bay down steepish rocky steps, but blue charter buses park for their clientele in the car park on the beach, particularly at weekends and bank holidays. The routine buses are for the benefit of the very fortunate "Foul Bay Community" rather than for beach-goers who don't like to walk.

The strength of the current often results in shore dives that set out from Crane Beach finishing at Foul Bay where there is a shower and a car park and you might even get a lift back to your hotel or apartment. In case you might have to walk back from Foul Bay make sure you swim carrying some flipflops or wear diving boots with soles to protect your bare feet from the very hot "black-top". Both Foul Bay and Long Beach are safe for swimming to and from the reef, though Foul Bay surf may often turn the swimmer or diver over two or three times.

It is almost 6 km between the two beaches with mainly high cliffs, sharp with coral rock and crashed by surf, so if the current takes you past Foul Bay, you could be in for a long swim. Salt Cave Point sticks out above professional pilot Paul Nugent's left hand. Squall coming. Green Point under the pilot's hand. Foul Bay Road comes down the hill then swings left behind the trees, coming onto the beach towards the right of the picture.

Pirogues are often stored at the end of the road on Foul Bay beach here and the parking is shaded. View of Foul Bay from the southern end in Note there were only two new Crane buildings then. The inner reef is threaded by a handful of channels, which shallow draught boats can navigate in all but the roughest weather. One of the safest is under the Crane resort cliffs. The Fathom can be seen to the bottom right of the Satellite view. The Foul Bay channel was widened and deepened, and the road to Foul Bay was built in the s to allow the landing of the High Altitude Research Project HARP guns, which were then transported overland by temporary rail tracks to their present site see below.

Foul Bay is the large bay bottom left in the satellite view to the south of Crane Beach top left and in spite of its name is one of the most beautiful beaches on the Island.

It was named as a "Foul" anchorage exposed to the almost persistent onshore winds, currents, strong surf and jagged coral, as well as poor holding qualities for the anchor of an Eighteenth or Nineteenth Century wooden sailing ship. Four wheel drive trucks or tractors also get down. It is the home of Barbados Kite Surfing and Brian Talma the Barbados Olympic Surfing Champion and a suitable beach for mooring boats and swimming to and from the reef, but it may be too busy, so be wary of Kite Surfers.

The Ministry of Agriculture can arrange launchings and retrievals of boats as well as emergency retrievals for a modest fee.

Silver Rock beach is well under a kilometre from the Silver Sands bus stop. The following buses go to Silver Sands 30A, 31, 31A, In addition routes 27 and 13 pass Silver Rock Beach. The following bus routes stop at Silver Sands 30A, 31, 31A, 32, 27 and Numerous white taxi-vans also terminate at Silver Sands. Sadly Silver Sands beach and hotel are still deserted in January The beach is suitable for mooring a boat and swimming to and from the Reef.

This large and quiet beach used to be part of Crane Beach until it was separated from the smaller and now very busy Crane Beach by a large rocky groin below the joint public access road.

This road gives the easiest public access to Crane Beach North and the only public access to the Crane Beach. Parking may be difficult but the 12A bus passes the top of the access road. From the direction of Bridgetown get off the bus about m after passing Cutters of Barbados on the left.

The north eastern access steps are harder to approach by car and quite a bit further from the bus route. The inside of Cobblers reef was viewed from a Microlight flown by professional pilot, Paul Nugent e-mail: airsportsbarbados gmail. Note the approaching squall. The normal surf along the top of the Inner Reef is much less than usual and largely disguised by the edge of the pilot's windshield the fault of the photographer not the pilot.

Two boats used to be permanently moored below the Ginger Bay apartments, indeed "Tiny" Moore, apart from removing his boat for a week due to Hurricane Ivan in September , always kept "Navijeb" there till his disappearance in July It was pulled ashore on Foul Bay beach in so the engine could be loaded into a truck for servicing.

It belongs to Little Pic. He fishes pots and palangs and gets some fairly good hauls of spiny lobster and fish. Crane Beach North is centre left above the lowest rock promontary. The footage from shows the activity that used to occur on this now largely deserted beach [13]. It does not have vehicular access and you need to use pedestrian tracks and steps from the Car Park, but this always worked very well previously. Bus routes 12A and 27 terminate near the Castle grounds and you can walk down to the beach.

Sam Lords Castle is well signed up for driving. It is quite suitable for shore diving the inner reef, or coming ashore but boat traffic is often heavy. Beware out currents on the reef. It is very safe for this purpose also. In years gone by local divers used to drop off empty tanks near the stepping-stones at the north end, before mooring up at the other end of Crane Beach North, making less of a trek to the car with the tanks.

However some years ago a cruise-ship passenger visiting the beach with a group of fellow passengers, watched as a tank floated steadily towards him and tried and catch it when standing chest high in the rough surf. Although empty aluminium diving tanks float and may visually resemble balloons or footballs in the ocean in terms of their motion, their momentum is proportional to their mass which relates to their weight on earth not floating in water , and their velocity, which in this context is determined by the speed that the seas float them into a collision with a static object or human being.

The seas will keep the tank's velocity very close to that of the waves, giving a momentum of collision comparable to an empty but heavy tank being swung fast and unpredictably on a bungee pendulum. Inevitably a bump to the head occurred, which enraged his ship-mates, though fortunately he was not seriously hurt. This was a clearly a dangerous practice in the circumstances compounded by stupidity of the victim. One solution to this risk was to rope all the tanks together on the boat and drop them off in rapid sequence, immediately followed by a diver who could keep them all together and shout loudly at any one who looked as though they were foolish enough to try and catch one.

This seemed to work better and give everyone a more sporting chance, but the beach is too busy these days. Even if a diver wears a tank on his back while swimming into a crowded beach with strong surf he may be a potential hazard to bathers in the event that the waves bowl him over.

Back in the days when Crane Beach was quiet boat owners preferred Crane Beach North which was easier for them to access and oversee, and nowadays the Crane Beach is too busy for a pirogue to comfortably operate except well beyond the surf. Apart from the public access shared with Crane Beach North, the Crane Beach can be reached by the private steps and elevator through the Resort. Get off the 12A bus by the road sign for Falmouth and Bel Air.

Walk down the road about m and Falmouth Beach is at the bottom of the road to the right. Alternatively parking is not usually difficult. It is very safe for swimming to and from the reef, and for picking up and dropping off divers from pirogues. Walk down the road about m and Bel Air Beach is at the bottom of the road to the left.

It is very safe for swimming to and from the reef or for picking up and dropping off divers from a pirogue. It is reached by a public access quite close to that of Sharks Hole. It lies below some extremely beautiful properties but the public has access along the cliff top here, and cars may be parked to the north. On the unusually calm January day shown here the beach is larger than usual, but at high tide or when the ocean is rough, the surf may pound against the low rocks thus obliterating it.

Small beach south of Sharks Hole from a microlight. When the tide or surf is high the surf may pound on the low rocks. It is best to drive to Bottom Bay, which is reached by a road running south east from Highway 5 between Well House and Merricks. The road is clearly signed to the right when coming from Bridgetown. The nearest bus route is number 10 from Bridgetown to Bayfield, via Six Roads. Get out near the road sign to Bottom Bay about a kilometre after Well House.

You must then walk about a kilometre down to the Car Park. It is probably the first safe retreat going south from Kitridge Point. Bottom Bay. The track from the car park is behind the rocks on the right.

Note the Castle centre background and the Harrismith ruins right background. There are three or four small coves between Long Beach and Foul Bay which are not recommended for access to the reef.

Getting ashore onto one might be easier than getting up to the cliff top. A closer view is shown. To approach it from the land drive along Maloney Drive Christchurch almost to the end of the road. Take the off-road track to the north past a farm and after about a kilometre you will see the beach north east of Long Beach from above. The small beach m north east of Long Beach is practicable for a diver to swim ashore and get up the low cliffs at the left end. Drive along Maloney Drive Christchurch almost to the end of the road.

Back track the photographer's footprints to the exit and entrance of the beach north east of Long Beach. An easy scramble up or down without diving gear, but a good walk to the road. To approach it from land continue south westerly from Penny Hole see below and brave the Defence Force Danger Ground see below.

It lies enclosed in these unforgiving cliffs. Targets of the Barbados Defence Force line the skyline. The rock on the left viewed from the sea can be seen on the right from the land. From above the beach reveals some unwelcoming rocks and the photographer could not spot an obvious way up or down.

Furthermore above the beach is the firing range. Probably a bad choice except in dire emergency. This little beach is about a kilometre north east of the previous beach. A practicable exit for a stranded diver. Note the rock at the left.

The beach lies enclosed in these unforgiving cliffs. Go right at the end of this Lane, past the large orange and pink house, then turn left down a grassy track towards the ocean.

Black bellied sheep often roam freely here. These 2 houses make an excellent land mark from the Reef due to their altitude. The approach from the ocean is rocky and usually washed with surf. A young man living at the top of the cliff claimed that the ascent from the cove to the grassy ledge was just about feasible, but a descent could not be recommended. Local divers recognise this as an adequate escape route, problematic approach from the ocean in big surf, but the ascent manageable.

Landmark houses centre right viewed from Fathom. Penny Hole further right rising from ocean. Note to the left the second little beach about 1. It can be useful for tank or free divers to swim to if they are carried past Foul Bay before the boat picks them up. On the sloping beach they can easily be spotted from a boat, and can the swim out as it approaches. It would be hard to recommend it as a shore diving launch unless you lived in the apparently abandoned house at the top of the cliff.

The cliffs adjacent to the beach are near vertical, but the 45 degree ramp up or down is rugged and not very suitable for carting diving gear up or down. Locals say they may go up or down for beach fishing. Several Kilometres of steep, jagged cliffs to the south west of Foul Bay. Oliver's cave, Ocean City is topped by a precarious house centre.

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Search WRI. More on. Relevant Work Food. Donate Ways to Give. Stay Informed Email. For further details please visit our privacy policy. You can dive this site on more than one occasion and not be tired of it. One of the more popular of the dive sites on the west coast. Lobsters can also be found but they are usually hiding in the reef.

Abundant with soft corals, barrel sponges, tube sponges, and a large variety of schooling tropical fish, barracudas, turtles, parrot fish, and much more.

Very consistent conditions make this a popular dive site. Best times are in the summer months. Plenty of big fish including sharks can be seen here. Reef Diving Coral Reefs of Barbados 2.