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Your attention swings from wonders to marvels and back again. You begin to say things to yourself, gasps of surprise, inarticulate sounds of awe, you are troubled with a terrible sense of loss that (as the case maybe) 20,30, or 50 years of your life have passed and gone without you knowing of the ease of entry into this new world...All I ask of each reader is this- don't die without having borrowed, stolen, purchased or made a helmet of sorts, to glimpse for yourself this new world...this unsuspected realm ofgorgeous life and colour existing with us today on the self-same planet earth." William Beebe, Beneath the Tropic Seas, 1928
Picture St. Vincent, the largest of these sister islands, as a kite floating in a sea of blue, and the Grenadine islands of Bequia, Mustique, Canouan, Mayreau, Palm, Union and Petit St. Vincent, as the ribbons of this exotic kite's tail. Scattered liberally in between these inhabited islands are deserted cays, rocks, sand bars and lagoons all teeming with sea-life and alive with colour. Diving takes place all along this precious chain.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines is one of those all too rare, virtually undiscovered dive destinations. The diving ranges from the gentle, even lazy, to the exhilarating, and efforts are always made to ensure that you never dive the same dive site twice... unless, of course, you want to! Most of the dive sites are close to the dive shop bases, a mere ten or fifteen-minute boat ride away. Others, however, may require a slightly longer journey, but one that's filled with the most beautiful Caribbean scenery in the region. And all are well worth the trip. Due to the sharply rising shorelines, there is no shore diving here and this helps to keep the sites in pristine condition. All the dive boats are well equipped, easily accessible and captained by experienced and helpful staff. The dives are Divemaster-led, and this helps to enhance not only maximum diver safety, but also maximum diver enjoyment.
St. Vincent, home to a volcano and a rain forest, boasts an almost infinite selection of wall diving sites, and the underwater scenery, complete with pristine corals, will take your breath away (though hopefully not for long!). Nicknamed "Critter Country", make sure you have a fish I.D. book close at hand.
The odds are, however, that when you've spotted all the frogfish, slipper lobster, chain morays, octopus and scorpion fish therein, you'll have to start writing one of your own. Fish behaviour will fascinate you - friendly spot fin butterfly fish may treat you as a protective floating reef and sargeant majors may chase you from their eggs. Even the end of the dives in St. Vincent are stunning, with sheer cliffs plunging to the depths, and century plants clinging precariously - a death-defying hanging garden. Bequia, with its beautiful beaches, friendly people and gentle nature, offers a wonderful array of sloping reefs. The pelagics range from Hawksbill turtles to black-tip sharks and eagle rays. In the shallows, take time to spot the near invisible little creatures like sea horses and basket stars, the harlequin pipefish and the odd grumpy bat fish. Mustique, "escape island" of the rich and famous, also presents underwater relief from sunbathing and ice cream sundaes. Sloping reefs and flat expanses of coral reveal shy spotted drums, spiny lobsters, and banded coral shrimp gathered ready for action at a cleaning station.
Canouan is a sleepy island that recently woke up with a smart new hotel development. Here there are underwater rock formations covered in a variety sponges and soft corals. Schools of permit duck and dive, whilst bar jacks keep their distance along the comfortable shallow dives.
Mayreau literally has gardens beneath the waves and it is here that the aptly named garden eels are found swaying grass-like in the sand. Crinoids creep from behind giant tunicates, while flamingo tongues graze on vari-cloured sea fans. Sometimes waterlogged tree trunks provide homes for blennies and gobies, and then sometimes that "waterlogged tree trunk" is in fact a nurse shark! Union Island rests at the gateway to the incredible Tobago Cays and offers reefs jutting dramatically from the sand. Partially hidden southern sting rays watch with Steady eyes as shoals of sprats race in rivers above them. Drifting along, that feeling of being watched will probably be a barracuda easing alongside.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines is also the perfect place to discover diving itself. The waters are clear and warm, and teeming with life and even if you arrive as a non-diver, you'll likely want to take a morning to go on a Discover Scuba Diving course, so that you can see what all the excitement is about. The dive shops are experienced and professional, and qualified instructors take pride in introducing new divers to the phenomenal world of diving, as well as teaching Advanced and Specialist diving to those already certified.
Take time to visit all of the islands, each has much to offer, and the locals are pleased and proud to help you enjoy your stay. In St. Vincent, combine a dive with a trip to the Bat Cave or to the Falls of Baleine, only accessible by boat. After your dive in Bequia, check out the deserted beach picnic haven of Isle de Quatre. Hope to rub shoulders with a rock star on Mustique as you clutch your apres-dive cocktail. If you still feel energetic after your Canouan dive, you could try a round of golf. Dry off after your Union and Mayreau dives whilst marveling at the Tobago Cays and watching for that ever elusive green flash at sunset.
Join the lucky few who have discovered St. Vincent & the Grenadines diving... you'll be pleased you did!
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