Sailing to the slands near Kick’em Jenny
On the 15 miles sail south from Carriacou to Grenada (remember they are part of the same country) you will pass by a few small uninhabited islands. What you don’t see is the Kick’em Jenny volcano a few miles to the west and 600 feet underwater. If you are sailing this route you will want to sail close to the islands or even windward of them, because there is a 1.5 km exclusion zone around Kick’em Jenny during normal times and a 5km zone during heighten activity (which started in March of this year). This was another milestone I had been looking forward to sailing by. Not that I really expected to see anything but sailing near an underwater volcano sounded cool. 😊
Grenada is a wonderful island with a population a little over a 100,000. It is called the Spice Island because nutmeg, along with other spices, were planted on the island around the time of the Napoleonic Wars. Before this time nutmeg was only found in Banda Islands of Indonesia. Nutmeg is so important to Grenada culture and economy it is depicted on the Grenada national flag.
Graffiti in Grenada showing support for the USA
First settled by the French in 1649, Grenada was a British colony from 1763 until independence in 1974. Within five years the country would witness a coup by Maurice Bishop who had ties to Communist doctrine. Although he took over the country in 1979 he was reluctant to fully commit to the USSR and communism, which caused another coup and his execution in 1983. One week later the USA invaded the small nation to liberate it and the people still seem to be appreciative of this action.
Looking towards the southern bay of St Geroge Harbor from the fort.
As you sail south along the western coast you will have to pass ¾ of the island before you come to a bay that has any services and that is the capital, St George. Here you will find a wonderfully protected two bay harbor, with the southern bay being the one with cruising services.
I spent two weeks in this amazing country and did not get to see half the interior, which features waterfalls, rainforest, hiking, lakes, Sulphur Springs, and so much more. I am looking forward to returning and exploring Grenada even more, but let me tell you what all I did do and recommend over the next four weeks with the blogs and photos of the day. With that said welcome to Grenada.
