April 2007 Trinidad/Tobago Trip Report Part II Tobago This is a continuation of our Trinidad/Tobago trip report. Part I focused on our land visit to the Asa Wright Nature Center and other parts of Trinidad. This part will focus on scuba diving and a few nature tours on Tobago. After landing at the Tobago airport, we claim our luggage from the one of the smallest baggage terminals I have ever been in. Two female reps from Sherman's Car Rentals are waiting for us outside show us to our Mitsubishi Lancer rental car. We reserved the car from the useful MyTobago.info site; the cost is about $40 a day with unlimited mileage. Crown Point is located on the western tip of Tobago and is generally regarded as the touristy part of the island. Not really our scene so we have made plans to stay on the lush green and remote North End of the island in the tiny fishing village of Charlotteville. Takes me a sec to get used to driving on both Tobago's narrow roads AND the left side (from the English colonial days) but soon I am in the rhythm of things. The roads are in good condition and generally well marked, the drivers are well-mannered. The signs at the gas stations state "No Naked Lights Please". We see lots of uniformed school kids thumbing for rides but we have no room with our luggage in the backseat and anyway our North American big city mentality doesn't really allow us to consider picking up hitchhikers, even if they are only 8 years old. On a weekday morning you will see large numbers of businessmen and woman trying to hitch rides to work. It takes about an hour to drive to Speyside, then we continue over to the hill to the sleepy village of Charlotteville. We find our bungalow outside of town that we rented via VRBO.com (Vacation Rentals by Owner). It is owned by a Colorado couple and is nothing too special but fairly cheap (about $45 a night). It is next to the Kountry Kitchen, a local roti spot. Roosters and chickens have free run of the yard and are happy to provide 4am wake-up calls no matter if you requested them or not. In the front yard is a mango tree and whenever we hear the splatting of mangos on our rental car, we know that there is an Orange-Winged Parrot in the tree. This bird picks out the best fruit, takes a few bites, and then discards the rest. Lot of locals walk by on their way into downtown Charlotteville and most seem to be very friendly to visitors. So the bungalow is fine but if I did it again I'd probably pay more for rental place on the ocean (you'll see a few of these offered in Charlotteville, but I don't think they have websites so you'll have to check them out when you arrive on the island). In front of yard of rental Bungalow, Charlotteville, Tobago Orange-winged Parrot in search of food, Charlotteville, Tobago There are lots of birds in the yard, including the Bared-Eyed Thrush, Motmots, various hummingbirds, and Blue-Grey Tanagers. In the evening we make the short drive to Speyside to find a dive operator. When trying to book tours of any sort in Tobago, I found that email gets mixed results as Tobagans tend to email you back 3 weeks later in response and leave out key information such as cost, where to meet, etc... So I decided to wing it and not make any dive reservations on this trip. I had read good things about a local diver named Redman (not the guy from the Wu Tang Clan) on Scubaboard.com so I decided to give him a try. Another diver operation I had read good things about is run by an Englishman and called Caribstu, but he is much more expensive than Redman and wants you to wire cash to his European bank account in advance which seems like a pain. There are also several other dive operations based in Speyside but after doing some web research it seemed they had a more of a "cattleboat" attitude to diving than I care for. We drove up to Redman's small shop in "downtown" Speyside and found it closed, but I had heard he lived behind it and sure enough he was standing in the front yard with another local. Friendly and quick with sense of humor, he took delight in noting that his friend and I shared the same name. He agreed that we would meet up at the shop @ 10am for our first dive tomorrow ("So you can sleep in" he said but I suspect this was more for the benefit of his crew and himself). $30 a tank would be the rate we were charged. He did not ask to see any cert cards and we never filled out any paperwork while diving with him. He did ask if we were cool with diving in currents and that was about it. During the week we dove with his operation I found that his operation did observe safe diving limits, safety stops, and appropriate surface intervals. Most of the dives were drift dives and always with a divemaster guide who had a surface marker attached to a reel that the pilot of the boat followed. That business taken care of, we try out the Birdwatcher's restaurant down the street from his dive shop for dinner. As with most places in this part of Tobago, there is no menu. The waiter offers us a choice of chicken or fish. He is happy to accommodate my vegetarianism and offer me a plate of cooked vegetables as an option (As famed chef Anthony Bourdain notes, most places have no problem charging $15 for a plate of vegetables!). The food is good and decent Carib beers are served as well, but it is on the pricey side. Dining is done on an open-air dock by the ocean. There not many tourists around, we do see two Germans diving couples wandering around but that is about it. That night we arrange the mosquito netting around the bed at our rental house (the house is open air with no screens) and drift off into sleep. On cue the roosters wake us up early the next morning. After an expensive breakfast @ the Manta Lodge veranda (very nice setting though) we guess that Redman goes by island time and show at his shop about 20min late. We are surprised to see that the DM and a group of 2 German divers are waiting for us. We feel bad and hurriedly get our gear ready. Redman will not be diving today but he has a friendly Divemaster working for him that shows us the boat and where to put our gear. We throw our gear on board and we are off. Diving here is done off a small wooden boat called pirogues. If you are used to comfortable Caribbean dive boats with padded seats, these are not they. The ride out to the dive sites is a bit rough and we are soaked with water before we even get our dive gear on from the waves. The best place to sit in one of these is near the back by the pilot. One of the German non-diving wives who came along for the ride looks quite seasick. It is difficult to stand up in the rocky boat to doff your dive gear and at one point my wife takes a spill but thankfully is o.k. I'd advise putting on the bottom half of your wetsuit before getting in one of these small boats and maybe taking some meds if you are prone to seasickness. Our first dive is at Coral Gardens. There are nice healthy coral formations here and the DM points out what many think is the world’s largest brain coral (about 14 feet across). The current is pretty strong at the end of the dive but nothing unmanageable. Jumping back into the small rocky boat is similar to pulling yourself into a panga in the Galapagos, after a bit of practice it is pretty easy. Our surface interval is done at Little Tobago Island. We hike up to the top and check out the nesting Red-Billed Tropic birds. They actually nest on the ground right off the trail. These are white seabirds with a long streaming tail. I had first seen one flying across the ocean at Wolf Island in the Galapagos. Along the cliffs we see lots of seabirds, including a Brown Booby relaxing in the sun. All of our surface intervals will be done on Little Tobago and it is nice place to relax with a quiet beach, dock, and many short hiking trails. There is a funny changing room with a sign that the artist added eyeballs to as if it is checking you out as you get undressed. Across the water you can see Goat Island where Ian Fleming (of the James Bond novels fame) lived for a while. The DM tells us the island is for sale for a mere $20 million if anyone is interested. If you are thinking of walking to the top of Little Tobago, I'd advise bringing some tennis shoes or hiking boats in a drybag. I did it one day in my sandals and ended up with some nasty blisters. The island is uninhabited by humans but you will see a guide from Frank's Glass Bottomed Boat leading birders around the island sometimes. He may give you a dirty look as the surface intervals for divers probably cut into his tourist trips on Little Tobago. There are also a few wild roosters & chickens roaming about. Dock at Little Tobago Island, Tobago Brown Booby, Little Tobago Island Brown Noody, Little Tobago Island Changing Room Eyes, Little Tobago Island Our next dive is at a place called Cathedral and we see the unusual Lesser Electric Ray and a large barracuda as well as some great coral formations. Mild current on this dive. We leave our gear at the Redman shop and drive in our rental car through the Tobago National Forest Reserve. Interestingly this reserve has been protected since 1765, longer than the United States has been a country! The amusing sign at the entrance notes "No Plucking of Plants, no Tethering of Animals". Outside of the park you will run across several cattle tied up along the road so drive with care. THA sign, Tobago We drove along the Northside Road that our guide book compares to the Amalfi Coast in Italy. Nice views of the Sisters Rocks offshore. We continue to Crown Point to load up on groceries at the Penny Saver on the main road. This is biggest grocery store in Tobago, beware that they close early on Sundays. You'll probably want to stop here first if you are driving to stay on the north side of the island and have a fridge. We load up on Carib beer (the bottles are quite small) as well as some food to cook in our bungalow. As a vegetarian I am surprised to see they stock tofu and many other fake-meat items here. That evening a guide we found on the Internet named Peter Cox drops by to finalize arrangements for some tours we are doing with him. He is another example of someone who didn't email me back for 3 weeks in typical Tobago fashion but he is quite reliable to go out with once you arrive on the island. One of many loose dogs stops by our house and we give them some dog treats we picked up at the Pennysavers. Some dogs are picky about accepting these but one cute white puppy could really put them away! That evening we have a couple of drinks on the front porch and I read about "Hummingbird Prostitutes" in A Neotropical Companion by John Kricher. (This book is a somewhat academic but interesting account of wildlife and ecology in the Neotropics and is worth picking up if that sort of thing interests you). Loose puppy visiting our rental house for treats, Tobago The next morning after a great breakfast of fried potatoes made at home, we drive to Redman's. We notice while testing our gear in the shop that my wife's first stage of her regulator is acting up so Redman quickly attaches her 2nd stages to one of his. It is only my wife and I diving today and Redman is our DM. He takes us out to Black Jack Hole. Black Jack Hole is a sloping reef with large barrel sponges and schools of creolefish. A lobster, tiny cleaning shrimp, and a large tarpon are seen on this dive. The 2nd dive is done at a different part of Coral Garden: lots of beautiful coral formations and some blenny are spotted before they dive into their holes. Redman spots a Green Moray free-swiming for us. Sadly my underwater camera was stolen last year so I don't have any pictures to post. That evening we do a night jungle tour with Peter Cox. This is a tour with flashlights through the Tobago National Forest. Kinda reminds of me of a creepy X-Files episode. Honestly not much wildlife is seen other than a sleeping hummingbird and some crabs,spiders, leaf-cutting ants, and scorpions so I would not really recommend the night tour. Peter tells us the combination of over-hunting as well as an ongoing drought might explain the lack of activity. On the drive back we see quite a few white Barn Owls flying across the road and some Nightjars laying in the road looking for insects and that makes up for the lack of activity in the forest. White-tailed Nightjar in the road, Tobago The next morning the female caretaker of our rental place comes by our house and drops off a homemade meal she made for us in a cooler. We ask her what we owe her for the food and she says nothing (We leave her some money in the cooler when we check-out). A stray dog comes by but rejects the dog treat I offer it (my large black lab mix back at home would be stunned!). Today we are diving with a French tourist who is visiting his wife's family on Trinidad. He isn't much of a diver and struggles with his buoyancy, picking up rocks from the bottom to compensate for his weight belt. We begin with my favorite dive of the trip at a spot called Bookends. We drop down and swim into bowl-shaped arena. Looking up we see pounding surge, large schools of baitfish and about 7 or 8 big tarpon circling around. Very nice dive! We surface in choppy water and during our surface interval the DM shows us a spot nearby called the Washing Machine. He notes that the owner of a local shop disappeared diving it a few years ago and they never found his body or scuba gear. They also tell us about another diver who spent 27 hours circling the island after the current got hold of her until she was able to swim ashore. Amazingly she dove again the next day! We head to the next dive site the Japanese Gardens, on the way we notice some bubbles from divers in the water from the Manta Lodge and no boat anywhere near them. The boat is on the other side of Goat Island and our captain and DM finally flag him down and point out the divers to him. Apparently the Manta Lodge captain had another group of divers he was tracking on the other side of the island as well, our DM shakes his head in disbelief when he hears this. Our dive is fun, a strong current pushes us along and we see lobster, tarpon, and spotted eel while flying over the coral. That afternoon we walk into Charlottevile so my wife can check her work email as she promised the company she works for. The only place open is an open-air place blasting reggae music and advertising "Adult DVD's for $20TT (cheap!). The Rastafarian owner gives her a LAN line to hook up her laptop into while I sit on the beach next to some liming locals and laugh to think what my wife's coworkers would think if they could see the site she was replying to their emails from. On the way back we note a sign advertising a "Friday After Work Lime", must be similar to happy hour back in the States. After Work Lime, Charlotteville, Tobago Back at the rental house, the husband owner of the rental house from Colorado has shown up, he is staying in the bottom half. He tells us his wife skipped this trip as she is somewhat disenchanted with Tobago, something to do with her opinion of the way the locals treat their kids. His nine year old son is funny and chats with my wife about his appreciation of old architecture (pretty sophisticated tyke!) We try dinner at the Blue Waters Inn in Speyside. We had looked into staying here before we came and the hotel has a very nice secluded setting on the water. I had read reviews online that the staff can be cold and someone from the hotel management must have read the same thing as our waitress was friendly almost to point of obnoxiousness. The dinner is ok here; I'd recommend the bar as a better choice as they have a small dinner menu but better atmosphere. The bar is open air and has great views of the Speyside Harbor and Goat Island. The bartender plays the new record by Atlanta rap superstar Akon over and over and over. I recognize a few elderly British birders from the Asa Wright Center in Trinidad getting cocktails as the sun goes down and wonder if they enjoy rap music too? Open air bar at the Blue Waters Inn, Tobago Quiet beach as seen from the bar at the Blue Waters Inn, Tobago Another morning in Tobago as we arrive at Redman's. Redman pulls up and says he is not feeling well and will not be diving today. We dive at a site called Runway, a very strong current pushes us along as if we are about to take off. Get a close up view of a sea turtle having a rest beside some coral. There is a nice swim-through at the end of the dive. Our last dive is at a spot that's name escapes my memory but features the usual great corals and we do our safety stop in 17 feet of calm water. We drive out to the National Forest Reserve again that evening while listening to Atlanta's Black Lip's great new record ("Los Valientes Del Mundo Nuevo") on the stereo. Don't see any barn owls this time but lots of nightjars are seen. We dine in Charlotteville at a place called Jane's. The cook comes over and shakes our hand in introduction before taking our order. Again there is no menu, just a choice of chicken or fish. The food here has an Indian flavor and is great, probably my favorite spot in Tobago. Lots of locals stop by to pick up to go orders. On Sunday morning we set out with Peter Cox to do a daytime rain forest tour. We take a route along the Upper Caribbean part of the island. He notes that this road was just recently paved and offers access to fantastic wildlife. He has a keen ear and pulls over whenever he hears anything unusual. We see lots of birds; highlights are a handsome male Barred Antshrike (this bird appears on the cover of the "Neotropical Companion", Ruby Topaz Hummingbird, and a pair of Great Black Hawks. Inside the forest we see the magnificent Collared Trogan. We also see the Blue-Blacked Manikins but sadly they do not perform a lek (type of mating dance) while we are there. A Yellow-Legged Thrush is seen calling repeatedly and then we see what serious birders (not us) come to Tobago to see, the rare Saber Winged Hummingbird. You will see this bird depicted on signs around Tobago as "Campy", a nickname based on it's scientific name. Peter is able to find both a male and female for us. Bring lots of bug spray if you do this tour as the mosquitoes don't play around here! As it is Sunday afternoon we observe lots of young Tobagans cruising around the island with woman hanging out of the car windows and rap music blasting from the radios. Funny as we see this in our hometown all the time too. Our last day in Tobago is spent on another birding tour with Peter near his home near the Lower Atlantic side of the island. We visit the wetlands and see Anhinga, egrets, and herons. A pair of Black Bellied Whistling duck hangs out near by and we also see some jumpy Southern Lapwing and the cool Great Yellowlegs. Sadly Peter notes much of these wetlands are scheduled to be developed and these birds will have to find somewhere else to go. We see some Green-Rumped Parrotlets fly by, Peter notes these are caged birds brought to Tobago from Trinidad that escaped. We continue on the Hilton Hotel, they also have some wetlands on their grounds. Here Peter gets into a disagreement with another Tobago guide (Newton George) over if a particular sandpiper is a Western or Semipalmated. Colorful Barn Swallows fly overheard snatching insects from the air and we see some Antshrikes again. Peter brings a huge papaya we snack on before going to the Bon Accord Lagoon. We see White-Cheeked Pintails and Purple Gallinule through his scope. Again Peter notes this place may soon be filled in for development. By noon we call it a day and check out a Roti place Peter recommended in Scarborough called Lal’s Roti Restaurant on Dutch Fort Road. Roti is an Indian bread wrapped like a burrito with a spicy meat or vegetable filling inside, they are very popular in Trinidad and Tobago. Lal's is a great find. It has an open-air deck with a flat screen TV showing the latest BET videos. A long line of locals waits for cheap rotis to be served. The food is tasty and very cheap. If you want to try roti on Tobago check this place out. After lunch, we drive along the Lower Caribbean part of the island. Check out the small town of Plymouth via our rental car and look at the odd Mystery Tombstone. This grave marker is from the 18th century and reads "She was a mother without knowing it and a wife without letting her husband know it, except by her kind indulgence to him." Pretty cryptic stuff. Some theories are that it belongs to a female slave who had an affair with her master. Plymouth is one of Tobago's earliest communities, having first been settled by the Dutch in 1633. We have a drink on the lawns of Fort James and watch the pelicans diving into the waters of Courtland Bay below. They are gearing up for the jazz festival here, Elton John is one of the headliners. We have a 4pm tea on the deck of the Arnos Vale hotel before heading to the airport for the short flight back to Trinidad. Arnos Vale has an assortment of bird feeders that attracts lots of birds and a rather tame parrot that may try to crawl up your arm (I avoided him due to my bird-flu phobia). We get our first close-up look at the Chachalaca (a loud bird that usually hides in the woods). On the deck of the Arnos Vale hotel, Tobago Friendly parrot wants sunglasses, Arnos Vale hotel, Tobago On the way back to the airport we get some decent Mediterranean food from Skewers on Milford Rd, Crown Point. They serve good hummus with Arabic bread if you are looking for a snack. In Trinidad we overnight at the adequate but charmless Sadila House (four miles from the airport and eleven miles from Port of Spain.). The friendly owners are happy to get up at 5am the next morning to take us to the airport so this is a fine place to stay nearby the airport if you don't care too much about atmosphere. We had fun diving in Tobago. There are some great coral formations here and most of the coral appears to be in good shape. It seemed to lack the numbers of fish life I have seen in other parts of the Caribbean such as Cozumel, St. John, and the Bahamas. We both used 3-mil suits and were never cold. Redman didn't use a wetsuit at all. The topside life on Tobago is great and I loved the lack of tourists on the North side of the island. The birding on both islands was fantastic. Exploring the winding roads that pass through the small seaside towns was always a fun activity. We brought "Insight Guide Trinidad & Tobago" by Lesley Gordon as our guidebook for the trip. It was o.k. but Rough Guides might be a better choice. The Insight Guide seemed to focus a bit too much on the history of the islands and not enough on specific activities or sights to see on the islands. The section on Tobago was pretty sparse too. We bought a used copy of "A Guide to the Birds of Trinidad and Tobago" by Richard Ffrench along too. This book was useful to i.d. or read about the birds on each island. As many have noted the illustrations are a bit lacking but I still found it useful. Bring lots of bugspray and use it before you visit the beach as the tiny sand fleas are everywhere! We found Tobago to be safe and were never harassed by anyone. Well, once at the gas station a random guy asked me to pay him for the gas instead of the uniformed attendant but I ignored him and they chased him off. This could happen in any big city throughout the world so it was no big deal. If you have any questions or comments send them to: Trip Reports Home