Tobago beach erosion……………!?

[Jörg Grunert]

Hi everybody,

I visited Tobago first time in April 2006. I spent a long term at this beautiful island. At this visit I saw all beaches in good condition, well looking and full of sand.
I ´m just right back from my third trip to Tobago and I ´m shocked about the situations at the most beaches I visit.
The Englishmans bay lost masses of sand on the left side. Palm trees roots are open flushed by big waves. The same problem is at the Pirats bay. Masses of sand is gone and stones are quite there.
The back bay nearly Mt. Irvine had also lost sand at the left side and you can see at Mt. Irvine beach on the right side, the waves scraped the edge of the bush.

Is this normal by different seasons, waves take sand away and bring it back in other season with another direction of current???
I´m not sure about that but I think, it could be the reason of the melting glaciers !!! Water level come up year by year with more pressure for all beaches.

I would like to read your opinion about that problem.
Have you seen the erosion too?

Thanks for reading and thinking about it,

jörg

[Paul Tallet]

Hi Jorg

In mid October I was warning of potential beach erosion from the effects of heavy sea swells generated by Hurricane Omar in the Caribbean Sea.

There have been a number of major Hurricances in the Caribbean Sea in the last 2008 season and many of these could have contributed to the beach erosion that you refer to.

I hope this makes some sense.

Regards

[Susanne Thomsen]

Hi Jørg.

WE have also just come home from Tobago.

We didn't see something different from the other years, but there was one night in last week, when the waves was so big that they was reaching the whole way up on Castara beach, sweeping sand, tree trunks and rocks with them.

Our best freinds (from Castara), was swimming out in the middel of the night, into the 3-5 meter tall waves, and we thought that they wouldn't come back again. But as they say themself: "We are born on and in the water". They wanted to go out to rescue their own and all the other fishermens boats, but even with their great courage and afford, one boat went missing. Next day they found the boat, but when we was standing there in the middel of the night and saw them swim out in the dark, I really thought I never should see them again. But luckily, after more than one hour in the water, they came back up again, safe, and oh my good, I still wonder how they did it!

They moved all the boats in Castara, these two guys... it was amazing!

Regards,
Susanne

[Hugh S]

Hello Susanne,

Just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed your short story of the fishermen rescuing their boats. Very exciting images.

Thanks, Hugh

[Brian Taylor]

it is totally normal that the sea takes the beaches away from september on, no worries, it always brings them back. washed and clean. the palm trees in castaras big bay are used to show their roots once a year, so no worries there...