myTobago – your questions, review and comment about Tobago

After several weeks of slow dial-up connections that have made it difficult for me to respond in the forum, I am currently in Crown Point with an always-on broadband connection. Although we’ve been here four days, other duties have kept me busy. Sadly, we move on tomorrow and its back to the dial-ups, so this may well be my last posting for a while.

We returned to Castara yesterday to spend a wonderful half-day with King David on one of his rainforest tours. In actual fact we didn’t bother with the rainforest ‘proper’, but explored a number of trails in secondary bush around the back of Englishman’s Bay. The bird life was stunning and you see so much more in secondary bush than in the rainforest itself.

Anyway, after the walk we returned to Castara Retreats for lunch with owners, Steve and Sue Felgate. Now, this is not meant to be an advert for Castara Retreats, but I have to say that this property has the most beautiful views of Castara available. You can see the entire beach and bay and in enough detail to recognise people on the beach.

The other major factor is that you can see the sting rays feeding along the shoreline. In fact when we arrived in the early morning, there was a vast shoal of sardine-size fish covering most of Little (Heavenly) Bay. Visitors walking along the beach seemed unaware, but from our height you could clearly see the millions of fish, the shoal constantly changing shape as it moved around the bay.

Anyway, when we came back from the walk, there was a large party of Trinidadian kids (500 have come over for the Carnival weekend on an annual sponsored camping trip) playing on the beach. A group of them went into the water and started splashing around, generally having fun. Within seconds a family of seven sting rays arrived, obviously attracted by the noise. They’d been within a couple of feet of the kid for at least five minutes before one boy suddenly saw one and all hell broke loose. Everyone darted to the beach. The rays withdrew. The kids soon regained confidence and started returning to the water. In turn, the rays started coming back. Soon, everyone was back in the water, surrounded by a semi-circle of rays.

Now, I don’t claim to be an animal psychologist or anything, but I do know that these gentle creatures are only dangerous if you accidentally step on one buried in the sand and get caught by the barbed tail as it darts away. However, it seemed totally apparent to us that the rays were intrigued by the splashing and not afraid of the humans. It was wonderful to see the interaction of the two groups. It’s a memory of Tobago that will stay with me for a long time. My only regret was that I had left my camera and long lens down in the car at the bottom of the hill.

Hi Steve,I,and others,also had that experience of the sting rays swimming around you it was fantastic.The water was unusually valm and ckear and we were in only about 18 inches to 2 feet of water so the rays occasionally broke the surface with their"wings".It is something I shan't forget either.
David

Hi Steve and David,

I had a few similar experiences, though in Mt Irvine and not in Castara. I was snorkeling around the reef when all of a sudden a huge sting ray swam up to me. I am ashamed to admit that I never swam so fast in my whole life as at that moment... Of course, everybody was laughing at me when I told them the story.

After that, I had similar experiences a few more times and am proud to say that I was not afraid anymore and had the chance to admire these wonderful creatures...

Enjoy,

Mariann

I found that the best time to watch the Rays was when the fishermen were bringing in the nets ... they like to pick up the scraps that the sea-birds don't find.

Another good vantage point is the Treehouse in front of the Cascreole with the added benefit of a Rum Punch ... but I guess Castara Retreats has one of the best viewing positions in Castara.

When I am not swimming with the Rays near the beach they can be found asleep and partially buried in the sand further out in Castara Bay.

Thanks for bringing back those memories Steve.

Regards

Hi Paul

We had a lovely five days at Alibaba's SeaBreeze a few weeks ago (review to follow) and they would have had a spectacular view of the big shoal in Heavenly Bay that morning, because it was right in front of their apartments, from the surf line and out a good hundred metres. If you didn't know the Bay, you would have thought it was just rocks, but as you watched, you could see it slowly changing shape. It was impossible to see the sand beneath. Heavens knows how many millions of fish there mush have been in the shoal.

Too true Steve

The Sea Breeze also has a very good perspective across the Bay.

I guess the sea is calmer now for you to be able to see this ... lucky you !

Regards

cannot wait to move down to the beach ourselves! so far we have to hang out on the balconies with our guests to watch the rays feed and the fishes jump... end of this year we hopefully will be down there ourselves!

Are stingrays a normal "presence" in Castara? While I do love the natural habitat of Tobago and its natural inhabitants, I have never been in the water with stingrays, and am terrified of the thought. In Trinidad they frequent Mayaro beach, and needless to say, I don't.

I know they are peaceful and all of that, but they look "scornful" and I am coward of such things. Do they go "out to sea" at a specific time of day?

I want to stay a few days in Castara on my next trip to Tobago, and would like to share the beach with the nice little winged creatures, but just not at the same time.

Also, Steve or anyone else, can you name some self-catering properties that are near (easy walking distance) to Cascreole?

Stingrays are very common in Castara.

They can be seen every day when the water is clear and they come very close to the shore.

They come and go as they please so they could be there at any time, especially when the nets are being pulled in.

From the Cascreole you would be able to see several self catering establishments ... there are many and very reputable, you will have a hard choice.

Regards

Enjoyed your post Steve, on our recent trip to the island my children went snorkelling and were accompanyed by several rays,much to their delight.They are obviously very inquisitive creatures.

Two large stingrays live in Cotton bay. They get food from the boat crews who stop there with their guests for snorkeling. These intelligent creatures know exactly that it's feeding time when a boat arrives at the bay. We jumped unsuspectingly into the water as the two rays swam immediately around us, touched and prodded us, as they would say: "Give me fish, I'm hungry!"

At first I was scared but later I enjoyed the swim with these impressing animals.
The pic shows a crew member feeding the stingray:

Wow, that is some stingray. I would die if that came up to me in the water. Is that the average size of them or is that one just big. I have swam with the fishes, but the stingrays i don't know about.

I will stay close to the shore so i am not in their way.

don't you worry, I am a real water-panic-person or better I was (just to avoid missunderstandings: STEPH writing) but take a mask and see them and you will love them. they don't just touch you in little bay...but it is so great to watch them swim....
enjoy
STEPH

Yeah Steph,

it's amazing to see them swimming because they are so .. grazioes. And it is also amazing to touch them. I saw my first stingray while snorkeling at Heavenly Bay and - like Mariann - swim faster then ever in my live but then I turned back to watch them and it is one of my most impressing experiences.
Another day on a boat trip (with AliBaba's) we met some stingrays at No Mans Land. They came close to us and surround us. Like Roland wrote they touched and prodded us... Amazing

Before I get in contact with stingrays I loved dolphines most but in between I'm not sure which animal I like more.

D. that is a small one,they can be considerably bigger.There was one in Castara that was 7-9ft wide,honest not a fishermans tale!!!!!
David

Thats worth all the money in the world!!

Awsome really

/emote me looks at Brian Taylor, u could arrange trips like that eh?

Hi Mikael,

you don't need a trip when you are in Castara. They come right to the beach. In little bay are normally two or three.

But when you go to No-Mans-Land on a boat trip (AliBaba is doing this trips as well) you may be lucky to meet the one we meet last year in October.

You can see it on http://www.gisela-grell.de/Holidays section Tobago 2005 - 02 on page 3

Cheers

Gisela (7 days to go)
a.k.a. Shorty

i don't think that anything in the world could make me feel comfortable in the water with those rays. especially after the crocodile hunter met his death from one. just when i was maybe going to be open to sharing the beach with them, they go and make a bad impression.

i am hoping that when i next make it to castara, they are not in the bay i am in. if they are, i will switch bays. that is what keeps me from going to mayaro in trinidad, the blasted stingrays. i love animals, but jellyfish, stingrays, eels, yuck!

D. Gould wrote:i don't think that anything in the world could make me feel comfortable in the water with those rays. especially after the crocodile hunter met his death from one. just when i was maybe going to be open to sharing the beach with them, they go and make a bad impression.

i am hoping that when i next make it to castara, they are not in the bay i am in. if they are, i will switch bays. that is what keeps me from going to mayaro in trinidad, the blasted stingrays. i love animals, but jellyfish, stingrays, eels, yuck!

hehe, well u prolly in more risk going out and buy ur milk in the morning in broklyn then getting attacked by a stingray! But then again, we are all diffrent =).

Gisela, thx alot for showing ur pictures, was great fun!. I be living down in crowpoint during my 2 week stay, but hey schouldnt be to hard to get up to castara =)

There are more than 35 species of stingrays on earth. I don't think they are all so agressive as the one who killed the crocodile hunter. Whilst I was searching the internet for this topic I found the following statement:

"It was extraordinarily bad luck," said Shaun Collin, a University of Queensland marine neuroscientist. "It's not easy to get spined by a stingray, and to be killed by one is very rare."

(Source: http://articles.news.aol.com/news/_a/ex ... 5809990006)

So relax and enjoy these animals. The probability is bigger to get seriously hit by a falling coconut!