Clips from the beautiful island of Tobago in the Caribbean, your ideal holiday destination.
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Leatherback Turtle covering the eggs (It Thinks) on the beach in Tobago. This was taken on June 28, 2010 around 5:30am at the Turtle Beach Resort. I woke up around 4am and decided to check for turtles and noticed this turtle right in front of our hotel room. Later I got the wife and came back with the camera (Sony TX2) to film this. Flashes are not allowed so we waited for enough light to start filming so we missed the laying of the eggs. There are some pictures of the eggs since the Turtle Patrol moved the eggs to a safe location away from the high tides. The people around the turtle are mostly a volunteer Turtle Patrol group as well as a few tourists.

The Queen opens the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting amongst other engagements.

just a few clips of the boys taking a skim @ grafton beach
Video Rating: 5 / 5

Trinidad and Tobago

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The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, located in the Caribbean has much to offer by way of culture, beaches, foods and nature resorts. There may be two islands by name and the separation by water, but definitely one bond existing between the residents of these islands.
Carnival
Every year thousands arrive on the island of Trinidad to enjoy what is known as the best carnival in the world. Carnival Monday and Tuesday are the days before Ash Wednesday on the Catholic calendar. The burst of colour on the costumes, the revelry of the people, the infectious music, the Calypso, the Steelband and the beautiful women are all combined to send a message to the rest of the world that no one should miss Trinidad’s carnival.
The Food
Trinidadians and Tobagonians are well known for their spicy foods. A popular and most sought after dish when visiting Tobago is Crab and Dumpling. In Trinidad one cannot visit without trying Doubles, Roti, Pelau; Curry Duck and Chicken, Macaroni Pie and an array of many other foods. The foods are well seasoned and tasty and everyone keeps returning for more food, one serving never seems to be enough!
Beaches and Diving Facilities
The reefs in Tobago allow for snorkelling and scuba diving, emphasis being placed on being careful when diving and swimming so as not to destroy the reef. For non-swimmers there is also a glass bottom boat which goes out on to The Buccoo Reef in an area known as Nylon Pool, which is clear, shallow and warm; this boat gives everyone the opportunity to share in this natural beauty.
The Maracas beach in Trinidad is the most visited by both locals and tourists. It is located to the North of the island and no one visits Maracas beach without purchasing a Bake and Shark for lunch.
The Pitch Lake
This fascinating geological mystery was discovered by Sir Walter Raleigh in the year 1595. It is located in La Brea at the South west of the island and it is the largest asphalt deposit in the world. The Pitch Lake attracts over 15000 visitors on an annual basis.
Other Highlights
Bird Watching, Turtle Watching, Cycling, Kayaking, Hiking are just among the many activities for the entire family to partake and enjoy. For the sport lovers, one can always locate a game of football or cricket being played. The shopaholics can find just about any and everything in the island’s capital; Port-of-Spain. Clothes, books, fragrances, cosmetics and household items are always easily obtainable at affordable prices.
The different ethnic backgrounds existing on the islands allow for each and everyone to visit Trinidad and Tobago and for all visitors to feel the comfort and warmth existing and extended by the residents. Although the islands of Trinidad and Tobago have unique characteristics and attractions; they are awaiting everyone with open arms; so why not make Trinidad and Tobago your vacation destination the next time you travel, a jewel of the Caribbean awaits your presence.
 
 
 
The author manages the websites at The Chicago Magnificent Mile and at Tom Tom One

Glass bottom tour and snorkel @ Bucco Reef. This was our favorite snorkel spot on our cruise. The coral, fish, and clarity was perfect. My wife and I are now very interested in getting scuba certified.
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A Tobago Vacation Guide

Tobago is often known only as the little sister of Trinidad, as in Trinidad and Tobago, and this doesn’t in any way do it justice. A Tobago vacation is a vacation on a unique Caribbean Island, still relatively unspoilt by mass tourism. It lies some 20 miles to the north east of Venezuela and around 150 miles south of Barbados. What this means is an island that has white sand beaches, perfect little bays, turquoise blue clear and unpolluted seas. Tobago has colourful undamaged coral reefs teeming with fish, and alongside that waving palm trees by by luxuriant tropical rainforest. Its size at around forty one kilometres long and eleven kilometres wide means it isn’t too big to get lost, nor too small to be bored. The sun shines year round with an average temperature of 80 degrees Fahrenheit during the day, falling to seventy three degrees at night, with the rainy season from June until November. Persistent rain happens only rarely, what it normally means is brief bursts of heavy rain followed by sunshine. The dry season is December to April which unsurprisingly is also high season and correspondingly higher prices. You might need some good reasons to persuade you to take a Tobago vacation, and one very good reason especially if your vacation has to be taken during the summer months is the fact that Tobago is south of the hurricane belt. Another outstanding feature of Tobago, and this isn’t something you will see often if at all on your Caribbean Island Travels, and that is empty beaches and no skyscraper tower block style hotels in sight. There are many things to do on your Tobago Vacation, including fabulous snorkelling and scuba diving under the water, with lovely coral reefs and multicoloured fish, but no dangerous sharks, and great fishing in the seas around Tobago. If Golf is your fancy there is championship golf and you don’t have to worry about there being any poisonous snakes on the course, but you may well get a glimpse of some of the large number of bird species. To see some of the abundance of wildlife you can visit the oldest protected rainforest in the western hemisphere, containing such amazing wildlife that it has been called the Galapagos of the West Indies. The people and the food you will meet and find on a Tobago vacation will be a major part of your enjoyment. The local people are very friendly and have a certain unique dignity to them that isn’t found anywhere else in the Caribbean. In terms of the food, there is a lot to choose from at extremely reasonable prices. You need to look out for local cuisine such as Curried Crab and Dumpling, perhaps Callaloo a coconut and spinach soup, or roti a thick chickpea and potato curry with either beef chicken or lobster wrapped in a kind of flour tortilla. Any tropical island, any Caribbean island must have great beaches, and on your Tobago Vacation you are going to find some beaches you will love. Amongst Tobago’s best beaches are Englishmen’s Bay right on the edge of the rainforest, no hotels, no crowds. Mount Irvine beach, small and pretty with great snorkelling. Castara is another unspoilt beach, and then there is Pigeon Point, the classical tropical island beach with white sand, turquoise water, a wooden jetty, and thatched roof huts. The other quiet often deserted beaches worth a visit are Canoe Bay, Charlotteville and Man O War Bay. The Tobago Hotels such as at Grafton Resort, Courland Bay, and Turtle Beach all have facilities including Bars and Cafes, and are much larger and very popular. There is plenty to do when you take a Tobago vacation, lots to see as Tobago is rich in history, and lots to do. Go whilst it remains relatively unspoilt. For more information about Caribbean Vacation Spots go to http://www.caribbean-vacationspots.com/pages/Site-Map.html
Gordon Steven writes about Caribbean Vacation Spots as well as authoring several articles about Worldwide Vacation Spots and he recommends in Kenya Safaris

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This is our villa in Tobago. Elton John is checking into this place on Sunday.

Are you looking to truly get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life? Do you want to sit in your own private villa or relax in your infinity edge pool while sipping a local rum punch, as the setting sun paints another masterpiece on the afternoon sky? If the questions above are a resounding yes, then the Villas at Stonehaven is the vacation destination you have been dreaming of. These villas are designed by renowned architect Arne Hassleqvist in an 18th century French Colonial Style. For more information check out www.stonehavenvillas.com or email us at stonehav@tstt.net.tt

Limbo is a dance form from the Beautiful Twin Island Country of Trinidad & Tobago

Outdoor Adventure in Tobago involving Turtle Watching and Turtle Nesting

Tobago is a small island of 116 square miles with a population of 54,000, just 33 kilometres north east of Trinidad in the Caribbean. It has been described as the last of the unspoilt Caribbean islands making it a great location for a Caribbean holiday especially for someone who loves holiday recreational activities and outdoor adventure. The island is surrounded by some of the richest and most colorful coral reefs in the Caribbean, with 40 species of corals and over 600 species of fish. These aquatic communities are some of the most spectacular sights on earth. Anyone snorkelling the reefs of Tobago has a good chance of seeing marine turtles swimming among the reefs, as Tobago is home to the hawksbill turtle and the green turtle. Hawksbill turtles are named after their beak which looks like the bill of a hawk, although some persons refer to them as oxbill turtles. Hawksbill turtles prefer to live in the clear shallow waters of costal bays and on the inside of coral reefs where they eat sponges, corals and other invertebrates. These turtles can weigh up to 200 pounds with a hard elliptical shell made of overlapping plates that are coloured amber and streaked with brown, black, yellow or red. Unfortunately that beautiful shell causes hawksbills to be hunted because the shell can be used to make a variety of ornamental items and some individuals prize the meat for eating. This hunting has caused the Hawksbill turtle to be placed on the endangered species list. The other turtle regularly seen by those who snorkel in the ocean off Tobago is the Green Turtle and it is also on the endangered species list.  Green turtles prefer to live in warm shallow water where there is an abundance of sea grass as they feed on the sea grasses and algae. Green sea turtles can weigh up to 400 pounds and have a hard oval shell that is olive brown in colour with streaks of green and brown. It is endangered because its shell is also prized and because of hunting for its meat. For anyone snorkelling around Tobago’s reefs, turtle watching is an enjoyable event. However an even more visually dramatic event takes place each year as these turtles slowly come onto the beaches of Tobago to lay their eggs and this becomes the prime time for turtle watching. The Hawksbill and Green turtles are joined in their nesting activities by the giant Leatherback turtles The leatherback turtle is the most visually dramatic of the turtles that nest in Trinidad and Tobago because of their size. Adults can vary in size from 600 pounds to 2,000 pounds. Leatherback turtles are so named because of they have a dark rubbery shell that resembles leather with seven narrow ridges. These giant turtles roam the oceans eating jelly fish however the female leatherback turtle always returns to the same beach where they were born for laying their eggs. Male leatherback turtles never return to land after they enter the sea at birth. On the beach the female turtle will dig an egg chamber with her flippers and then lay between 80 to 100 eggs.  After laying, the female leatherback covers the chamber with sand and then smoothes over the area to disguise the chamber. A female will visit and lay up to eight times during the nesting season. Turtle nesting season in Tobago runs from January to September with the season getting into full swing from March and the peak period for turtle nesting being May and June as these months have the highest concentration of nesting turtles. Nesting takes place at night although some turtles are occasionally seen during the daylight. The beaches prized by all three of these turtles for nesting are those with a steep profile backed by a flat sandy top as the steep profile enables the turtles to more easily get from the water to the sandy top during high tide. The majority of the turtle nesting beaches are on the Leeward (western) coast of Tobago with the aptly named, Turtle Beach, being the prime nesting site. Turtle Beach however is not the only nesting site and the other beaches include Grange Beach, Little Back Bay, Stonehaven Bay, Courland Bay, Castara Bay, Englishman’s Bay, Parlatuvier Bay, Bloody Bay and Man-O-War Bay (Charlotteville). On the Windward coast the beaches where nesting turtles are found include Anse Bateau (Speyside), Starwood Bay (Speyside) and Pinfold Bay near Goodwood. The prime turtle beaches of Grange Bay, Stonehaven Bay, Grafton Beach, Turtle Beach and Courland bay are turtle protected beaches at night and so you must go with a certified tour guide for the turtle watching on those beaches. Viewing turtle hatching while not as dramatic as the nesting is also an enjoyable activity. The young turtles begin hatching approximately 60 days after the eggs are laid. As soon as they hatch the young turtles climb through the sand onto the beach and immediately head for the water. Upon entering the sea, the young turtles head for deep water. Viewing turtle nesting and hatching is a great addition to your holiday activities and the island of Tobago with its pristine beaches and varied outdoor activities is a wonderful vacation location.
Brian Ramsey is an avid birdwatcher and amateur photographer and is the author of the CD,Discovering the Birds of Trinidad and Tobago and operates the web site , Outdoors Trinidad. His other web site Caribbean Outdoor Life features outdoor activities in the Caribbean.

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