Saba: I am a Rock, I am an Island
Island Map
Useful Information
Sea Journeys by Will Johnson

Saba: I am a Rock, I am an Island

Saba is one of those unusual places that, although small, dominates the landscape around it. Measuring five square miles in total, it towers upwards from the surface of the Caribbean Sea. Nothing but an isolated rock, Saba looms large on the horizon line, no matter where you are: in St. Martin, St. Barths, Statia, St. Kitts, or even in Anguilla, where the shadow of the dormant volcano can be seen presiding over the flatlands of St. Martin.

This sense of ubiquity contrasts sharply with the feeling of contented detachment that is experienced from the moment you reach Saba. Even getting there entails an effort and constitutes an achievement, which at the same time ensures that any visitors who actually make it to the island are dead sure to have wanted, expressly, to go there in the first place. In other words, one thing is certain: no one—nothing, in fact—gets to Saba by chance!

For centuries, the island was only reachable by boat, although no proper docking facilities were built in Fort Bay until well into the 1970s. Nevertheless, by then Saba was well on its way toward being pulled from the recesses by the tenacity and devotion of its own people, as the two most important infrastructure projects in the history of the island had already been carried out.

The first one was the creation of the roads. Prior to its existence, all communication in Saba was done by walking up and down the steps that went from Fort Bay to The Bottom, up to Windwardside and on to Hell’s Gate. That’s right, walk. There wasn’t even a donkey in Saba before 1923. After 300 years of treading on the same steps, the local councilor of Saba, Josephus Lambert Hassell, refused to let things be, and took matters in his own hands instead: He enrolled in a long-distance engineering course and resolved to build the road himself.

Sabans would spend the better part of the next 20 years following up on the example set by their local councilor, carving the mountain with no machinery at all, simply picks and shovels, to allow the new communication system to reach even the most remote settlement on the island, Hell’s Gate. But with one great enterprise accomplished, the people of Saba saw the opportunity to embark on the next wild dream: an airport.

While Sabans were no strangers to aircraft—for years Rémy de Haenen delivered the post to Fort Bay with his Kingfisher flying boat—the thought of building a proper airstrip on what is, ultimately, the crest of a volcano, triggered all sorts of misgivings from the Dutch government. De Haenen did his part, and for the following four years Sabans turned their attention to the building of a proper airport. To this day, Juancho Yrasquin remains the smallest, and certainly among the quaintest, commercial airfields in the world, to the point where the only airline licensed to service it is Winair.

The opening of the airport at Flat Point in 1963 brought something more than modernity to the island: It actually inverted the natural development of the island’s settlements. These days, as you drive up from the airport (preferably in a taxi, as the road can be really tricky), the first town you encounter is Hell’s Gate, formerly the very last outpost. Consequently, the area has grown more popular, especially because of the Gate House Café, a charming little restaurant with a spectacular view of the airport and the neighboring islands, and an award-winning wine list that immediately makes you understand why Saba’s remoteness no longer means it is isolated.

Similarly, the island’s most important hub of activity has become Winwardside, taking over from the administrative capital at The Bottom. Entrenched in the lush creeks of Mount Scenery, Winwardside is a small but absolutely stunning village, punctuated by the red roofs and white structures of its houses. Immaculate and well maintained, it embodies the predominant traits of modern Sabans, who remain as proud of their homeland as they are intrigued by its visitors. There are a few attractive bars fittingly decorated to emphasize the island’s long seafaring tradition and a number of outstanding dining options such as the Brigadoon. One of the island’s most comfortable hotels—the Cottage Club— is second only to the renowned Queen’s Garden, and being at the start of the trail up Mount Scenery, is certainly one of the most convenient locations for tourists to stay. 

Reputed as one of the best diving spots in the Caribbean, Saba profits from the geological phenomenon that led to its formation, mirroring the slope of its mountain is the deep wall that falls sharply under the surface of the water around it. This creates a unique and highly diverse ecosystem, which features three remarkably different but equally striking environments, suitable for various levels of expertise and each enormously rewarding in its own right. Shallow sandy-bottomed sites in Saba stand out from similar sites in nearby islands due to the extraordinary richness of their marine life, which boast an almost-untouched coral reef.

There are numerous diving sites around the island, marked by moorings and protected by the Saba Marine Park Foundation, which regulates all visits. For this very reason, access to all sites can only be gained through the services of the three local dive shops.

Top Five Musts:
01. Go diving, even if you aren't usually the biggest enthusiast of marine life.
02. Climb Mount Scenery, at least as far as the Elfin Forest.
03. Dine out. Saba has tremendous culinary offerings.
04. Take a taxi around the island  and enjoy the spectacular views.
05. Pay attention to the unique architecture of Saban cottages.

Traveling to Saba:
Edge Ferry
Tel: 721-544-2631
E-mail: aquamania@sintmaarten.net
www.stmaarten-activities.com

DAWN II FERRY
Saba C Transport
Tel: 721-416-2299
E-mail: info@sabactransport.com
www.sabactransport.com

Winair
Tel: 599-545-4237
www.fly-winair.com

Map of Saba

Click on map for PDF version.

Useful Information

Population: 1,500

Weather: Daytime temperature on Saba averages 80 F, give or take a few degrees. Easterly trade winds and the mountain create ever-changing cloud movements. Winter evenings often require a light sweater. Temperatures will always be cooler on the top of Mount Scenery.

Banking: The official currency is the NAfl (guilder), exchanged at about NAfl 1.80 = US$1.00. Travelers cheques and U.S. dollars, as well as major credit cards, are widely accepted. Two branch banks are open on Saba.

Courtesy & Dress: Casual sportswear is appropriate dress anytime on Saba. Bathing suits are not appropriate within the villages. A light wrap may be needed in the evenings in the wintertime.

Electricity: U.S. Standard (110 volts).

Language: Everyone speaks English, although Dutch is the official language.

Taxes and Tipping: The government room tax of 5 percent is automatically added to your bill. A service charge of 10 or 15 percent will be added to your bill. For taxis and guides, tip at your own discretion.

Time Zone: Saba is on Atlantic Standard Time year-round. During daylight savings time, noon in New York equals 1 p.m. on the island. During spring and summer time, the hour is the same on the Eastern Seaboard as it is on the island.

Sea Journeys by Will Johnson

As a boy growing up on Saba, I used to listen to the tales of the captains who had sailed the world and returned in their old age to spend their last days on the island. One of them, Captain Ernest Alfred Johnson, even wrote a much acclaimed manuscript of his adventures on the high seas.

Saba's maritime heritage goes back to the pirates who first settled the island. In 1629, the Spanish recaptured St. Kitts and dispersed the French and English settlers, who turned to piracy, and some settled on Saba. In 1665, Thomas Morgan (uncle of Sir Henry Morgan) with a group of the brethren of the coast from Port Royal, Jamaica captured St. Eustatius and Saba, and a good number of those pirates remained on Saba, as well.

Among the more well-known pirates who lived on Saba at one time or another were Henry Every (alias John Avery), Hiram Beaks (nephew of Governor Edward Beaks) and Daniel Johnson (also known as "Johnson The Terror" and someone I am compared to by my opposition from time to time). My father and grandfather were both named Daniel, a throwback to my pirate ancestor, and my great-great-grandmother Adrianna Every was the great-granddaughter of Henry Every. I tell people that I am in the same business as my ancestors. Most people look at politics as a modern day form of piracy at best.

After piracy was no longer fashionable, Sabeans continued their trade as captains of schooners, running goods to the rebellious colonies of North America. St. Eustatius was known as "The Golden Rock," and from there most of the trade with the colonies took place during the Revolutionary War. Even Benjamin Franklin wrote to a friend in London to send his mail via St. Eustatius as he would get it quicker that way.

Many captains from Saba forged links with shipbuilders in New England and became captains and part owners of many of the great square riggers, barkentines and schooners of the 18th and 19th centuries.

Schooners and other smaller craft were also built on Saba. Sir Frederick Treves (1908), like many other writers of the time, mistakenly assumed Sabeans were the descendants of Dutch settlers. The majority of the European part of the population were Irish, Scottish and English with a sprinkling of Dutch and French.

Sir Treves wrote: "Living aloft on their volcano, in a summit city called Bottom, these simple Dutch people who speak English reach the extreme of the improbable in the nature of their staple industry. They do not make balloons nor kites. They are not astronomers, nor are they engaged in extracting nitrogen from the atmosphere. They are, of all things in the world, shipbuilders, and shipbuilders of such merit that their boats and small craft are famous all over the Windward Islands."

Charles Kingsley (1871) wrote: "Saba rises sheer out of the sea some 3,000 feet or more, without flat ground, or even harbour. From a little landing-place to leeward a stair run up 800 feet into the bosom of the old volcano….They build boats up in the crater-the best boats in all the West Indies-and lower them down the cliff to the sea….."

It was in one of those boats-armed with the tales of the sea which I had heard from the old sea captains and the sea genes inherited from my pirate ancestors-that at the age of 13 I undertook my first sea voyage. The old sloop had no motor and we became becalmed and it took us some 28 hours to cover the 32 miles to St. Maarten/St. Martin.

We arrived there in the middle of the night and remained on board till the morning broke. Oh glorious morning when I beheld the lovely beach of Great Bay and the calm waters worshipping at the feet of the quaint little town known as Philipsburg. I have made many sea voyages since, but never one which stirred my imagination and wonder as much as that first one.

We are part of the natural world, and as island people, the sea has become part of us. Sabeans still make a living from the sea, supplying the lobster and red snapper the visitors of St. Maarten/St. Martin enjoy.

In ending, I would like to dedicate a poem by Elizabeth Clark Hardy to all those who will one day embark on that long final voyage to the place where the sea has an ending.

Some time at eve when the tide is low
I shall slip my moorings and sail away
With no response to the friendly hail
Of kindred craft in the busy bay
In the silent hush of the twilight pale,
When the night stoops down
to embrace the day
And the voices call in the waters flow
Some time at eve when the tide is low
I shall slip my moorings and sail away.

Through the purpling shadows
that darkly trail
O'er the ebbing tide of the unknown sea,
I shall fare me away with a dip of sail
And a ripple of water to tell the tale
Of a lonely voyager sailing away
To the mystic isle where at anchor lay
The craft of those who have sailed before
O'er the unknown sea to the unseen shore.

A few who have watched me sail away
Will miss away my craft from the busy bay
Some friendly barques
that were anchored near,
Some loving souls that my heart held dear
In silent sorrow will drop a tear,
But I shall have peacefully furled my sail
In mooring sheltered, from storm or gale,
And greeted friends who sailed before
O'er the unknown sea to the unseen shore.

To all those who come to our islands to enjoy the sea, I wish you Happy Sailing.