PLACES TO SEE
PIGEON POINT
Perhaps the most widely recognised picture of Tobago is that of the jetty at Pigeon Point with the thatched-roof structure at the end. Alas, the picture has changed. The little house is no more. The jetty has been demolished to be replaced by a more modern and hopefully better one.
Pigeon Point has become a favourite because it is a shallow beach, suited to the entire family. Even children are safe in the water. Also it has good beach facilities. The facilities however, up till recently, were not public facilities, but were privately owned. There is a charge of $18.00 TT per adult to get past the gate of the Club property where the facilities are located. This is, I suppose, fair. However, while that is less than $3.00 US, and is nothing to a visiting holiday maker, it represents quite a sum to the local family of, say, a father, mother, and three children. That is $90.00 in local money for a sea bath!
So, not to be outdone, the locals, and those visitors in the knew, would walk up the beach and enjoy the sea wherever they found a desirable spot. You see, there are no private beaches in Trinidad and Tobago. Government policy is that the beaches belong to the people. Nevertheles, this does not prevent private enterprise from trying to establish a de facto private beach if they could get away with it.
At one time there was a running dispute between the fisherman and the private owners of the property adjoining the beach, the former claiming ancient rights and the latter insisting on the rights of ownership.
Well, the way it all worked out, after some court action, Pigeon Point now belongs to the Tobago House of Assembly, the private interest have been suitably compensated.
It cannot be denied that Pigeon Point is regarded as the place to be if you want to go to the sea. People take along stuff to eat and spend long hours swimming, sunbathing, loafing about or whatever they wish to do. Around the point there are windsurfing boards you could rent. All the other facilities are on the Pigeon Point premises, and without the entrance fee you may not access them. The fees are to remain, according to all reports, for reasons of maintenance.
There are other passable bathing places along the road to Pigeon Point, and you could even do some snorkelling and get a fair view of some of the striking tropical fish.
In your jaunts along the beach, look out for a tree called the manchineel. Especially if you have children in your company! The fruit are deadly poison and would land you in a hospital in no time. Besides, the only known antidote is not readily available locally and has to be imported. Even the sap from the tree will raise a blister on your skin. Some trees have warning signs posted advising not to shelter under them in the rain. The water that runs off the tree will also cause blisters. But so long as the sun is out and the breeze is blowing and the sea is beckoning, nobody shows much concern, and all enjoy the tropical paradise.
If you are adventurous and have the money, from here you can get a jet-ski ride. Half an hour will cost you about $250 TT or $ 40 US. You may also board a glass-bottomed boat for Buccoo reef and its "nylon pool".
What is the "nylon pool?" Well, around the 1950's when nylon became the latest fabric to hit the market, Trinbogonians, being highly inventive, attached to the word "nylon" the meaning of "the best", "superb" and so on. The pool at Buccoo reef, at the time in pristine unexploited condition, got to be named 'the nylon pool'. When Britain's Princess Margaret was married and decided to spend some honeymoon time in Tobago, the name became permanent, because, you see, Princess Margaret had bathed in it. And so, to this day, the operators of boats to Buccoo Reef will urge you to go with them to "the nylon pool where Princess Margaret bathed!"
But what is the real attraction about the nylon pool? Well, after you travel about a mile out from the shoreline, you come to a a "pool" in the reefs -white sandy bottom, the water clear as crystal, and only about waist-high! A true "nylon" pool!
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