Montserrat - Facts
- Montserrat is situated in the Leeward Islands, part of the Lesser Antilles chain of island in the West Indies.
- It is a British Overseas Territory (BOT) in the Caribbean, governed by a locally elected Premier and Parliament. The residents are British citizens.
- The population of 4600 (2019 census) is of mixed African-Irish descent.
- English is the official language.
- Currency is the Eastern Caribbean Dollar (XCD).
- It is a useful navigation mark for yachts plying between Antigua and Guadeloupe. There is no natural harbor but there are a few sheltered bays on the north-west coast with Old Road Bay, Bunkum Bay, Little Bay, and Rendezvous Bay being the major ones. However, winter swells can make anchorage untenable at certain times.
- Following the dramatic eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano in 1995, the southern two-thirds of the island was devastated, including the capital, Plymouth.
- There is an Exclusion Zone around the southern part of the island. This zone extends some way out to sea from Trants Bay in the east around the southern coast to Barton Bay in the west. There is considerable shoaling in the Old Road Bay and Plymouth areas, which will continue to extend for several years.
- It is important to check the current volcanic situation on the Montserrat Volcano Observatory (MVO) website and avoid entering the current exclusion zones without specific authority. There has been no significant volcanic activity in recent years.
- The northern part of the island was untouched and is an attractive and verdant land. Peaceful, quiet and uncrowded.
- For information about supplies, see the Yachting Essentials section.
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And uf somebody can tell somebody at the Montserrat Volcano Observatory (website mvo.ms) that their website does not work, that would be nice (I forgot).
The MVO is a must see, especially for the movie about the eruption.
Montserrat is a lovely green island with nice inhabitants and a history shattered by the volcanic eruption. .
We visited the outskirts of the buried capital, Plymouth, and other parts of the island, with Cecil Wade, +16644922814, who made the visit very interesting and lively.
There is extensive dredging going on in Montserrat, Little Bay as of August 2023, which unsettles the sea floor. That means your anchor won’t hold well, and in addition you may be in the way of a 80m Ro-Ro cargo ship anchoring stern-to to the crumbling wharf, or facing a dredging barge, both prospects being stressful. In addition, two wrecks marked on the map in front of the beach seem to exist.
All the formerit existing moorings for yachts have been removed, as well as those for the local fishermen.
All this makes anchoring in Rendezvous Bay (north), or maybe Carr’s Bay, just south, the only reasonable option. The Cap’t’n alone must dinghy to the wharf for formalities.
Tying the dinghy to the wharf can be done on the south side. This is a rough place, do not go barefeet (customs won’t let you in without shoes and shirt anyway).
We enjoyed our visit at Montserrat.
Visiting the volcanic-buried town of Plymouth was a special experience of a lifetime.
The Montserrat Tourism Division, phone +1664 491 4703, was very helpful in finding a tour guide. We connected with L&Yve’s Tours, phone +16644935031, visit Plymouth and many more. We enjoyed the tour with highly recommended guides.
Free Wifi in the harbour. Try to go during the week as museums and Volcano Observatory are closed not the weekend.
I can recommend the following Tour Guide – Joe Philips. His knowledge of the island and it’s history is extensive and he complements the tour with pictures and videos of the island both before and after the extensive volcano devastation. At the end of the tour he will email a link to some of the information that he has provided. His tours last 3-5 to 4 hours.Contact details are:
Joe Phillip
Box 432
Brades
Montserrat
West Indies
Phone: 1-(664)-492-1565
Email: joephillip@live.com
Marine VHF Channel 08: Avalon