Soufriere - General Info
Description:
Soufriere is a small, rustic, picturesque town, set amid a scenic wonderland dominated by the towering Pitons. When approaching Soufriere Bay from the North, beware of the shoal which extends out from the South side of Anse Chastanet.
The whole area between Anse Cochon and Gros Piton is part of the Soufriere Marine Management Area (SMMA) and anchoring is strictly controlled to preserve the underwater coral reefs.
https://www.facebook.com/SMMAInc
Entrance Notes or Cautions:
Boat Boys:
There is an armada of local “entrepreneurs” wanting to help you find a mooring, sell you something or serve as your tour guide here. They will normally approach you in their own boats (small fishing boats or even rafts) as you come into the bay and at times, may appear aggressive in their behaviour. Be clear which boat boy you are going to use, get their name and tell all others that you have chosen “x” to take care of you. Agree a price beforehand and always leave someone on board when crew go ashore. Read this useful article on boat boys for more details, tips and advice.
Security
This bay has a history of yacht break-ins and burglaries. Security over the years has been questionable (see Security reports for details), however, the bay is now patrolled at night – much of the time in a coordinated way – between the SMMA officers and the police. Unfortunately boardings do continue to be reported.
In 2018 security at the dinghy dock was improved by moving the security gate and adding security cameras and security wardens who are in place from 9 am to 5 pm. Additional lighting has also been installed and a motion sensing light on the way. The Soufriere Dock Master can be reached on VHF 16 and contact is encouraged for those entering the bay.
Visit this area with due diligence and if going ashore or leaving the boat at any time, keep a crew member on board (it is possible to speak with locals and hire a watchman).
Dinghy and outboard thefts continue to be a problem and it is vital to lift, lock and secure your dinghy at all times when it is unattended. Do not leave any items on deck or in cockpits that could be easy targets for would be thieves.
See security reports for more information.
Position:
13°51′N, 61°04′W (bay entrance)
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Posted by Alan Wells on the main St. Lucia page:
Soufreire Bay…
Beautiful setting but be prepared to be approached by local “entrepreneurs” wanting to sell you something or serve as your tour guide. We were met approaching the bay by two men on a fishing boat that nearly insisted we follow them to a mooring ball….a bit too aggressively. The same two men approached three other boats coming into the bay as well. They asked for $20EC in return. Thereafter we were approached 6 other times by other “vendors” all of them, including three kids ages 7-11 on a old broken paddle board. None have been too aggressive but it gets to be annoying…..but this is how they make a living so take it in stride. We’ve seen police and harbor rangers three times in the last twenty four hours so they do patrol the area. That said, my crew may go into town for a tour of the mud baths and waterfalls but I’m staying with the boat.
This is a beautiful place…highly recommend you see it but it warrants caution.
The following incident which occurred on February 6, 2023 in the Pitons area of Saint Lucia was reported (2nd Hand) to the CSSN.
A cruising yacht approached the SMMA moorings between the Pitons intending to practice mooring pickup and self-moor. They were intercepted by aggressive boat boys who demanded excessive payment for unwanted services, which were declined. When the yacht attempted to pickup the mooring their boat hook became entangled in the lines which had been tied off underwater. The boat boys immediately retrieved the boat hook and then maliciously bent it, making it unusable. The boat boys were paid a fee in excess of the customary $20ECD recommended by the SMMA park rangers, and they hung at the boat in a menacing manner demanding additional payment for sometime before departing
Stuart Rolland says:
Dec 22, 2018 02:45 PM
We had a perplexing encounter with Customs at Soufriere last night. The customs officer insisted on charging us EC$125 for mooring in the marine park – on top of the US$20 we had already paid to the marine ranger for use of the mooring. He also asked for payment of his overtime as we’d kept him past closing hours (we arrived 15 mins before closing).
There is no mention of this fee in Doyle’s Windward guide and it’s much more than the EC$15 clearance fee suggested on various websites. Also, he couldn’t produce any documentation to support such a charge – but it was late and we were late for dinner so paid anyway. I hesitate to suggest that we were scammed by a customs officer but this is what it felt like.
Apparently, Soufriere customs does not use SailClear, so you have to fill out forms anyway. 18 JAN 2018
Reported by Chris Doyle (on facebook)
I was surprised to find a number of people commenting on how they found the people in the (Soufriere) area threatening and intimidating. I wondered what it had come to, but found as usual everyone was friendly and welcoming, even if some are quite a poor area. It is true if you come in without any arrangements you might manage to be grabbed by one of the more ambitious and aggressive operators, which could give a bad impression.
It is not a bad idea to call one of the reliable people and have them find you a ball and tie you up. Then you can also use them as a water taxi if you want to ashore and saves you hassling with any youths who may have slipped under security and onto the visitor’s dock.
Try Distant Thunder, who also sells vegetables (718-8592),
Malcolm (722-5048/286-2277)
and Anthony (Livity) (488-7820/717-2019).
16 December 2016
Anse Canaries (north of Anse Chastanet & Soufriere)
Reported by CSSN
A yacht anchored just north of the Canaries fishing village discovered their in-the-water, but cable locked dinghy/outboard had been stolen overnight. The thieves apparently used a crowbar to pry the cable/lock eye attachment from the dinghy transom. The theft was reported to the police and to Soufriere Marine Management Area (SMMA) officials.
Posted by Chris Doyle: Saint Lucia Cruisers Discussion Facebook Group
Good news. The thefts around the bat cave have stopped now for some months. The new manager, Michale Bobb, is really trying to make the park work.
Soufriere town is full of very nice ladies in uniforms, willing to answer questions and make sure you are not harassed.
Posted on Caribbean Navigator Facebook Page:
Pitons in Southern St Lucia.
At this time there are only five mooring balls, very close to shore, but still in 65 ft of water. One of the five is a bit more to seaward.
Arriving just an hour after sunset, we were reasonably confident that we could see the large white mooring balls with our new killer LED flashlight. There was no moon, and the halogen glare from the floodlights in the shoreside hotel facility made the approach difficult. Three of the four yachts already there had anchor lights but the shoreside glare, lack of moonlight and haze rendered our spotlight useless.
We’ve been there many times and the depths carry right up to shore.
Out if the mist appeared a local ” boat boy” in an inflatable dinghy. He has seen our nav lights from Soufriere and had zoomed around the point to meet us.
“One ball left,” he said and led us to it. Usually, the gentlemen in hard pirogues who hand you moorings in this area will leave paint on your topsides. This was an exception, and he was kind, respectful and appreciative of a cold beer and his normal fee, + a tip because we would never have found that ball in the dark without him.
While we don’t like to overpay the so-called ” boat boys” of St Lucia, $20 EC seems to be the going rate for mooring ball service. Chris Doyle’s guide says that he pays 10 EC ( take it or leave it). Unlike some islands such as Grenada ( minimum wage $6.50 EC), St Lucia has no minimum wage regulations for workers. Giving more than $10 or $15EC for a simple 10-minute task at a mooring is probably not to anyone’s benefit.
You’ll still have to pay the park boat for the ball in the Soufriere and Pitons Marine Protection Area when he comes around to collect at sunset.
At night there may be working barge anchored in the area as the hotel has ongoing construction. The barge has only two patio lights as anchor lights.
Watch out for the fisherman mooring buoys in the SE-side: one morning we woke up in the middle of the bay drifting around with the mooring buoy attached to our boat
Watch out for a guy who calls himself “Dr. Feelgood,” driving a red skiff named “Jah Provide.” He intercepted us about 2 km south of Soufriere and talked us into retaining his mooring services.
He got us tied to a ball just off the rocks on the south side of the village (opposite side of the bay from the Bat Cave) and hooked us up with a taxi to some places we wanted to visit. Problem was, he quoted the cost to us in $EC, then come payment time insisted that he had quoted in $US. This is apparently a common scam in the area.
The service of Benny no exists anymore… The best watchman is ETHIOPIA, with a black Boat !!! Hè give very good rates And services for excursions to sulfur springs and waterfalls