"Awesome work! Our Bequia is so beautiful: a haven to all"
Tessa Gooding
Started in 2014, this is a hiking trail starting Infront of Plantation House which extends via an overwater 'Causeway' round the headland towards Princess Margaret Beach. It replaced a greatly valued pedestrian path that had been used for at least 80 years but was blocked by the opportunist construction of a large house in 2008, which forced walkers to use the main road with its lack of sidewalks and ever-present diesel fumes.
In 2015 the Trail was extended over the connecting headland round to Lower Bay and a year later across the front of the newly refurbished Plantation House. This completed an amenity that is greatly valued by locals and visitors alike. It now enables pedestrian access all the way from the fort above Hamilton round to Lower Bay and beyond - over three miles of heritage, beauty and smiling faces.
Unfortunately, Hurricane Matthew, the deadliest hurricane since 2005, damaged some parts of the overwater section of the Trail so, in 2018 it was relocated close to the cliff face where it did valuable service for five years until 2023.
Following a substantial rockfall from the cliff above in 2022, it was decided to bite the bullet and, learning the lessons from the past, recreate the overwater section to a much more robust engineering standard which was opened in mid-2023.The number of piers used has been doubled compared with the original structure and the technique used to secure those piers to the seabed significantly improved. The result is a construction which should be several times more robust than the original and should provide service for years to come.
The rebuild cost of EC$269,956 was paid for out of Action Bequia’s own resources without any special appeal. The huge historical popularity of this amenity amongst locals and visitors alike illustrates what an asset to Bequia it is.
The Action Bequia Board acknowledges that all our infrastructure efforts are owned by the government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and effectively the people of Bequia. However, we will continue to maintain what we have created.
The stage-by-stage story of the Princess Margaret Trail is shown in the captioned photographs below:
The Rebuilt 'Overwater' Causeway in August 2023. Click to expand.
Thanks are due for:
- Design and Construction to Kingston based company Offshore Welding and Salvage led by Striker McKenzie
- Investigations into the underwater environment by Cathy Sachs of Dive Bequia
- Neil Sanders for experience-based technical inputs.
The 2021 Trail Extension from Princess Margaret Beach over the Headland to Lower Bay. Click to expand.
The 2021 Trail Extension from Princess Margaret Beach over the Headland to Lower Bay. Click to expand.
Stairs along the cliff face. Click to expand.
Looking down from the staircase. Click to expand.
Approaching the snorkelling platform. Click to expand.
The snorkelling platform. Click to expand.
Rockfall in 2022 which led to the closure of the temporary cliffside path and construction of the overwater 'Causeway' in 2023. Click to expand.
An aerial view. Click to expand.
Click to expand.
Action Bequia is a nonprofit organisation that began in 2011 with the aim of helping maintain and improve Bequia as a place to live in, work and visit - by helping create the environment for more local jobs, employment and social cohesion.
For more current information see:
"Good ideas aren't hard to come by, but putting them into practice is another matter. As a tourist who has been visiting Bequia for several years, I'm amazed at the positive changes I've seen taking place thanks to Action Bequia. Whatever it is, you know that every dollar of your donation is well used and well appreciated… probably for generations to come"
Pennie Tilston
Actions Speak Louder Than Words