Windward has a long tradition of boat building.
Many plantation owners on Grenada and Carriacou wished to import goods into the United Kingdom and elsewhere in the West Indies.
Trading vessels were few and far between.
So Scottish shipbuilders settled in what is now Windward to build trading sloops and schooners.
Wooden sloops being built in Windward.
Carriacou Boat Building on video.
Walking through the cemeteries in Windward confirms this, as all the headstones are Andrews, McLawrence, Roberts, etc.
Its population is around 1,000 Kayaks (patois for the inhabitants of Carriacou).
The streets are lined with bright flowers that compliment the old gingerbread houses behind them.
Tradition re -Launched in Carriacou.
Nothing about the boats has really changed in centuries, except for the goods carried and their destinations.
Rum may or may not still be smuggled on these ships; I won’t speculate.
These boats are still built in Windward using the same methods, though in smaller numbers. Wood is sourced from Carriacou and Grenada and cut using axes and hand saws.
Planed by hand, except for the planking.
Everything is measured with the trusty eyeball method.
One of the traditional hand-built boats of Windward.
This one a fishing boat as is obvious from the pilothouse.
Launch Day.
On launch day, the entire island comes to Windward to participate in the party and the blessing.
This boat was built with all the tradition and passion that is left in the Caribbean wooden boat movement.
There is only one island left in the Caribbean building these amazing sailing “work boats”.
Carriacou 2015 Boat Launching.
The boat, built on the beach, slides into the water and will anchor there until its first passage.
Wooden sloops being built in Windward.