Located on the north-eastern side of the Island, in the Parish of St. Patrick's, Lake Antoine is the biggest lake in Grenada, covering an area of over twenty-six (26) acres. Estimated to have erupted approximately 15,000 years ago, the lake sits at an elevation of twenty feet (20) below sea level. It is described as an excellent example of a ‘turferouscrater' a well rounded volcanic crater. It is said to have emitted gases during the eruption of Mount Pele in Martinique in 1902 thus given rise to the belief that it is connected to other systems in Grenada and other Caribbean Islands.
Owned by the River Antoine Estate, the area is rich in flora and fauna. Species known to be in the area are the hook-billed kite, the Burmese mongoose, the red-legged tortise and spices of water-fowls and ducks. There has been an increase in the use of the site for agricultural purposes, especially the last few years for banana cultivation, resulting in the lost of sections of the green wooded belt.
St. Mark's
St. Mark's is the smallest parish, with about 3,800 people who lived mainly by fishing and working on the surrounding estates. The main crops of cocoa, bananas, and nutmegs are grown here, as well a other spices, fruits and ground provisions. There is a good fishing industry and the town of Victoria has one of the six cold storage market places for fish on the island.
In this parish, Mount St. Catherine rises to a height of 2,756 feet above sea level and is the highest peak on the island. From its summit all parishes of Grenada are visible. Guides are readily available for the eager mountaineer but the ascent is precipitous and should be left to experienced climbers.
Grenada experienced severe volcanic activity in the past and although its volcanoes are now all extinct, there are still hot mineral springs in certain parts of the island. On the slopes of Mount St. Catherine, above Tufton Hall Estate, some of these hot springs can be visited. There is a Forest Reserve in this central range of hills that encompass a portion of each parish that is very important to the ecosystem.
At Tufton Hall Estate itself, a small project centre was established some years ago by the Catholic Church, called Tufton Hall Adventure Project (TAP) it was aimed at helping young boys to become useful members of society. The boys were clothed and house and taught agricultural skills. Sale of the crops growned helped to cover the expenses of the boy's care.
Victoria is the main town of St. Mark. This area was called Grand Pauvre(great poverty) when the French ruled the island. The town is little more than a large seaside of industrious friendly people. Old buildings and small shacks are gradually being replaced by more modern structure which brightens the face of this small town.
There's a small mop-making industry in the town - a joint venture of the Society of Friends of the Blind and the Grenada National Council of the Disabled. One disabled and two blind persons are employed here , producing well made crops that are sold island wide.
St. Mark's Day Fiesta is celebrated during the week at the end of April each year. Local arts and crafts are on display, as well as home-made jams and jellies, sweets, pickles and drinks. Concerts and other cultural performances are staged.
The annual harvest celebrations take place in Victoria on Whit Monday. All the produce grown in the area I exhibited and blessed by the clergy of various denominations. After the church services, food and drink is on sale and local people enjoy meeting and socializing.
On June 29th, Feast of St. Peter and St. Paul, is celebrated island-wide as Fisherman's Birthday. The festivities are spread over a week so that each parish can have its own special activities.
Each year the celebrations begin at Waltham, a small village about a mile north of Victoria, with priests blessing the boats, the nets and the fishermen. Naturally, there is much merrymaking in the streets as the people of the parish give thanks for the sea's bounty.
St Andrew
The parish with the longest coastline, St Andrew has a population of approximately 23,000. There are many well established estates here, consequently it is the largest producer of Grenada's main export crops -cocoa, nutmegs and bananas, as well as spices, vegetables, coconuts, fruit and flowers.
Rainbow City is the name affectionately chosen by residents to call their lovely old town of Grenville. It is situated at the eastern end of the parish, nestled around a wide bay which, were it not for a series of coral reefs which make shipping manoeuvres a bit tricky, would be a much busier port especially for the shipping of produce from this highly agricultural parish. This often has to be trucked to St George's where the deep-water harbour is much more accessible to ocean going vessels.
The French, when in possession of the island, called this Grenville harbor "La Baye" and he name has continued to be used to designate the area in and around the town.
Grenville was originally built on a site just sought of its present location, in the Fedon Rebellion of 1795/96 it was the first town to be sacked by the rebels. After the rebellion, the town was rebuilt on its present site. Many interesting old buildings are in evidence here, for example the Anglican Church, Police Station, government revenue and post offices and the courthouse behind which the market is located.
Geological Information on St. Patrick’s
According to the Plans and Policy for a System of National Parks and Protected Areas, the geological history of Grenada began approximately 38 million years ago in the upper Eocene Period. At that time however, there was only a shallow sea where Grenada now exists. The sediments deposited were composed of sand, silt and mud, and calcareous mud; the rock formed from this process is now known as the Tufton Hall Formation. In between the sediments of the Tufton Hall, geologist found layers containing volcanic minerals and other deposits of volcanic origin. Volcanic activity became more frequent in the Oligocene period (37-26 million years ago.) The volcanic activity during and following the deposition of the Tufton Hall formation, deformed and uplifted the rock, resulting in the folding and faulting which can be seen just north of Levera Beach.
It is also reported, that the oldest of the volcanic rock series are the andesite domes of northern Grenada, which formed in the Miocene Period (26-5 million years ago). These andesite domes (Mt. Alexander, Mt. Rodney, Mt. William) have been estimated by radiometric dating to be 21 million years old. The middle Miocene Period is not well represented in Grenada, but the andesite domes of Levera Hill and Levera (Sugar Loaf) Island represent volcanic activity near the end of the Miocene time. Thought to be concurrent with the Levera events were the eruption of the southeast mountain and Mt. Lebanon centers, which recorded the first major shift of eruptive centers to the south.
Levera Lake or Pond is believed to have been through a series of interesting changes over the last few thousand years. It is estimated that approximately 2500 years ago, this area was part of the sea in the form of a lagoon. Over the ensuing years that followed, it was gradually enclosed by the mangroves, as they trapped the silt, thus forming a headland. However, what is quite interesting is the revelation by historical maps, of an island in the middle of the Lake. Over the years it too has been linked to the land formation . Hence, one is left to wonder, whether this formation has been part of* the volcanic activities which occurred during the later years.
The final stage of volcanic activity involved the formation of explosion craters throughout the Island, most notably at the Lake Antoine, St. George's Harbour, the Punch -Bowl at Mt. Rich and Grand Etang locations. Over the past years however, it is believed that the volcanic activities on the Island have been dying down as experienced by the dropping temperatures of the thermal springs at Tufton Hall from almost 50 degrees C. - around 35 degrees and at Peggy's Whim; from about 44 degrees - 38 degrees C.
St. David
The Parish of St. David's is on the southeastern end of the island, and is home to a population of approximately 11,000. The coastline is littered with small bays and inlets, many with pocket-size sandy beaches, just perfect for a quiet picnic and a swim.
This is basically an agricultural parish growing traditional crops of cocoa, nutmegs, bananas and spices together with a large portion of the sugar cane which thrives in the drier atmosphere of this southern parish. It is interested to note that this is the only parish in Grenada without a major town although there are several small villages and settlements. A police station, post office and some churches are all centrally located. The catholic church is predominantly situated on a bluff high enough to be seen many miles away in the south.
Levera Lake or Pond is believed to have been through a series of interesting changes over the last few thousand years. It is estimated that approximately 2500 years ago, this area was part of the sea in the form of a lagoon. Over the ensuing years that followed, it was gradually enclosed by the mangroves, as they trapped the silt, thus forming a headland. However, what is quite interesting is the revelation by historical maps, of an island in the middle of the Lake. Over the years it too has been linked to the land formation . Hence, one is left to wonder, whether this formation has been part of* the volcanic activities which occurred during the later years.