The one thing that there’s no shortage of in Grenada is boats. Whether it’s fishing boats, ferries, cruise ships, cargo ships, dive boats, pleasure vessels, or inflatable dinghies, boats are everywhere.
My favorite boats are the local fishing boats because they have so much personality. Many, if not most, of the smaller ones are handmade from whatever materials are available. The quality of workmanship, the creativity, and the pride that goes into them is so impressive.
This boat under construction shows an example of real ingenuity. The boatmaker has taken an inflatable dinghy with an aluminum bottom and cut off the inflatable tubing. He is left with an aluminum hull to which he epoxied marine plywood to build the rest of the hull. Genius!This small boat looks to be ready to go. What I love about this one is the artistry that the boatmaker put into it. Think of how much time it took to tape off and paint that checkerboard pattern and the multi-colored stripes. Even the interior has been painted with flair, and I love how the blue comes over the bow into the sweeping point.We pass this boat all of the time, and I never fail to get a giggle at the name. Lady Butt!The Carenage is chock full of fishing boats from small to commercial. Each one of them is brightly colored, which helps in making them more visible out on the water. Since they are so low, they can be hard to see.The commercial fishing boats in the Carenage all have a similar look, but the names show the owners’ creativity.
Sail Kestrel 