TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Attack of the killer seaweed

Ok not yellow tomatoes (sorry meant green tomatoes), but seaweed. Started a couple of hours ago.

In front of us, not so bad as of now. But see patches out on the horizon. Down toward ElZafero, they already have close to 2 or 3 feet wide and more coming. Based on current, etc. there is a lot about to hit there.

In front of us not so bad at this point, but time will tell.

Will let you know more later. Not that we can do anything about it regardless. Have to go with the flow or tide in this case! (G)

This was forecasted to happen this summer due to the prevailing currents. More yet to come as this is expected to be a bad year for it.

We hadn't had any until today. Hope it's a short term thing.

So far so good. I can see a lot out in the water. The worst seems to be west of us, till you get to bsv, then it really drops off. Looking down the beach, it appears to stop about half way between here and Karacter/Marys Boon. But not sure I can really tell, as if you were looking this way it would not seem to be an issue either probably. Maybe only 6 inches wide at the most in front of us. But my guess is that we will get a lot more overnight. Will see, not like I can do anything about it one way or the other.

Good. Hope it holds off for you two and others.

And the grounds crew rake it up and bag it first thing every morning when it’s prominent. Or at least they did when we were there the year the Sargasso seaweed was raising havoc with so many of the island’s beaches.

I'm sure they will rake it in the morning. Hopefully by then, it will stop coming in..

One could hope it will stop. Prevailing winds and current are a major factor.

Tried to respond to Jazzgirls trip report and it was denied. Problem???

No problem that I know of..

I'm still struggling with the photo thing and deleted the post. I'm going back to using Photobucket and, Divi wifi willing, hope to have a better version back up soon.

The current and tide evidently made a big difference. There is very little on the beach here in front of Beachside. Has not been raked, as it would only fill maybe two or three garbage bags for all of the seaweed in front of BSV.

None coming in with the surf and do not see any out on the horizon in the water either.

Good to hear for you. That seaweed can get ugly on some beaches. Cul d sac has been hammered lately.

They raked what little there was, this morning, and it's perfectly clear here, this afternoon..

That's good. Usually the seaweed doesn't affect the west side beaches as much as the beaches on the eastern side of the island facing the Atlantic. Even though BSV faces south easterly the seaweed for the most part stays in the currents more off shore for your area.

Ok, ITS BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Had an appointment over toward Grand Case this afternoon. Got back and like I said: ITS BACK!!! and with a vengeance this time.

All they way down past Marys Boon at this point. Tons in the water, but the current changes on where it lands. Have some photos, not pretty. Will see what it looks like in the morning. But regardless the people at BSV will take care of it in front of us no matter what.

Besides, you cannot fight MOTHER NATURE...……… she can do whatever and no matter what you have to deal with it.... that is the way it is, so just chill! (G)

Just like the sand. It comes and goes. Lets hope it goes fast.

I'm sure they will be out raking like mad in the morning.

It’s no secret we ve been a fan of El Zafiro since it opened a few years back but we’ve noticed on several trips that when the Sargasso seaweed is in bloom, it really tends to make itself known at that end if the beach right in the corner near the cliffs. A few years ago we HAD to leave BSV’s home beach and go to Mullet because the seaweed was so heavy, and as fast as the as the BSV staff raked and bagged it, it replenished itself almost immediately.

It’s one of nature’s ways of getting even with us but if you try, you can usually find a seaweed-free beach if you’re willing to look for it.

Yes, it is MUCH worse at that end of the beach.

https://www.facebook.com/1237801909...663/2224383814253613/?type=3&theater

Nature Foundation Warns About Increased Potential for Large Scale Sargassum Invasion

The St. Maarten Nature Foundation is warning of a potential significant influx of Sargassum seaweed in the coming days: We have been coordinating our monitoring efforts with our partners in the region and based on weather predictions, satelite imagery and aerial surveys there is a significant amount of the seaweed headed in our general vicinity.

We have been really trying to work both with our partners in the region and with local stakeholders to monitor the situation and to find a way to control the amount of the weed washing up on beaches in the case of a significant influx. In the case of an influx we need to find a way to coordinate the removal of the seaweed with heavy loaders which causes serious risks to nesting sea turtles and hatchlings while the grass itself can be a hazard to the animals. Uncoordinated seaweed removal can also cause significant erosion on affected beaches.

Economically speaking there is a serious effect that seagrass can have on the beaches of the island. As soon as the grass is cleared it is being deposited back on the beach by the wind and currents. We will continue to work towards researching the effects of the grass and some possible solutions but at this point Sint Maarten, like many islands in the Caribbean, are being heavily impacted.

Sargassum is a genus of brown (class Phaeophyceae) seaweed which is distributed throughout the temperate and tropical oceans of the world. Most of the Sargassum Seaweed lies concentrated in the Sargassum Sea, a region in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean surrounded by ocean currents. It is bounded on the west by the Gulf Stream; on the north, by the North Atlantic Current; on the east, by the Canary Current; and on the south, by the North Atlantic Equatorial Current.

Sargassum first plagued the Caribbean and St. Maarten in 2011 and 2012, with the Foundation having to warn swimmers to avoid swimming in Guana Bay in August and September due to the large amount of Sargassum Weed and many beach front residences and hotels having to continuously clean washed up Sargassum.