Just wonderful. I thought a few years back I read an article that discussed the possibility of 'netting' or collecting this algae off shore before it reached the beaches. Something that would not impact the local fish or marine mammals, but would limit the flow of this stuff before it collected so heavily on the beaches. Was I imagining this? Not sure what other leeward and windward islands are affected by this, but last year when we were visiting Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Tulum on there was none of this sea grass to contend with. Why is SXM affected to this degree?
I beg to differ, I was in Playa del Carmen and Tulum, last year for 4 weeks , January, and there was so much seaweed on the beaches, I’ve never seen so much.
Interesting. We didn't see a speck of the stuff in Mexico. That was November, 2017 when we were forced to cancel our SXM trip and rebook somewhere else. St. Martin just seems like it can't shake it, or get a break from it. Hopefully, the above article won't be accurate and the island will catch a break.
As for netting you have to consider the habitat it provides for a vast amount of sea life that live under the weed mats. By netting the seaweed your going to be doing the same to the small sea life that is supporting a food source to larger sea life. There is a lot to consider doing this.
When we were in Antigua last March, one of the resort workers told us the Sargassom seaweed had been so bad the year before, they actually closed the resort. Both of our beaches, even the more protected cove beach, were inundated and unusable. At first they were bussing guests to other beaches but even that became problematic so they finally threw in the towel and closed temporarily. Both beaches at our resort were perfect when we were there.
I don’t think there’s much anyone can do about the Sargassum beyond being patient. Raking and removing it helps but is expensive and labor intensive. Years ago we had never really experienced this on SXM but for the past five or six years it’s been almost a normal occurrence at different times and in different locations on the island.
We typically visit SXM in March/April and/or Nov./December and while it hasn’t been as bad as it was described to us on Antigua, it has been less than pleasant on more than one trip. But the good news on SXM, if the Sargassum is prevalent on one beach you can usually find one In the opposite direction that is good. We’ve almost never seen it on Mullet but the first tie we stayed on Simpson Bay Beach it was bad. The first year we stayed at BSV it was there and by the time they raked from one end of ‘their’ beach to the other, it was time to go back and start all over again. But it was never as bad there as what we saw on Orient Beach.
Respectfully,
pat
"Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them."
And to add to what Pat said, Oyster Pond area seems to be always one of the worst areas for seaweed. Something to consider when booking places like Oyster Bay Beach Resort. (And I ALMOST typed OBBR there. )
Can't say I've ever seen it at Maho or Mullet, either. Nor, Great Bay Beach for that matter. Seems like the eastern facing beaches form the 'collection zone' at this time. Anyone experience Pinel lately? Wonder what it's like their (if any)?
When friends of mine were there in July, 2017, Pinel was closed because of the seaweed. I couldn't believe her pictures that she showed me of the dock to catch the ferry over. She said the smell was awful.
Here now, still trying to post photos. Staying at Oyster Bay, sargassum pretty heavy. OBBR cleans it up each morning, but really too thick to go swimming. The resort itself has never looked better. Went to orient today, heavy row on beach - but water not too bad. Ended beach visits today at Grand Case - it was beautiful, zero sign of sargassum. Sand was amazing, enjoyed a lunch at Rainbow Club.
I have been at Oyster Bay for the last 5 weeks and it is not as bad as it seems. In the picture above, the seaweed is concentrated at the area closest to the building. Once you go past it, the water is clear. Depending on wind and currents, the location of that seaweed pocket moves, but there is always some clear water. They clean the beach every morning and keep up with the new stuff throughout the day.
Most tourists want clean seaweed free beaches but sargassum is actually a natural habitat for sea life including sea-turtles and builds up the beaches to stop beach erosion. It is also edible.
We were on Pinel a week ago and heading over again on Monday. There was no weed on the beach-however the ferry dock was clogging with weed and it does not smell very good. Fortunately we only had to wait on the dock 10 minutes to depart. We were at ElZafiro today and with very strong winds there was weed on the beach all of the way to Karakter.
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