Thanks for posting the link Carol, don't know how to do that. I checked the weather and the wind is out of the south west instead of the prevailing east direction. I would imagine that Simpsons Bay would also be getting it also.
I'm anchored out in Simpson Bay and see pretty big chunks of sargassum drifting by and heading towards the beach. The winds are going to be light and variable for the next couple of days and this is causing the stuff to drift on in...
I saw a few long patches of it between here and Anguilla when I flew over on Monday. It has arrived. We had a small amount wash up at Royal Islander a few hours ago, but it went back out for the most part. Only a few bits remain between the RIC beach stairs and the Sonesta, at least. Can’t believe what I’m seeing down at Sunset. That’ll put a damper on your day.
That is unbelievable!! Thanks for sharing the photo! There is almost never sargassum at Maho!! I wonder who raked it up???
No one has raked it up....yet. That's where mother nature has left it, in a pile. The SSBB chair rental's won't look to attractive today with that mess in front of them. Three ships in port today.
We are at Divi, and I am sitting on my porch watching a tractor with a plow pushing the sargassum down the smaller Little Bay beach to clear off an area so people can swim. It is piled high! We have been coming here for 28 years at this time of year, and have never seen this before. Yesterday we were at the Sunset Beach Bar for lunch, and saw a smaller amount accumulating on Maho beach.
With the winds out of the west today I would expect there is more to come in today. The winds tomorrow will be out the north and eventually the north east later tomorrow.
Checked the SSBB cam, (6:20am 03-10-23)) looks like mother nature did some clean up from yesterday. I can't believe that the beach guys didn't rake??? You would think, that would be "Job one" considering that the beach is there livelihood!!! SMH!!!
It appears this is just the beginning of a long sargassum season in the Caribbean. NBC News LINK Climate change contributes, yes, coupled with fertilizer runoff into major rivers that provides the nitrogen nutrient fueling sargassum growth.
Yesterday both Maho and Mullet were pretty clear and much calmer but both were packed with people. Today there is seaweed in front of Atrium and it looks like Simpson Bay has been hit also.
The winds were strong from the west in Simpson Bay all day and most of the night, shoving the weed in. From today onwards normal easterlies will prevail again and those beaches, once cleared, should remain clear of that pernicious and stinking algae. I just looked outside and see clumps of Sargassum drifting past and heading out to sea...