Torries

january/february 2017

cruisingworld.com

CHANGES IN

ST. HELENA

15

W

e were about 20 miles out from the South Atlantic island of St.

Helena when distinct lines started to break up the soft gray clouds

that were obscuring the horizon. Charles Darwin once wrote, “St.

Helena rises abruptly like a huge black castle from the ocean.” Closer to the

coast, we spotted stone fortifi cations built into the cliff faces, and the impression

that we were approaching a midocean fortress was reinforced.

For more than 500 years, the only way to reach the British Overseas

Territory of St. Helena has been by the sea. Before the Suez Canal opened,

more than 1,000 ships a year called at St. Helena. By traveling there aboard

our own boat, we followed in the wakes of Capt. Cook and Joshua Slocum.

In the more recent past, all the island’s visitors have come via cruise ships,

private yachts or the mailboat RMS St. Helena, but now, thanks to the

James Bay, St. Helena’s only harbor, now features a large

mooring fi eld for visiting boats.

DIANE SELKIRK

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