It may seem ridiculous to some to compare Antigua’s warm coral sand beaches to the freshwater beaches in Toronto that are fed by cold Canadian streams. Even in June the kids only put their feet in the water at this Canadian beach for a couple minutes before they run out squealing from the cold.
Lake Ontario beaches are conveniently close for people in Toronto, but you can only find Antiguan beaches in Antigua.
The Scarborough Bluffs make a great backdrop for its beaches.
The water is not completely unclean. In fact there is still a lively sport fishing industry in Lake Ontario, but there are guidelines as to how much fish can be safely consumed because of pollution. It seems that water pollution affects destinations everywhere. I have never been to a big or even medium sized North American city where industrialization hadn’t killed off most or all of the more interesting ecology of its waterways, leaving only the hardiest species like catfish and carp behind. Even unspoiled Key West Florida I’m told has experienced a decided decline in water quality. It is still a great spot, but when vacationing there a couple of years ago I heard about the increasing frequency of red tides, decreasing fish stocks, the odour of what some people thought was raw sewage that was sometimes faintly detectable, and the bleaching of coral reefs. It’s always been inexplicable to me that there is so much emphasis placed on the uncertain effects of global warming when the certain and well-known impacts of degraded water quality go unaddressed. In any case, I’m fascinated to talk to Antigua’s fisherman and others who keep an eye on the water. Perhaps what I learn will jog some memories about my grandfather, who was a fisherman on the island.
