Well's Bay
{{Short description|Coastal bay in Saba, Caribbean Netherlands}}
{{about|a bay on the coast of Saba, Caribbean Netherlands|the bay in Canada|Well Bay (Newfoundland and Labrador)|the area of an oil platform|Well bay}}{{Infobox body of water
| name = Well's Bay
| location = Saba National Marine Park, Saba
| type = Bay
| inflow = Caribbean Sea
| pushpin_map = Saba
| pushpin_map_alt = Map of Saba with Well's Bay labelled in the top left corner of the island.
| pushpin_label_position =
| pushpin_map_caption = Location on Saba
| cities = Mary's Point (abandoned), Middle Island (abandoned), The Bottom
| outflow =
| depth =
| max-depth = 50 ft (15 m) {{cite web |url=https://www.seasaba.com/saba-9-torrens-point |title= Dive Site 9. Torrens Point |last= |first= |date= |website=Sea Saba |publisher= |access-date= |quote=}}
| coordinates = {{coord|17|38|28|N|63|15|10|W|region:BQ_type:waterbody|display=inline,title}}
| image = Wells Bay, Saba, with Torrens Point in the distance.jpg
| alt = A dark blue bay beyond some bushes on a cloudy day. On the opposite side of the bay is a very large cliff, which curves downside to the left into some pointy rock formations.
| caption = Well's Bay, with Torrens Point in the distance
}}
Well's Bay (also Wells Bay, The Well's Bay; previously The Well Bay){{Cite book |last=Crane |first=Julia G. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MAFsAAAAMAAJ&q=saba+%22the+well+bay%22 |title=Saba Silhouettes: Life Stories from a Caribbean Island |date=1987 |publisher=Vantage Press |isbn=978-0-533-06831-9 |language=en}} is a coastal bay on the island of Saba in the Dutch Caribbean. It is located on the northwestern coast of the island. The bay is one of a few places for swimming on Saba.{{Cite web |date=2023-01-19 |title=Swimming on Saba |url=https://www.sabatourism.com/tour-item/swimming-on-saba/ |access-date=2024-01-16 |website=Saba Tourism |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2016-04-23 |title=Saba's beaches |url=https://www.saba-news.com/sabas-beaches/ |access-date=2024-01-16 |website=Saba News |language=en-US}} Sometimes Well's Bay has a small beach, known locally as the “wandering beach”{{Cite book |last=Allen |first=Casey D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eb0tDwAAQBAJ&q=wells+bay |title=Landscapes and Landforms of the Lesser Antilles |date=2017-07-19 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3-319-55787-8 |language=en}} due to the black sand that appears and disappears seasonally and sporadically.{{Cite web |last=Barone |first=Jeanine |date=2019-10-22 |title=A rare Caribbean island where beaches aren't the draw |url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/saba-caribbean-island/index.html |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=CNN |language=en}}
The bay is part of Saba National Marine Park and is popular snorkeling location due to the proximity to coral reefs. At the northernmost end of Well's Bay, Torrens Point is a popular dive site for scuba divers and snorkelers.{{Cite web |title=Dive Sites & Dive Operators |url=https://sabapark.org/saba-national-marine-park/dive-sites-dive-operators/ |access-date=2024-01-19 |website=Saba Conservation Foundation |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Allan |first=David G. |date=2007-06-28 |title=Snorkeling Options on Saba |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/intransit.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/06/28/snorkeling-options-on-saba/ |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=In Transit Blog |language=en}}
History
In the 17th century, Saba's first European settlements, Palmetto Point (Mary's Point) and Middle Island, were built on the cliffs overlooking Well's Bay.{{Cite book |last=Hartog |first=Johannes |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Xf00AAAAIAAJ&q=history+of+saba |title=History of Saba |date=1975 |publisher=Saba Artisan Foundation |location=Netherlands Antilles |language=en}}{{Cite book |last=Crane |first=Julia G. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vip7AAAAMAAJ&q=well's+bay |title=Educated to Emigrate: The Social Organization of Saba |date=1971 |publisher=Round the World Publishing |isbn=978-90-232-0702-3 |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=July 2021 |title=A People At Risk of Losing Their Land |url=https://thesabaislander.com/2021/07/ |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=The Saba Islander |language=en}} This location provided for easy defense, and the bay below provided an area for anchoring boats as well as fishing.
In the mid-17th century, these early settlers dug a freshwater well at the bay below.{{Cite web |date=2021-03-01 |title=Saba's Permanent need for the use of cisterns |url=https://thesabaislander.com/2021/03/01/sabas-permanent-need-for-the-use-of-cisterns/ |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=The Saba Islander |language=en}} This is the origin of the bay's current name, Well's Bay. The well at Well's Bay was used by residents into the mid-19th century.{{Cite journal |last=Espersen |first=Ryan |date=2018-12-01 |title=From Hell's Gate to the Promised Land: Perspectives on Poverty in Saba, Dutch Caribbean, 1780 to the Mid-Twentieth Century |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s41636-018-0147-2 |journal=Historical Archaeology |language=en |volume=52 |issue=4 |pages=773–797 |doi=10.1007/s41636-018-0147-2 |s2cid=257091358 |issn=2328-1103|url-access=subscription }} The well's water quality was low and variable, and depended on the weather;{{Cite journal |last=Espersen |first=Ryan |date=2013 |title=Water Use at Palmetto Point and Middle Island, Saba, Dutch Caribbean: A Modeled Approach for Settlement Viability |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24572700 |journal=International Journal of Historical Archaeology |volume=17 |issue=4 |pages=806–827 |doi=10.1007/s10761-013-0243-0 |jstor=24572700 |s2cid=254546725 |issn=1092-7697|url-access=subscription }} so inhabitants relied on rainwater caught in cisterns.Blunt, E. M. (1867). The American Coast Pilot; Containing the Courses and Distances between the Principal Harbours, Capes, and Headlands, on the Coast of North and South, E. and G. W. Blunt, New York.
Cited in Espersen, Ryan (2013). "Water Use at Palmetto Point and Middle Island, Saba, Dutch Caribbean: A Modeled Approach for Settlement Viability". International Journal of Historical Archaeology. 17 (4): 806–827. ISSN 1092-7697. The well at Well's Bay is one of four historic wells built on Saba, with the others located at Middle Island, Core Gut Bay, and Cove Bay.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, Saba was internationally known for illicit trade and piracy.{{Cite web |date=2013-03-21 |title=The Last Days of Piracy |url=https://thesabaislander.com/2013/03/21/the-last-days-of-piracy/ |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=The Saba Islander |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Fort Bay Harbor: Maritime History |url=https://www.sabaport.com/sabas-harbor-history |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=fort-bay-saba |language=en}}{{dead link|date=February 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{Cite book |last=Hartog |first=Johannes |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Xf00AAAAIAAJ&q=history+of+saba |title=History of Saba |date=1975 |publisher=Saba Artisan Foundation |location=Netherlands Antilles |language=en}} As Saba's western coast provided coverage from other islands, many ships were abandoned at Well's Bay as part of privateering schemes.
Boat building is a part of Saba's history. Boats were built by hand at Well's Bay and Tent Bay, weighing as much as 60 gross tons.{{Cite web |title=History of Saba [brochure] |url=https://www.sabapark.org/downloads/Saba%20History.pdf |website=sabapark.org |publisher=Saba Conservation Foundation}} Before Saba had docking facilities, visitors were sometimes rowed in through Well's Bay.
The "wandering beach"
File:Wells Bay Beach, Saba.jpg
At times, Well's Bay has a small beach, known locally as the “wandering beach”. Black sand appears and disappears depending on northerly swells and seasonality.{{Cite web |date=2016-04-23 |title=Saba's beaches |url=https://www.saba-news.com/sabas-beaches/ |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=Saba News |language=en-US}} The beach usually appears March through October. Sometimes the beach disappears for multiple years. When the sand is absent, the Well's Bay beach is a cobble beach.
Wildlife
File:Brown Booby - Sula leucogaster.jpg]]
Many seabirds can be seen at Well's Bay, including, the Brown Booby (Sula leucogaster), the Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens), and the Pearly-eyed Thrasher Thrush (Margarops fuscatus fuscatus).{{Cite web |title=Biological Inventory of Saba |url=https://www.sabapark.org/downloads/Biological%20Inventory%20Saba.PDF |website=sabapark.org |publisher=Carmabi Foundation}} The Scaly-breasted Thrasher has been seen between Well's Bay and The Bottom.
Reptiles at Well's Bay include the Saba anole (Anolis sabanus) and the Green iguana (Iguana iguana). In the past, Well's Bay has been a nesting site for sea turtles, specifically the Green sea turtle (Chelonia midas).
Diverse marine life is found in the waters of Well's Bay and around Torrens Point and Diamond Rock. Specific examples include: Blue tang (Acanthurus coeruleus),{{Cite web |title=Saba's Sea Creatures: Best Dive Sites To Encounter Marine Life |url=https://www.justgottadive.com/dive_resources/travel_articles/sabas-sea-creatures-best-dive-sites-encounter-marine-life |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=Just Gotta Dive (JGD) |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Saba Conservation Foundation: Diving in the Marine Park |url=https://www.sabapark.org/marine_park/diving/ |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=www.sabapark.org |publisher=Saba Conservation Foundation}} Goatfish (Mullidae family), Parrotfish (Scaridae family), Great Barracudas (Sphyraena barracuda),{{Cite web |title=Saba's Best Dive Sites: Torrens Point |url=https://www.seasaba.com/saba-9-torrens-point |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=Sea Saba Dive Center |language=en}} Nurse sharks (Ginglymostomatidae),{{Cite web |title=Saba Marine Park |url=https://www.seasaba.com/saba-marine-park |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=Sea Saba Dive Center |language=en}} Caribbean reef sharks (Carcharhinus perezi), Morays eels (Muraenidae family).
Hiking
File:Trailhead sign for Mary’s Point and North Coast Trail, Saba.jpg
Multiple trailheads are located at Well's Bay and/or with views of Well's Bay:File:View of Wells Bay, Saba, from Mary’s Point Trail.jpg
- Mary's Point Trail (1 hour one-way){{Cite web |date=2022-03-10 |title=Hiking |url=https://www.sabatourism.com/hiking/ |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=Saba Tourism |language=en-US}} can be accessed from the Well's Bay Road. This hike goes up the cliffs that overlook Well's Bay. It is a heritage trail that features the ruins of the 17th-century settlement of Mary's Point (Palmetto Point), Saba's first European settlement.
- North Coast Trail (3.5 hours one-way)can be accessed from the Well's Bay Road (or Lower Hell's Gate). The trail is currently closed to regular hikers due to strenuousness and environmental dangers.{{Cite web |date=2022-03-14 |title=North Coast Trail |url=https://www.sabatourism.com/hiking/north-coast-trail/ |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=Saba Tourism |language=en-US}}
- The Ladder trail (30 minutes one-way) begins between The Bottom and Well's Bay. The Ladder's 800 steps that were historically used to bring cargo ashore and up to The Bottom.{{Cite web |date=2022-03-11 |title=The Ladder |url=https://www.sabatourism.com/hiking/the-ladder/ |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=Saba Tourism |language=en-US}}
- Middle Island Trail (40 minutes one-way) starts close to the Ladder trail. It is a heritage trail that includes ruins of an open cistern, stone walls of a farm, and a cavern. The trail has views of Well's Bay and Ladder Bay.{{Cite web |date=2022-03-14 |title=Middle Island Trail |url=https://www.sabatourism.com/hiking/middle-island-trail/ |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=Saba Tourism |language=en-US}}
Access
Well's Bay is accessible by car via Well's Bay Road. This paved road leads down to the bay from The Bottom, Saba's capital. The steep road is one of the branches of "The Road", the island's primary road. Divers and snorkelers can also get to Well's Bay, Torrens Point, and Diamond Rock via boat.{{Cite web |title=Diving on Saba: Saba Dive Site Map |url=https://www.seasaba.com/sabas-dive-sites |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=Sea Saba Dive Center |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Saba's Best Boats |url=https://www.seasaba.com/sabas-best-dive-boats |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=Sea Saba Dive Center |language=en}} Well's Bay is not used as a harbour; Saba's harbour is located at Fort Bay.
Gallery
File:Well's Bay with Boat (6549978435).jpg|View of Well's Bay from boat
File:Diamond Rock Saba.jpg|Diamond Rock, with Well's Bay behind it
File:Rocks Off Saba (6549977127).jpg|Diamond Rock, just outside of Well's Bay
File:4006 aquaimages.jpg| Underwater photo by Diamond Rock
File:4001 aquaimages.jpg
File:Great Barracuda off the Netherland Antilles.jpg|Great Barracuda (Sphyraena barracuda) and Jacks, off of Diamond Rock dive site
File:3959 aquaimages.jpg|Sea turtle seen off the coast of Saba