Know the Eastern Caribbean? Have You Got Some Spare Time?

[seanie20]

I'm developing a website and need some help collating data on certain islands in the eastern Caribbean in order to make it complete and relevant as some info is hard to come by even online. I have a template directory for information such as boatyard, car hire, riggers and so forth. If you have sound knowledge of one or more of the islands and a little spare time, I would be glad to hear to hear from you, please drop me a line.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome board the CF, seanie.
Has your website gone active yet?

[seanie20]

Thanks! The site or the part I have completed is Sail st Lucia. which was the experimental part and that's where I'm based. Let me know what you think. I'm looking for assistance to build up other island sites into one whole for the eastern caribbean - a site by sailors for sailors

[osirissail]

- - Just a note - You will be competing with several established cruising information sites that are not all that well maintained but are "old-timers" in the info arena including: Noonsite; Sailing Wiki; Cruising Wiki(?); SSCA Port Guides and several others. Then there are the on-line cruising guides which are on-line because there is not enough market to take them to print. Finally the established printed Cruising Guides with their own update websites.
- - Your endeavor is an admirable endeavor but realistically you can expect very little traffic unless you are willing to make it a generational project here for the "long run." Taking all the time to build the website and then not getting long term traffic volume will probably degrade your website's "advertising" income, if any, and your interest in "staying the cours." And then the website is abandoned or you forget about it.
- - All over the web are websites with similar information - but the information is "hot-linked" or other obsolete or defunct "origin" sites. So you find the exact same words repeated over and over through dozens of websites. IMHO that is why the "www" is sometimes a lousy source of valid information.
- - Sorry for the "rain on your parade" - I just would like to offer a bit of realism of the competition you will face so you can evaluate if the effort is worth the results. The "main names" in cruising guides and web-based cruiser info-operations have established a web of cruisers feeding them updates (me included) and notices of new changes which are collated, compared and then revisions to the main product are issued. Things change sometimes rapidly and sometimes slowly - it is a lot of work to keep up.

[Reality Check]

I would be happy to assist were I can. I've been doing the Virgin Islands for several years for about 5 to 6 months at a time and as of this December I'm flying down to the boat on a one way ticket and plan on being in the islands for an extended period, probably a few years.

I probably know most of the BVI spots blind folded and know many of the people associated with them. I've been over much of the National Park on St. John in the USVI and have some knowledge of the major cruising ports of St. Thomas. This next year I'll be heading to the Spanish Virgin Islands for an extended stay and by the end of next year may start down the chain working to the West in a slow island hop. I tend to stay in places for a few months at a time getting to know them.

Let me know how I can assist and when I get back down I'll be happy to do what I can or validate information you may receive from others... which may be an important step as I've found out. Appears some people "say" they have done or been places they have only searched on the INTERNET.

later, ken

[seanie20]

Hi Ken, Virgin Islands with your experience would be great from what I can tell. I agree there will be a lot of information not available online! I'll send you more details of what information I need and the format.

Best, Sean