Water Wise

Water Wise Bermuda

by Mary Jo

Anne Gracie found this interesting article from Atlas Obscura which describes how the island of Bermuda has managed to survive and flourish with absolutely NO natural sources of fresh water: no streams, lakes or rivers.   Since the Mayhem Consultant and I spent a brief honeymoon there, Anne suggested that I might revise the original travel blog with an emphasis on how how the island has managed with no natural sources of drinking water.

Except one: Rainwater. 

On our previous visit, our guide pointed out the white limestone roofs of all the buildings and explained that they caught rainwater and channeled it into cisterns under the houses.  At the time, that was just one more interesting fact about the island, but the AtlasObscura article explains a good deal more about this brilliant but simple architectural feature that made it possible to support one of the greatest population densities in the world.  (About 65,000 people on a mere 21 square miles of land pieced together from 181 islets.) 

All roofs on the island are required to be made of limestone and designed for rain catch.  The island is actually made of limestone so when erecting a new building, the stone taken from the ground can be used for the inch thick roofs. And those roof are TOUGH.   Some island roofs have lasted since the 17th century. 

 

Anne Gracie found this interesting article from Atlas Obscura which describes how the island of Bermuda has managed to survive and flourish with absolutely NO natural sources of fresh water: no streams, lakes or rivers.   Since the Mayhem Consultant and I spent a brief honeymoon there, Anne suggested that I might revise the original travel blog with an emphasis on how how the island has managed with no natural sources of drinking water.

Except one: Rainwater. 

On our previous visit, our guide pointed out the white limestone roofs of all the buildings and explained that they caught rainwater and channeled it into cisterns under the houses.  At the time, that was just one more interesting fact about the island, but the AtlasObscura article explains a good deal more about this brilliant but simple architectural feature that made it possible to support one of the greatest population densities in the world.  (About 65,000 people on a mere 21 square miles of land pieced together from 181 islets.) 

All roofs on the island are required to be made of limestone and designed for rain catch.  The island is actually made of limestone so when erecting a new building, the stone taken from the ground can be used for the inch thick roofs. And those roof are TOUGH.   Some island roofs have lasted since the 17th century. 

 

Though rain catch is still the predominant source of water, in recent times other methods like desalinization plants have been added so there is generally enough water, but every child on the island is raised to respect water and to be very careful of its usage. 

This resonates in an era when water supply is a matter of increasing urgency.  Too many parts of the world are experiencing devastating droughts and there are increasing struggles about water supplies. (Thinking of the Colorado River and the impossible demands being placed on it.)  Bermuda is an example of how simple solutions suited to the environment can make an amazing difference, and we can hope that other parts of the world can come up with other simple, elegant solutions.

That's the story of the limestone roofs, but Bermuda had a lot of other kinds of history.  There was no indigenous population.  The first known European to land was the Spanish sea captain Juan de Bermudez, whose name was given to the island.  Ten years later he came by the island again and released a dozen pigs and sows, for the benefit of future shipwrecked mariners.

It worked, too!  The first British settlers came in 1609, when the Sea Venture, part of a flotilla of supply ships heading toward the struggling Virginia colony, was run aground on the reefs during a storm to save it from sinking.  All 150 passengers and a dog made it safely to shore.  Most later went on to Virginia, but while on Bermuda, they were grateful for the pigs!  And Britain claimed Bermuda for the Empire.

With little land for agriculture. Bermuda became a shipbuilding and sailing center, and for quite some time controlled much of the world’s salt trade.  After the American Revolution and the loss of British military bases in the new USA, the Royal Navy began building forts and defenses on Bermuda.

Situated midway between the British colonies in Canada and the Caribbean, the island became Britain’s primary naval installation guarding the western Atlantic shipping lanes.  The attacks on Washington and Baltimore during the War of 1812 were launched from Bermuda.  The Royal Dockyards were the hub of all this naval activity, and are now a very pleasant tourist destination with shops, museums. and a dolphin pool. 

Bermuda also had masses of forts: 90 have been built since 1609! My favorite was Fort St. Catherine, which looks modest above ground, but has many levels of tunnels and arsenals below.  It’s a great museum,.  Plus, hidden behind a pillar between artillery placements was a metal tray with cat food.  <g>  We saw two cats, and I suspect there were more. 

No shots were ever fired in anger from these forts, but in 1941, there was an invasion of sorts when the American military arrived to update and fortify the artillery for the duration of WWII.  Most of the military installations are gone now, but their artifacts remain.

It’s almost impossible for outsiders to buy land in Bermuda unless they’re in the mega-rich category, like Mayor Michael Bloomberg.  Tourists can’t rent cars, either.  Instead, there is a delightful bus system consisting of pink buses with blue trim.  (The colors of Bermuda.) 

Bus stops are painted pink for buses heading toward Hamilton, the capital, or blue for buses heading away from Hamilton.  There are also plenty of taxis that include a site-seeing rate on their rate cards.

We were fortunate to be referred to a driver by friends who’d been escorted around the island by him.  He was a lovely fellow, and each day he’d come at 10:00 am and take us to a different area, then drop us off for lunch and take us back to our hotel later. (As an overseas British territory, the fish and chips were excellent!)

Bermuda is a rich tapestry of an island, both beautiful and sophisticated.  My favorite place was the oldest city, St. George’s, founded in 1612 under the name New London.  It’s charming and historical, with the beautiful church of St. George on a hill overlooking the town and the harbor.

The vital location has always made Bermuda busy and prosperous.  These days, the most profitable business is off-shore banking, with tourism in second place.  I had no money to launder, but the tourism side of the island is great.  <G>

Bermuda is as expensive as its reputation, though!  A saying we heard a couple of times was, “Know how to become a millionaire in Bermuda?  Go there as a multi-millionaire.” <G>

 But it was a lovely place for a honeymoon, a delicious blend of Britishness and history and island culture. 

Have you ever visited Bermuda?  If so, how did you like it?  And if not—would you like to??

Mary Jo, who wants to go back!

 

Comments

[Mary M.]

That was fascinating, Mary Jo! As a 'Zonie, I think about the Colorado River every time I turn on a faucet or flush the toilet. At first, I thought, "What a clever idea, limestone catch-roofs." Then I remembered, our "rain" pretty much consists of laconic showers a few times a year and heavily punctuated downpours once a decade! Great system for Bermudans, though.

I had no idea about the history of Bermuda. It sounds like it's been blessed with reasonable and conscientious keepers of the resources. Seems, too, like a ripe setting for historical fiction. Do you know of any novels based there?

[Karin]

I never really considered visiting Bermuda, but it sounds lovely.

[Christina Courtenay]

Sounds like a lovely place, Mary Jo! We had our honeymoon on Barbados and it was nowhere near as nice! Plus we managed to go during the rainy season - very bad planning on our part

[Mary T]

The place sounds lovely! I had no idea of its history. Thanks once again, for a lovely armchair guided tour.

[Lil Marek]

What a fascinating article! An island with no fresh water sounds impossible, and it's incredible that people not only survived but flourished. How on earth did those first settlers manage?

My mental picture of Bermuda is honeymooners riding on bicycles under the sunshine, but I hope it rains frequently.

[Nancy Mayer]

Never knew that about Bermuda and fresh water.It is surprising that it was ever settled without fresh water.The history is fascinating.

[Julia Gasper]

A great read!
It must be hard for wild animals to survive without fresh water. But the fishing must be great.

[Annette N]

Terrific post, and I thank you. Bermuda sounds like a lovely spot.
I have never been there, but I love to wear their shorts.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Mary M, as I said, water saving solutions have to suit the environment. If I lived in Arizona, I'd suggest covering every golf course in the Colorado watershed with astroturf. *G* Those grassy greens use one heck of a lot of water!

[Mary Jo Putney]

Karin, it is indeed lovely, with lots of great history and beautiful places to stay and eat.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Christina--My sympathies on going to Barbados in the wrong season! One goes to the Caribbean with the expectation of sunny days and island breezes. That happens often, but not always!

[Mary Jo Putney]

Mary T, I'm always happy to share fun trips!

[Mary Jo Putney]

Nancy, I did some googling and apparently Bermuda has a fair amount of rainfall: almost 60" a year and it seems to be spread out rather than concentrated in just a couple of months. But I imagine that early settlers learned very quickly to husband their water very carefully.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Julia, I'm not sure how much native wildlife there is apart from birds and things that swim in the sea. Probably rain produces temporary puddles that can be used for drinking, but there wouldn't be established watering holes.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Annette, LOL on the Bermuda shorts. Probably they're one of the islands most influential exports.

[Teresa Broderick]

That was a wonderful post Mary Jo! So informative. Wow! No natural drinking water. Hard to imagine. Especially here in Ireland. We could give half our rainfall to the rest of the world and still have plenty for ourselves:) I'm not a traveler and never have been so I haven't been to Bermuda and never will. So posts and info like this are invaluable to me.

[Kareni]

What a fascinating post, Mary Jo! I've never been to Bermuda, but I would happily visit.

[Kareni]

Here's a list of fiction set in Bermuda, Mary M. ~

https://www.tripfiction.com/five-great-books-set-in-bermuda/

The one I've heard of features honeymooners though their experiences sound different than Mary Jo's!

[Mary Jo Putney]

Kareni, you come up with the most amazing books and book sources! Another book set in Bermuda, a romantic historical by Kathryn John, imagines a real shipwreck on Bermuda inspiring Shakespeare's THE TEMPEST. A lovely book: https://www.amazon.com/Gentleman-Poet-Danger-Shakespeares-Tempest-ebook/dp/B003V1WTWM/

[Mary Jo Putney]

Lil, I googles and found that Bermuda gets close to 60" of rain a year and it's spread out, so settlers figured out how to work with that.

[Mary Jo Putney]

LOL, Teresa! If you could get half of Ireland's rain to the American Southwest, you could be rich beyond the dreams of avarice. But I'd hate to think of Ireland as less green.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Kareni, if you get a chance, it's well worth a visit. Lots of history and a very vivid sense of itself.

[Mary M.]

Actually, a lot of the courses are watered with recycled, unprocessed water. I imagine the hotels are bigger offenders. And the explosive growth in the 30 years I've been here. But it's getting harder for developers to get approval for new communities. Now, if the Californians would just stay put!

[Mary M.]

Thx, Kareni!

[Mary M.]

I'll try to find that one, too, Mary Jo.

[Laura Lee Hall]

My husband's parents had a time share on Bermuda, where they had their honeymoon. We were fortunate to be offered use of the place so have visited it several times; once, our own 2nd honeymoon. We love the island and it's history and glorious scenery and reefs. There's so much beauty and so many things to see and do. The bus system is very reliable. The school children use it and are so sweet! They deferred seats on the bus to us for going back to our place rather than get home earlier themselves. I came home saying "good morning" to everyone at work because that is what everyone does there, sincerely. Bermuda has to be our favorite group of islands to visit. It is expensive but most small islands are because they have to import everything. It is so worth it!

[Mary Jo Putney]

Laura Lee Hall, what wonderful experiences you've had in Bermuda! It's great that you've been able to got several times. It really is a very special place.

[LilMissMolly]

I visited Bermuda over 30 years ago and still remember the beautiful pink Sandy beaches. I’d love an outing visit again!