Redonda

Redonda is a steep uninhabited rock rising some three hundred metres out of the sea between Montserrat and Nevis, part of Antigua and Barbuda, mined for guano in the nineteenth century and left with feral goats and rats that stripped it bare. Both were removed in a programme completed in 2018, and vegetation, lizards and seabirds have returned in numbers since. It is now a protected area with a strange literary tradition of imaginary kingship attached to it.

Background

Redonda is about 1.6 kilometres long and 0.5 kilometres wide and reaches 296 metres at its highest point. It lies 56.2 kilometres southwest of Antigua and closer to Montserrat than to any other island, 22.5 kilometres to its northwest, with Nevis 32 kilometres away. Christopher Columbus sighted it in 1493 on his second voyage and called it Santa María la Redonda, Saint Mary the Round. Guano mining began in the 1860s and ended early in the twentieth century, and a few ruins of the workings remain. Since 26 March 1872 the island has belonged to the parish of Saint John.

Source: Wikipedia, "Redonda"

What's there

• The rock - a steep island rising some three hundred metres from the sea.
• The restoration - the removal of goats and rats and the recovery since 2018.
• The seabird colonies - the populations that have grown back on the cliffs.
• The guano workings - the nineteenth-century mining remains on the slopes.

When to go

December to April is calmest, though access is the constraint. Landing requires permission and calm sea. There is no scheduled transport.

What to expect

There is no way for an ordinary visitor to get there and landing is difficult and permitted only for conservation work. Sailing past is the realistic option. It appears here as a place rather than a destination.

Nearby

Montserrat lies southeast, and Antigua is east.

Key facts