The East Coast Road

The west coast of Barbados is hotels and calm water; the east is open Atlantic, and almost nothing has been built on it because the sea is too rough to swim and the wind never stops. The road running north from Bathsheba along Cattlewash to Belleplaine is the result: a stretch of coast with sea stacks standing in the surf, long empty sand, cattle that were once washed in the sea here, and a scatter of houses. Barbadians come out on Sundays to walk it. The Soup Bowl at Bathsheba is the island's best-known surf break, and the whole coast reads as a different country from the west.

What you actually see

• The sea stacks - eroded coral rocks standing in the surf at Bathsheba.
• Cattlewash - the long empty stretch north, named for washing cattle.
• The Soup Bowl - the reef break that made Bathsheba's reputation.
• The contrast - open Atlantic against the built west coast.

When to go

December to April is the dry season and brings the biggest Atlantic swell, which is when the Soup Bowl works. Sundays bring Barbadians out walking. The wind blows constantly, which makes it cooler than the west.

Honest expectations

Swimming on this coast is genuinely dangerous almost everywhere: the undertow and rips are severe and there are no lifeguards, and drownings happen. The rock pools at Bathsheba are the only safe option and only at low tide in calm conditions. Facilities are minimal along the whole stretch.

Nearby

Bathsheba is at the southern end; Belleplaine and the Scotland District are north.