Eamon Healy-Singh spent his childhood in the Caribbean, and after a spell at school and college in Dublin, the weather and the beaches lured him back to Tobago. Now he runs mountain bike safaris and promotes eco-tourism on the island. It's a far cry from the view from the Dart, he tells Nick Wilkinson.
A decade ago, Eamon Healy-Singh exchanged his window seat on the Dart for a better view. Now he is tempting others to his island paradise. After an idyllic childhood spent mostly on the beach in Trinidad, Eamon Healy-Singh came to Ireland with his Mayo-born mother. Shivering in his new uniform, he became a reluctant student at a boarding school in the Dublin mountains, which was where he saw snow for the first time. "It was pretty at first, but then it just got very, very cold," he says in his Hiberno-Caribbean lilt.
He then studied at Trinity College, but for a boy used to feeling the sand between his toes, the prospect of a life in leather shoes filled him with horror. "In retrospect, the friends, the experiences and the education I got in Ireland is priceless, but I'm so glad I left."
Riding the Dart into the centre of Dublin every day became a test of endurance as he dreamed of his early life on the beach in the Caribbean. "The sight of Buccoo Reef as you fly into Tobago's Crown Point airport, I have to say, is more appealing than Dollymount Strand," he says.
The final straw came one evening in the Stag's Head, when, during a session with fellow Trinity students, he stepped out of the pre-smoking ban bar to fill his lungs with fresh air. The cold November wind was heavy with pollution and the horizontal rain chased him back inside almost immediately.
"I realised that the Caribbean flower inside me was wilting, and I had to do something fast or it was going to die." Healy-Singh returned to the beaches he loved, and became one of Trinidad and Tobago's champion surfers. He now runs bike safaris through Tobago's bays and rainforests, promoting the island's burgeoning reputation as an eco-tourism destination. He is also one of many islanders fighting to protect Tobago's greatest resources: the beautiful scenery and wildlife, particularly the leatherback turtle.
"Tourism is relatively new here, and our need to protect the environment clashes with some of the development. Nesting turtles are being threatened by light pollution, jeeps driving through nest sites, and the clearing of important beachfront foliage," he says.
His outdoor life and eco-credentials attracted the attention of TV executives, and Healy-Singh now features on worldwide promotional spots for the Discovery Channel.
Turtle Beach on the southwest side of the island is his recommended destination for turtle watching. He believes that islanders and tourists can enjoy these ancient animals while protecting them at the same time. The turtle season runs from February until June, and guided tours are offered by Save Our Sea Turtles, or SOS Tobago, a volunteer organisation set up to promote conservation. As well as patrolling the beaches, they offer lectures and responsible guided tours to visitors and students from around the world. It is a subject Healy-Singh is passionate about. "Eco-tourism offers local people a way to make a good living while protecting their own resources. Sadly, the easy, fast buck of irresponsible tourism is what I see happening more and more, but we've got to fight the temptation," he says.
Embraced by the Caribbean on one side and tousled by the Atlantic on the other, Tobago is home to a rich marine ecosystem including the world's largest expanse of brain coral. Despite being just 26 miles long and seven miles wide, the island's interior is covered in lush rain forest, said to be the oldest protected reserve in the world, and bursting with exotic plants and animals. If you meet anyone in the dense, fragrant undergrowth, it's more likely to be a group of bird watchers or botanists than chilling surfers.
Healy-Singh takes his mountain-biking safaris to a magical place called Highland Waterfall, spotting hummingbirds, jacamars and blue-crowned motmots on the way. He insists that none of the island's 20 species of snakes is poisonous, before urging guests to jump from the top of the falls. It's a thrilling leap, and very refreshing after hours of pedalling in the humid atmosphere.
The island has changed hands more than 20 times in its history, leaving a rich cultural stew that mixes French, Dutch and English influences as they spread out from the capital, Scarborough. Healy-Singh loves the diversity this brings to every corner of Tobago. "We've got such an amazing blend of cuisine here, from all the seafood, to spicy Caribbean recipes handed down in families. It doesn't matter if you're eating on the beach, or in the best hotel, you always eat well," he says.
His timber house, its roof stacked with surfboards, is perched precariously on the side of a steep forest slope, with views over the treetops to Tobago's most beautiful stretch of beach, Back Bay. Wild parrots come and eat seeds from his hand as he weighs up the benefits or otherwise of encouraging more people to visit the island: "Choose your hotel, or villa, or hut based on what the owners give back to the community. We want people to come to Tobago and have an amazing time. Just remember to respect our island."
Having experienced life in both countries, Eamon believes that, climate aside, Ireland and Tobago have more in common than some might think, especially the Ireland that is west of the Shannon. "Surfing the lefthander at Easkey or easing into a pint while hanging with the locals in Doolin are experiences that have a familiar, soothing effect to life in Tobago," he says.
But, besides visiting friends, he doesn't feel that he has missed much since he returned to the Caribbean and a slower, more seductive pace of life. "The days slip effortlessly," he says, smiling.
Healy-Singh is an advertisement for the mental health benefits of banishing stress, house-price conversations and traffic congestion from your life forever. He looks so relaxed and loose-limbed that one wonders what's holding him upright. "I see friends in Ireland whose lives have been blessed with financial success, but not the peace and happiness of my island life," he says.
And that's the answer, he believes. That elusive H-word that crops up more and more in this country as we chase our tails over the crest of yet another hill. Healy-Singh has reached the top of the mountain already, and he's sitting there, enjoying the view.
To book a mountain-bike safari in Tobago with Eamon Healy-Singh, call 00-1-868-3325872, or e-mail ehealysingh@hotmail.com