Gaspar Grande or Gasparee is an island in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...

 named for Gaspar de Percín. The island is 1.29 km² (319 acre

Acre

The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...

s) in area and lies 12 km (7.5 mi) west of Port of Spain

Port of Spain

Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after San Fernando and Chaguanas. The city has a municipal population of 49,031 , a metropolitan population of 128,026 and a transient daily population...

. It is one of the "Bocas Islands", which lie in the Bocas del Dragón

Bocas del Dragón

The Bocas del Dragón is the name of the series of straits separating the Gulf of Paria from the Caribbean Sea. There are four Bocas, from west to east they are:...

(Dragon's Mouth) between Trinidad

Trinidad

Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...

 and Venezuela

Venezuela

Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...

.

Gaspar Grande is primarily limestone

Limestone

Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

, and reaches a height of 103 metres (339 ft) at its highest point. Events in Gaspar Grande's history include the Saga of Admiral Apodaca and the establishment of whaling

Whaling

Whaling is the hunting of whales mainly for meat and oil. Its earliest forms date to at least 3000 BC. Various coastal communities have long histories of sustenance whaling and harvesting beached whales...

 stations on the island. Gaspar Grande is also home to the Gasparee Caves, a natural limestone cave system with a mysterious pool at its base. Other caves on the island include the White Cave, the Brioge Cavern and the Precipice Cavern. Vegetation on the island includes the Yellow Poui, Giant Cactus

Saguaro

The saguaro is a large, tree-sized cactus species in the monotypic genus Carnegiea. It is native to the Sonoran Desert in the U.S. state of Arizona, the Mexican state of Sonora, a small part of Baja California in the San Felipe Desert and an extremely small area of California, U.S...

, Hog Plum, Silk Cotton

Bombax

Bombax is a genus of mainly tropical trees in the mallow family. They are native to western Africa, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, as well as sub-tropical regions of East Asia and northern Australia. Common names for the genus include Silk Cotton Tree, Simal, Red Cotton Tree, Kapok and...

, Agave

Agave

Agave is a genus of monocots. The plants are perennial, but each rosette flowers once and then dies ; they are commonly known as the century plant....

, Manicou Fig, Naked Indian

Bursera simaruba

Bursera simaruba, commonly known as the Gumbo-limbo, is a tree species in the family Burseraceae, native to tropical regions of the Americas from the southeasternmost United States south through Mexico and the Caribbean to Brazil and Venezuela...

, Pelican Flower, Queen-of-the-Forest (F. occidentalis), Cow Itch

Trumpet vine

The trumpet vine or trumpet creeper , also known as "cow itch vine" and as "hummingbird vine", is a large and vigorous woody vine of the family Bignoniaceae, notable for its showy trumpet-shaped flowers...

, Sugar Apple and Salt-fish Wood.

Legend has it that another cave on the island, William Dampier

William Dampier

William Dampier was an English buccaneer, sea captain, author and scientific observer...

s Tunnel, has a pirate's treasure chest which is easily accessible on certain days of the year.

Places

Point Baliene was once a whaling station, as indicated by its name, which is French for "whaling point". Located on the Southwestern end of Gaspar Grande, Point Baliene is one of the main drop off sites for visitors to the Gasparee Caves.

Bombshell Bay got its name from its historical past as there once was a fort located in this area. It is presently a holiday resort for people who want to get away for relaxation and fun.

Gasparee Caves is one of the more popular sites in Chaguaramas. The cave is full of geological formations such as stalactites, stalagmites, flow stones, pillars, ribbon, fringed curtain and more.

Other landmarks on the island include Bordel Bay, Winn's Bay, Goodwill's Bay and St. Madeline Bay.