Communist Revolutions and an American Military Invasion in the Small Island Paradise of Grenada

February 2024: I visited Grenada for three days as part of a two-week journey through the Caribbean, marking the last of the 197 sovereign countries I aimed to visit. Grenada was a place I was particularly excited about due to my fascination with revolutions and the Cold War. This small island had a significant role in the history of socialist revolutions and the 1980s-era proxy conflict between the USSR and the USA. The island’s political turmoil culminated in the American invasion, which overthrew the socialist government.

To fully explore the island, my nephew, Dylan, my friend Jimmie, and I rented a car and drove from the capital, Saint George’s, to the northern town of Sauteurs. Along the way, we visited several significant sites, including the Pearls Airport, which was the location of a key battle during the American military invasion in the 1980s.

Like most Caribbean islands, Grenada was initially inhabited by Arawak Indians, who were later displaced by the more warlike Carib Indians. It was one of the first Caribbean islands to be colonized by Europeans, first the French, then the British. During their struggles to control the island, both powers engaged in massacres of the native populations. The Europeans established plantations for growing spices and sugar, relying on the importation of enslaved Africans to work the fields. Today, the majority of Grenada’s population is descended from African slaves.

The British ultimately became the victors and ruled the island until Grenada’s independence in 1974. Like many newly independent Caribbean nations, Grenada’s first leader was a dictator, whose harsh rule led to widespread discontent. This unrest sparked a socialist revolution, led by Maurice Bishop, who staged a coup to overthrow the dictatorship and replace it with the socialist New Jewel Movement. Bishop was a unique figure among socialist leaders in the Americas—he was black and English-speaking, and promoted both black power and improving the living conditions of his impoverished country. This made him widely popular in Grenada to this day.

Bishop skillfully navigated relations between the USA and the Soviet Union, but as his movement gained strength, the Reagan administration grew concerned. The proximity of Grenada to the United States, along with fears that the island’s airstrip at Pearls Airport could be used to import weaponry from Cuba or the USSR, caused alarm. Tensions peaked when Bishop was overthrown by more extreme factions of his own party, a move that was likely supported by the CIA. Bishop and his wife were executed by firing squad, their remains never recovered.

In the aftermath, the United States used the alleged threat of hostages, including American medical students, as a pretext to invade Grenada in 1983. President Reagan sent 6,000 Marines to overthrow the communist government and establish a new democratically elected one. The conflict, though brief, saw direct fighting between American, Cuban, Soviet, and Grenadian forces—marking one of the rare moments of direct engagement between the superpowers during the Cold War. After just a few days of fighting, the communist government was toppled, and the New Jewel Movement was dismantled, ending one of the more obscure conflicts in modern American history.

Location of Grenada

I knew beforehand that driving in Grenada would be one of my biggest challenges on this trip, as I planned to rent a car and drive in almost every country I visited. Grenada had a reputation for having the narrowest roads, the craziest drivers, and the dreaded rain gutters that run parallel to the already narrow roads, which are notorious for swallowing tires.

As I ventured into the mountains, crossing over from Georgetown to the northern part of the island, the roads became increasingly perilous and tight, with drivers becoming faster and more reckless. The worst offenders were the minibus drivers, who often came tearing around corners into my lane. On one occasion, I had to swerve sharply to the left to avoid a head-on collision, sending my tire into one of the gaping rain gutters. Somehow, I managed to pull the car back onto the road, but not without leaving some dents and damage to the wheel and side of the rental vehicle. This was exactly why I’d purchased local insurance, though the car was still drivable, so we pressed on—driving as cautiously as possible to stay clear of more reckless minibus drivers.

One of our stops along the mountain road was to a waterfall. It was a little too touristy for my taste, but it was hot, and we decided to take a dip. My nephew also took the opportunity to practice his rock-climbing techniques.

The Cold War junkie in me was excited to visit the abandoned Pearls Airport in the northeast of Grenada. This site was one of the key locations during the U.S. invasion, where U.S. Marines fought briefly against defending forces. Today, the airport is no longer in use and has been overtaken by nature. Weeds and grass cover the runway, and cows now graze where planes once took off and landed. Two planes, which were immobilized by the Marines during the invasion, remain beside the runway: a Cuban passenger plane and another crop-dusting plane bearing the USSR logo.

I drove my rental car out onto the runway, navigating alongside the cows, before stopping to climb into the abandoned planes. Left to the elements, they are slowly rusting away, a silent reminder of the Cold War era and the brief yet significant military history that unfolded here.

The runway at Pearls Airport now abandoned except by cows

Cuban passenger plane that was destroyed during the invasion 

Inside of Cuban passenger plane

USSR crop dusting plane destoryed during invasion 

Me inside the USSR crop dusting plane destoryed during invasion 

Grenada is renowned for its high-quality cocoa, and no visit to the island would be complete without exploring one of its cocoa production plants. While driving around, we randomly stopped at a locally owned cocoa farm to observe the production process. We were given a tour of the facility, where we learned about the steps involved in turning raw cocoa beans into delicious chocolate. Afterward, we sampled some of the freshly made chocolates, which were rich, smooth, and full of flavor—definitely one of the highlights of our time on the island.

The coca with water before it is dried was very smellhy and infested with insects which didnt excite me about one of my facorite foods. 

Woman pressing the dry cocaa beans with her bare feet which also didnt excite me to eat chocalate but I quickly forgot and resumed my appatite 

We ended up staying in one of the few reasonably priced hotels in the north, in the small town of Sauteurs. The area was far from touristy and full of locals who wandered the streets, drinking and listening to reggae at all hours of the day and night. When we arrived at the hotel, we struggled to check in since the lobby desk was unattended—there were no other guests. A nearby restaurant worker kindly advised us to find the hotel manager at a nearby grocery store. This led to a 30-minute hunt through the grocery store, asking random people for directions until we finally found the right person who helped us get in touch with the manager.

Despite the constant drinking in the town, it was surprisingly hard to find anything to eat. When we did manage to find a place, the menu was limited, but I was able to enjoy an incredible fish wrap with red wine. Sauteurs is located in the far north of the island and lacks many tourist amenities and resorts. However, it’s an interesting area with a rich history, particularly for its somber distinction: it was here that the last of the Carib Indians leapt to their deaths from the cliffs rather than face imprisonment by the French, which is how the town got its French name, Sauteurs, meaning “to jump

Cliffs where Carib Indians jumped to their deaths giving the town its French name to jump. 

Old British buildings in town 

Old British buildings in town 

The next morning, we got off to a very late start exploring the island because Jimmie had drunk a mysterious bottle of rum by himself the previous night and was hallucinating. With nowhere in town to get breakfast, we drove to the nearest luxury resort, hidden in a forest with a stunning view of the ocean just outside of town. Unfortunately, we were too late for breakfast, and all meals were only available to guests. However, the restaurant worker took pity on us and served us some coffee. By the time we had finished, most of the day was already gone, so we had just enough time to visit Lavara Beach National Park and the Welcome Stone before heading south to Georgetown for the night.

Our first stop was the Welcome Stone, a scenic overlook that was difficult to find on Google Maps. The road leading up to it was extremely steep and narrow, winding through the jungle. My rental car’s engine sputtered with difficulty as it barely made it to the top. Once there, I discovered there was nowhere to park or turn around because of a fenced dead end with a cell phone tower. I had to park off-road in the jungle and hope the emergency brake would hold. From there, we hiked 20 minutes down through the rainforest to the Welcome Rock, which offered an incredible view of Lavara Beach National Park. The return trip down the road was even more terrifying than the drive up, but we managed to make it back safely.

Dylan on the Welcome Rock

An endemic lizard I observed in the rainforest slurping up a worm 

From the Welcome Rock, we drove down to Lavara Beach National Park, hoping to find lunch along the way, but we never did. The dirt road to the beach passed through mangrove forests, adding to the sense of adventure. Eventually, we arrived at a small dirt parking lot at an idyllic beach, which we had all to ourselves, except for a few Rasta coconut sellers and fishermen napping in the shade. We went for a swim, enjoying the quiet and the warmth of the water, and drank fresh coconuts before heading back south. On the way, we stopped at a fancy British cocoa plantation estate dating back to the 1700s, where we finally enjoyed a much-needed meal.

Lavara Beach National park

Ruins of part of the old british Cocoa Plantation estate we finally had lunch at

The next morning, we flew from Grenada to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines on Inter-Caribbean Airlines.