The TRAVELER'S JOURNAL: January eleventh, inspecting Saint Eustatius.

Last time, we looked at some of the Caribbean's less discovered places. Too often "undiscovered" there is a cliche for an island with resort hotels less than ten stories high. Yet, lost in the Leeward Islands, one tiny haven hasn't been overrun by tourism.

Just 12 square miles, Saint Eustatius, or Statia as it's known to the island's 2000 residents, nestles between Saint Kitts and Saint Maartin. Settled by Dutch traders, Statia's prosperity peaked two centuries ago, when its citizens made money moving sugar and slaves, often in defiance of Europe's colonial powers. It also claims to be the first foreign nation to officially recognize the fledgling United States.

Time didn't quite stop on Statia back then, but it has moved slowly since. One measure is that the whole island has just a few hundred hotel rooms and nothing resembling a casino. Its few beaches offer limited swimming and sunbathing, but lots of opportunities to be alone. Several scuba shops offer dive trips to reefs and wrecks off-shore, but Statia is mostly an island for history buffs and walkers. For anyone who enjoys both, it's a minor miracle.

Oranjestad, the island's sleepy capital, is clustered around a 17th-century fort and is rich with period architecture. Elsewhere, overgrown tracks lead to the ruins of great estates and plantations. Several ambitious treks climb up and into the Quill, Statia's long dormant, 2000-foot high volcano. The floor of its fern-filled crater is a universe far removed from rum drinks on the beach.

FMI For more information, contact the Saint Eustatius Tourist Office, 800- 722-2394 or www.turq.com/statia

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