Quasi-synoptic descriptions of the circulation and water mass distributions within the eastern Caribbean Sea are presented for winter 1972 and fall of 1973. Vertical sections of properties within these basins and along the axes of the major passages into this region, together with property distributions on isopycnal surfaces (chosen to be representative of the principal water masses), are used to describe the circulation. The flow paths of the various water masses into and out of the region are identified. The water masses identified within the eastern Caribbean Sea and their points of entrance into the region are as follows: Subtropical Underwater enters through the northern Lesser Antilles, 18 ¿C Sargasso Sea Water enters through the passage of the Greater Antilles, Tropical Atlantic Central Water and Antarctic Intermediate Water enter through the southern Lesser Antilles, and North Atlantic Deep Water enters the Venezuelan Basin through Anegada-Jungfern Passage and enters the Colombian Basin between Jamaica and Hispaniola. Water mass distributions and dynamic maps are used to compare and contrast the quasi-synoptic current patterns present within the eastern Caribbean Sea during the winter of 1972 and fall of 1973. During both periods, a two-stream westward current was observed in Grenada Trough and Venezuelan Basin. Within the Colombian Basin, these streams combine to form one northwestward flow out of the region. The area where these streams combined is controlled by the intensity of dynamic high located south of Hispaniola. The intensity of this high appears to be controlled by the curl of the local wind stress and tends to weaken during the fall when the wind stress curl reaches a minimun. Therefore 'seasonal' changes in the current pattern may actually be associated with seasonal changes in the atmospheric forcing. Geostrophic computations give a net westward transport for the Caribbean Current system of 29¿106 m3 s-1 during both seasons. This net westward transport agrees quite well with transport estimates of flow into and out of this region by previous investigators.