Dominica 1

There is still complete silence in the bay of Saint-Pierre, Martinique, as the sunrise illuminates the bay more and more and the surroundings and other boats become more and more visible. It is now 5.45 am and Jeroen and I do the last round check before we pick up the anchor at 6.00 am with our buddy boat Mabul and sail to Dominica. Everything is fine and Mabul and My Motu slowly sail out of the bay together. The sailing trip is 60 NM and will take approximately 10 hours. After less than 15 minutes of sailing we get a warning from a catamaran that sails between the islands of Martinique and Dominica and has to deal with a lot of rain and heavy winds of 30+ knots. We decide to reef the mainsail and the mizzen sail a little more and continue sailing calmly. As soon as we have passed the northernmost point at Martinique, we see the high waves and the wind speed shoots up to 23 knots. The speed of our boat goes to 8 knots. The nice thing about our buddy boat Mabul and our boat is that they are equal in speed and this keeps us quite close to each other throughout the trip. Every now and then we chat over the VHF radio about our fishing techniques and the choices for which bait to use. We see many flying fish jumping out of the water around the boat and you also see the Bobby Brown taking one fish out of the water after another. So far we’ve had better luck catching seaweed instead of a nice Mahi-Mahi or Tuna, but we don’t give up and fish calmly on. As soon as we get behind the island of Dominica, the wind drops completely and turns more to the North. The last 25 NM we slowly tack further to the North.

Dominica looks very impressive from the water with its towering high volcanic mountain peaks surrounded by mystical wisps of cloud and 50 shades of green of all dense tropical forests. Dominica is filled with untouched nature and natural wonders, with 365 different rivers, towering green volcanic peaks, deep valleys, waterfalls, famous boiling lakes, magnificent wildlife, a majestic underwater environment and a rich history. In order to admire as much of the island as possible, Karin has been in contact with Kish in recent days. Kish will be our guide in Dominica for the next week and will help us check in. As we approach Prince Rupert’s Bay in Portsmouth a shower of rain comes over with wind speeds of up to 27 knots. Over the entire bay we see a beautiful rainbow that welcomes us. Once in the bay, the wind dies down and we take in the sails, after which we slowly motor along the coastline in search of a suitable anchorage. Suddenly we hear the fishing rod rattling and we still catch a delicious snapper! Yes, it worked again. When we are anchored, we contact Kish, who indicates that the immigration and customs office are already closed. Tomorrow at 11.00 am we agree to complete all formalities. For now, we are all tired and we all decide to go to bed early after dinner. After a very good night’s sleep we all go on shore to meet Kish and we drive with her to the immigration and customs office. Then we drive to the bank, so that we all have East Caribbean Dollars in our pocket. A Government Pass must also be purchased, which allows you to enter the national parks. During a lunch at the Seabird Beach bar we discuss all the sights and walking tours. At 07:00 we meet at Madiba bar and we start our tour.

Cabrits National Park is located on a scenic peninsula with two peaks between two large bays in the northwest of Dominica. Anyone interested in history will enjoy the restored Fort Shirley and the vine-covered occupation ruins that rise along easy-to-walk and interesting woodland trails. These paths end at former ammunition rooms where defence guns still stand and where the views over the coast and mountains are sublime. Although never used for direct action in the territorial battles between Britain and France, the fort was involved in the Battle of the Saintes in 1782 and a rebellion by the Black West India Regiment in 1802.

We drive through narrow mountain roads, with deep chasms up into the mountains on our way to Free Up Farm. Dominica was created from volcanic activity and therefore has a very fertile soil. In the interior, clouds often hang around the mountain peaks, bringing local tropical rain showers. Compared to other countries in the region, Dominica has an abundance of rivers and water. There are approximately 365 rivers and streams arising from 35 watersheds into which the island is divided. The Free Up Farm, a 7-acre permaculture farm where they have planted over 300 trees, planted an assortment of unique fruits and medicinal products. Here in the mountains of Dominica, the farm explores climate resilience and regenerative agriculture. The Free Up Farm is run by Aubrey and Lulu. They give tours on their farm to inform and inspire people about the possibilities of regenerative agriculture. With this, they hope to inspire others to do the same to create sustainable food systems. They sure are inspiring! With a bag full of delicious fruit and herbs we drive on to Morne Diablotin National Park and we fantasize about starting our own permaculture farm together with Karin and Alex.

We take a beautiful walk through the Morne Diablotin National Park. This park is the least disturbed tropical rainforest on the island and home to two species of Dominican parrots found nowhere else in the world. These are the Sisserou or imperial parrot (Amazona imperialis) – Dominica’s national bird – and the Jaco red-necked parrot (Amazona arausiaca). Walking through the park we see large buttresses, trees with rhizomes more than 2 meters in diameter and trees with stems covered with vines, wild anthuriums, orchids, ferns, bromeliads, mosses and other epiphytes that dominate the vegetation of the park. On the way, back we suddenly see a hummingbird appear less than a meter away from us. Fascinating to see how fast the wings flutter. When we get back to the car we swing back down with the car.

Our second walk will lead us to Milton Falls also called Syndicate Falls. We park the car next to a large mango tree and you wander past trees full of peppers, coffee, passion fruit, papayas, but after you pass the last piece of farmland, the path leads you through thicker undergrowth, tall grass, citrus trees dripping with moss and climbing plants with mysterious green fruit. You are in a green valley surrounded by high mountain peaks and flowing rivers. You make your way over rocky banks, cross the river and finally see the waterfall through the trees. It is absolutely breathtaking and a beautiful place to take a refreshing dip and swim.

Once back in Portsmouth, let’s get transported from the urban environment of the city of Portsmouth to the warm embrace of nature in minutes for a trip down the scenic Indian River. The Indian River got its name because Kalinago (Caribbean Indian) lived along its banks and used it as a gateway to the Caribbean Sea. The river was important to their livelihood as they used it to carry goods for trade with sailors and along the island chain. An experienced skipper in a hand-rowing riverboat silently navigates us along the swampy riverbank dominated by the spectacular Bwa Mang trees and many species of wildlife and plants. Back then, here on the Indian River, Jack Sparrow slowly sailed in a boat lined with tall trees in a smoky and mysterious universe, to go and see the witch Tia Dalma (Calypso). The Little Witch’s House was built here by Disney Studios, but has since been removed. The remaining house seen here was built later for another shoot. Indeed, our guide today also transported the actors from one place to another on his boat. We make a short stop at the Bush Bar, where you can drink the famous Dynamite rum punch. Kish had already made this for us during the trip and we all felt it, so we especially admired the surroundings.

Once back we drove to a restaurant where we enjoyed a delicious local meal. We were no longer used to so many impressions and effort and we arrived back on the boat at 21:00. Where our eyes quickly closed. The next morning at 07:00 we are again full of enthusiasm ready for our second tour day.