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| That long hill off on the horizon is what we are attempting to climb today! |
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| Sam pointing out our route through the rainforest |
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| Sam picked us these grapefruit, some tangerines, bananas, cinnamon and papaya along the way on our hike. |
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| Syndicate falls - sorry about not being able to flip this! |
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| Another hike for another day |
We arranged with our boat boy, Bounty to get a taxi hired to take us up to the Syndicate (Milton) Falls. Laurie had been wanting to do this hike for some time and it just didn't seem as if it would ever happen, so he put it on the top of his list and began putting it together the minute we arrived in Dominica. Our taxi driver and guide is Sam, one of the P.A.Y.S. members (Portsmouth Association for Yacht Security). All members take courses and attend regular meetings to keep them working as a group and to maintain high standards of service to the cruisers. Their efforts to keep us safe here in Dominica have brought back the sailing community in numbers.
We (the 2 of us and Paul and Janet from the boat 'Matilda') were picked up at 6:30 am yesterday and were whisked up, up and up to near the top of Morne Diablotins (above 4000 feet) where we began a beautiful nature walk. It was dark, lush and very cool with a tree canopy easily 300 feet high. Sam pointed out the types of trees, some buttressed ones 20 feet wide at their base. He was very knowledgeable and took pride in teaching us about the history and flora and fauna of the area. After the nature walk, he drove us to a path where we picked through narrow trails and waded across fast moving streams to get to the water falls. As well, we got to see some of the agriculture of the island. Most of it is done by hand with rudimentary tools in small patches where the mountain is flat enough to allow it. We saw all types of fruit trees, as well as plantings of banana, plantain, papaya, pumpkin, sorrel, sweet potato, pineapple, dasheen and callaloo; often mixed up in the same small, steep field. What a beautiful day we had. It was amazing that we put so much into the day and found ourselves back at the boat eating banana pancakes well before noon!
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| Janet (from boat 'Matilda') and Laurie looking for parrots |
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| After returning to Cat Tales, we had a brunch of banana pancakes cooked up by the captain! |
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| Dogs with jobs! |
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| Sunset in Prince Rupert Bay in Dominica |
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| Awaiting the Green Flash! Beautiful!! |
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| A mega yacht passing on our starboard side. Notice the shine! |
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| BBQ night in Prince Rupert Bay brings out the crazies...notice the plastic fork in this sailor's hair! |
We lounged and read most of the afternoon after the morning hike and then got ready to dinghy in for the Sunday night BBQ. The boat boys run a very organized meal, get the crowds through the line in jig time, serve up rum punch (unlimited) and then move tables aside and let the dancing begin! The money they raise from the event goes towards all night security in the anchorage. All night long you can hear the faint sound of a little engine going through the anchorage and once in awhile you see the flashlight shine along our boat and into a window. Knowing that we're being looked after and kept safe at night makes this a fantastic place to be!
Our next plan for today is to hike the Cabrits, an area within walking distance. We do this walk every time we come here. It's nice and leisurely with only slight hills and with lots of shade. Tomorrow, Laurie says he'd like to do a hike that he's heard of, but has only faint ideas about finding the trail head...always an adventure!
At this time, Laurie is laying in his hammock reading his kobo and I'm doing the computer chores, like putting up this blog! The engine is running and we're making water (which we do every 3 to 4 days)
All for now!
Dawn
