Dominica Warm Up Hike #2 - Section 1 Waitukubuli National Trail

Closed?  We were told parts were closed.  Oops.

The Waitukubuli National Trail is a trail that stretches the entirety of the island of Dominica. It starts in the south at Scotts Head and runs to Cabrits National Park in the north.  It passes through villages, farm land, old plantation ruins and Morne Trois Pitons. National Park World Heritage Site.  Terrain includes everything Dominica has to offer;  rain forest, dramatic gorges, waterfalls, rivers, steep volcano hillsides and coastline.  All total, the trail is 115 miles, split into 14 sections.  Some easier than others.  Hiking the entire trail is no easy feat.  Many local guides have not even accomplished that.  The trail itself is fairly new, started in 2007 and completed in 2011.  Very impressive. 

Landslide area

Previously we have hiked section 14 along the NW coast of Dominica. 

Detour with ropes to assist in climbing

We also purchased a book from the Dominica Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry - Wildlife and Parks Division that details the entire Waitukubuli National Trial by section.  A great book for anyone interested in hiking on Dominica.

Steep incline - huff, puff

After reading the book again, we decided Section #1 would be a good trail to tackle.  Further investigation online hinted that part or parts of that section might be closed due to landslides from Hurricane Erika last year.  We needed local, first hand knowledge.  We checked with our boat guy Greg, tour guides Sea Cat and Nahgie.  They confirmed that indeed part of Section #1 was closed but detours had been set up.  Ok.

Top of massive landslide area

We caught a bus to Scotts Head at the SW tip of the island.  The bus driver pointed us in the direction of the trail.  Getting dropped seaside, we immediately begin climbing up through the village of Scotts Head.  Up, up, up.  At the top of Scotts Head we found the trailhead for Section #1. 

Green pasture plateau

We kept climbing up and up on a very steep incline, no downhill break as often found in hikes.  I was really huffing and puffing.  It was steep.  After a bit we found the closed area.  The detour was very rough.  We had to negotiate our way across the landslide area and up using ropes to climb over rocks. 

Happy cow on the plateau

Still more up and more.  Never any down.  Sheesh.  Finally we came to the top of landslide area and plateau.  It was lush and green, filled with a few happy cows, half a dozen mango trees and a lonely guy acting as cow shepherd, munching on mangoes.  It was almost surreal compared to the last hour of hiking.  

More up

Through the grassy pasture, we entered forest again with typical up and down hiking. 

Any guesses?  Each section is fuzzy with a seed, so soft.  Balsa

The vegetation was fascinating.  Dozens of fallen coconuts, undisturbed spouted into the next coconut grove.  Fuzzy seed pods filled the ground in one area.  The pods were as soft as angora wool - softer.  We learned later these were the seeds pods from balsa trees.  Mango trees were everywhere.  We had to be careful of falling fruit. 

Coconuts sprouting - coconut grove

In populated areas, the coconuts don't have a chance to sprout because someone is there to cut them down.  The same is true for the mango trees, someone is collecting the fruit.  However, up here it's much less populated.  We saw only a handful of locals, usually tending small farms as we hiked Section #1. 

Another landslide/washout area

Section #1 end at the Sulphur Springs (their spelling).  What a bonus.  Four and a half hours later we happily hopped in one of five warm pools to sooth our tired muscles.  While the water was yellow - brown, luckily it didn't smell of sulfur. 

Sulphur Springs (their spelling)

Refreshed we walked down the hills to the seaside village of Soufriere.  Tour guide Sea Cat had told us that near the church we could find the Bubble Beach.  Hot steam escapes along shore in the shallow water.  It mixes with the seawater and creates a warm, bubbly bath. 

Bubble Beach

Actually the bubbles were really tiny so it didn't really bubble to anything significant.   But the water was warm.  It was nice.  Our tired muscles were really getting a nice treatment, first with the Sulphur Springs and now the Bubble Beach - ahhhhhhh.

Bubble Beach

We wondered through town and found the bus stop along the sea wall.

Boat builder - yes, really

Tom waiting for the bus - new dinghy prototype

As we waited for the bus, we took in the local scene of people coming and going with the dramatic backdrop of ancient volcanic hills shrouded in clouds.  Beautiful.

View inland

The bus came and we made our way north again to Roseau, carefully traversing the one lane washed out areas of this main road.  Dominica is still recovering from Hurricane Erika last year.  The massive rains that accompanied that storm, caused many, many landslides.  Roads, bridges, houses, and small villages were wiped out.  Even now, evidence remains of the destruction.  

Dominica Warm Up Hike #1- Middleham Falls

Dominica has terrific hiking.  We knew this from visits the previous two seasons.  But we have only begun to scratch the surface of the numerous hikes here. This year we were determined to do more hiking.  After spending time on Martinique indulging in French pain au chocolate, baguettes, cheese and chocolate to excess, our arteries needed a break.  The nature island of Dominica with its plentiful fruits and veggies and heart pumping hikes was the perfect solution.

Light rain on the trail

After consulting Chris Doyle's Cruising Guide of Leeward Islands as well as the book Caribbean Hiking by M Timothy O'Keefe and talking to boat guy Greg (of Sea Cat moorings) we determined Middleham Falls would be a good place to start.  We caught a local bus by the Botanical Garden.  Up, up, up the bus climbed, winding back and forth hugging the hills.  A local lady signaled the driver to stop at the right spot for us.  Thank you ma'am.  We then had to hike from the main road up a steep side road to the actual trailhead.  

Tom hiking down

As we started along, it began to lightly rain.  This was ok as we were already getting hot from the steep incline.  We found the trailhead and headed out on the well maintained path under the shade of the rainforest.  

Sabrina hiking up

Up and down we climbed, sometimes using the logs that made up the trial and at other times using tree roots as our stepping stones so to speak.  The light rain continued to keep us cool.  A gazebo at a junction in the trail gave us a nice break.  

Tree roots and logs as our stepping stones

More tree roots as part of the path

Middleham Falls

Impressive volume of water

20 more mins and we were at Middleham Falls.  Impressive.  We opted not to get into the pool.  The winds coming off the falls were just strong enough and we were just wet enough from the rain that it was slightly chilly.  We hiked back out to the gazebo and rested again.  

Stink Hole where thousands of bats live

Then we decided to hike up to the Stink Hole.  This is a hole in the ground where many thousands of bats live.  I thought it might be a good idea to say thank to my bat friends that eat the mosquitoes that love to bite me so much.  The trail wasn't quite as defined as we ended up going one way and coming back slightly different way.  Back at the gazebo we started our hike back out.  By now, I was really staring to feel my haven't been used in quite some time hiking muscles.  Oh boy.  

Back out on the main road we walked alongside it to the village of Laudat.  Yes UP to.  It was about a 20 min walk.  Oh boy....really feeling our muscles now!  We walked though the village of Laudat, following instructions given to us by a young French Canadian couple.  They had done all this the day before.......with their small kids.  I can't imagine hiking with a kid strapped to my back.  And that dear readers is why I am not a mom!  We were headed to Titou Gorge.  

Geothermal goats?

The real geothermal

Along the way we stumbled upon one of Dominica hydroelectric plants.  According to the sign, Dominica has the Caribbean's largest hydroelectric system.  40% off all the island power is from hydroelectric.  Next we passed the Balancing Tank, part of the hydroelectric system.  Then we spotted part of Dominica's geothermal system.  And finally, the pipe used to transfer the hot, geothermal water.  The pipe is made of teak!  Yes, teak.  It is an amazing feat of engineering built by the French Canadians several decades ago. 

Geothermal pipe made of teak - amazing

Truly impressive

We finally reached the Titou Gorge.  By this point we were really tired and sore.  It's basically a small concrete pool where you can enter.  Then you can swim up this narrow (10 ft wide) deep rock gorge, (created thousands of years ago by lava flow from one of the seven vocanoes on Dominica) to a couple of very short waterfalls and pools.  The current is strong.  A young couple there said the water was really cold.  I didn't think my very sore muscles would take the shock.  We caught a ride 1/2 of the way down the hills with a local guide and his English customer that had just come down from the challenging all day Boiling Lake hike. 

We got new high tech, light weight, quick dry tees and telescoping aluminum hiking poles at Decathlon Sporting Goods in Martinique.  This was our first chance to test them out.  Both worked great but the hiking poles are absolutely brilliant.  Best purchase of the year!  I am sure these will come in handy.   

Whale Watching

Sperm whale skeleton

Special Note - Taking pictures of whales is like taking pictures of dolphins.  It is tough.  The timing of the shutter is usually different than the timing of your finger and the whale.  Additionally, when they are on the surface most of the mammal is still below the surface - very little is above water.  These whale pics are probably best viewed individually using your own zoom button. 

Drawing of internal pieces and parts to go with the skeleton of the Sperm whale

To date we have had only two whale sightings.  One was the first year between Guadeloupe and Ils de Saints and the second was last year off Martinique.  That is it despite the fact that the eastern Caribbean is home to many types of whales during certain parts of the year.  Tom's dive instructor in Trinidad is actually from Dominica.  Michael told Tom that if we get up to Dominica, we needed to go whale watching.  The Anchorage Hotel here in Roseau is Whale Watching central.  They have a full scale whale skeleton on display along with educational posters.

We know very little about whales so we decided to play full tourist and go on a whale watching excursion, sans Fanny pack and sandals with socks.  Of course there is no guarantee of seeing whales.  The whale watching girl said they didn't see any the day before but they heard them.  Great.  Oh well, what the heck we thought.  At the very least we will get a nice boat ride on a big 78 ft Fountaine Pajot party cat.  We bought our tickets, $69 US each including water, juice and rum punch.  This is the end of the season so there were only 11 of us - awesome.  In Trinidad they would put no less than 100+ people on this boat with 20+ speakers blasting Soca.  Ha!  FYI - the guide said whales like reggae best and thus we listened to reggae on this cruise but at low volume.  Bob Marley and the Whalers!  Get it?  Ha!

We had a brief educational talk all about whales and specifically sperm whales.  It seems there is a group of whales that call Dominica home and are generally found around here.  Because of that fact, this group is one of the most studied groups in the world.  Did you know that whale groups have their own whale dialect?  Did you know that whale groups are matriarchal?  Did you now that a mother whale will use a babysitter to watch her calf while she dives deep to feed?  Did you know some whale groups use specifically assigned babysitters, while other whale groups use more of a daycare type mode of babysitting?  Did you know that male whales leave the family group around 15 but don't mate until they reach full maturity around 30?  *What they do all that time, I am not sure.....explore the world?.....put on white shirts and ties and knock on doors handing out copies of the gospel of according to whales?  Ha!  Sorry, couldn't resist that one.   Did you know that all but two of a whale's ribs are collapsible for diving deep?  Did you know that the two ribs on each side that don't collapse are protecting the vital organs like the heart and lungs?  Did you know that the actual sperm whale skeleton shows an evolutionary fact that tells us whales were once land dwellers that evolved and transitioned to the sea?  *Sorry Kansas peeps for that shocking bit on evolution.  I will try to warn you next time so you can shut your eyes and plug your ears.  Did you know that each fluke is different, like fingerprints?  Did you know......there is so much to know and we only got a short briefing.  These are fascinating, complex mammals.  More learning is definitely required on our part.  But on to the actual whale watching.

14:00 all 11 of use piled aboard the big party cat and off we went.  Tom asked the captain half joking "Any chance we are going to put up the sails today?"  He sort of hemmed and hawed "Well, the thing about sailing is the wind doesn't always take you the way you want or need to go."  NO S_IT!  Off we motored.  At the three mile mark, the captain shut off the motor and the crew (2 guys and a gal) busted out a rusty speaker (the kind someone might plug an electric guitar into) and plugged a simple hydrophone and dropped the mic into the sea.  Instantly we heard clicks - whale speak.  It was just clicks to us tourist but to the crew, it meant specifics like one whale was diving down deep and another was near.  Wow!  The captain fired up the engine and the search continued.  Later they taped (yes, taped) this hydrophone to a pole with a small directional dish at the end so they could better tell the direction of the whales.

15:05 "Thar she blows!"  One of the crew yelled.  Omg!  Our first whale sighting.  It was on the surface.  We could see the spout as it blew out breaths.  FYI - a sperm whale's blow hole is on the left so the spout is always slanted to the left.  If you see a whale spout and its slanted, chances are it's a sperm whale.  We could see part of the back.  After several mins we saw the curve of the back, then the dorsal fin, and finally the fluke as it dove deep.  So very kewl.  This whale can remain down for up to 45 mins so we motored on.  Aboard they had a laminated Fluke book identifying 10 or so different whale groups and pictures of the fluke of each whale in that group.  Each distinctly different from the next. Fascinating.

Can you see the spout - it's there

Do you see it now?  See the left hand angle

Dorsal fin of the whale as it starts to dive

It wasn't long until we heard "There!  Captain, whale over there."  *I was relieved the crew didn't abuse the whole "Thar She Blows" phrase.  Our captain expertly motored us toward the whale, close but not too close.  We watched the same pattern again, breathing/spouting for a bit and then a nice dive into the deep.  

Another one

The next sighting was a mother and calf.  Spectacular.  A little later, we spotted another mother and calf.  Or it might have been the same pair, but really, who cares.  It was all good.  

See the left hand slant of the spout indicating it is a sperm whale

Tom looking for whales

By now we knew what to look for on the surface of the sea and some of us passengers were helping spot.  Others chatted and drank rum punch....like the American lady that complained of being on many whale watching trips in different parts of the world but never seeing a whale...."And another rum punch please."  I wonder why she never saw a whale - roll eyes.  Anyway,  I was the first passenger to spot a whale.  With the first spout I wasn't 100% sure....was it just a wave?  But on the second spout I knew....."There!! Over there!  I see one!"  It's so exciting when you first spot a spout and then motoring closer and then finally seeing the whale on the surface.  "Give that girl a rum punch!" the crew joked.

Another one

All in all we had 8 whale sightings in our 3 1/2 hour trip.  It was truly amazing.  We were out about 4-6 miles off the coast of Dominica.  Sometimes the whales are further out.  On very, very rare occasion they will venture in closer.  

Whale on the surface

Just hanging out

Left hand slant again

This was just our first lesson on whales.  We have much to learn but now we know what to look for.  

The fluke coming up thus the whale is diving deep

Omg - I almost forgot to tell you we also saw whale poo.  Yes, I said whale poo.  As the wise children's book says "Everyone poops."  And so do whales.  It seems they defecate just before diving deep.  Think about it,  the deep depth and extreme pressure are probably something like morning coffee to them so they go before they dive deep just like we go before we leave the house...... but I am only guessing.  A minute or so after the whale lifted it's fluke to dive deep, we passed by a large brown slick on the water.  I thought to myself "I wonder if that is whale poo?"  And sure enough, seconds later the crew said "Look, look everybody.... whale poo."   

We think it's a flipper - look close and you will see more whale behind in the water - a big one

If you come to Dominica, we would highly recommend a whale watching trip.  

The fluke - going deep

*Special Note - Readers, do you know the game show Wheel of Fortune?  It used to have this catchy adverstising tune that ran on TV quite a bit....."I'm a Wheel watcher.  I'm a Wheel watcher.  Everyday...."  While I never watched the show, I certainly remember that tune.  It's been playing in my head lately as..."I'm a whale watcher.  I'm a whale watcher.  Everyday...."  Now you sing it.