ON SUNDAY, October 26, 2003 our photographer, Ian Allen, set off for what he expected to be just another day of idyllic fun in the countryside. Hotel Villa Bella, on the south coast, was about to launch a new tour of the countryside. He was in for a surprise.
On his return, after asking if we intended to shorten his life, he went on to say that the Villa Bella adventure was not for the faint of heart.
Daredevils, our photographer said, would love the nature walk and cave 'adventure' that this hinterland tour involved.
Sherryl White McDowel, owner of the Villa Bella Hotel and designer of this new tour, most certainly had the adventurous in mind. Here is a report on the Sunday adventure, in her words:
It was a very overcast morning but participants were all enthusiastic about going on the tour from Hotel Villa Bella, even though the South Coast was on a weather watch. The day started out at 9 a.m. with a buffet breakfast which included good old Jamaican favourites.
By 10:30 all had gathered for the tour, firstly to Christiana Bottom. The group of 20, all dressed in rubber soled-shoes, shorts, jeans or sweat bottom and T-shirts armed with flashlights, lanterns, and mosquito repellent left Hotel Villa Bella to start their tour. We drove down to Christiana town, parked and started the hike down the 800-foot gorge to Christiana Bottom which felt like walking into the unknown.
The adventure begins here.
We walked through bamboo cultivations, flora and fauna all untouched by man who had left no damage to its beauty. Continuing on the hike, we got to the water cascades and small waterfalls filling deep blue pools surrounded with rocks which were intertwined with ferns.
PRIZE
Upon walking a little further you will come upon the real prize, which is Murphy Hole, a swimming hole about 50ft x 50ft with water flowing in from a 60ft waterfall here, the brave dived in. Many local children could be seen diving in the water which, they tell us, is the best form of exercise before a football match. This is a must see and feel experience. The hike lasted for 1 1/2hours and many were tired and exhausted but were still enthusiastic to see the Gourie Cave. So from Christiana Bottom we took a 15-minute drive to the cave.
The flora and fauna in the region of the cave interesting. Even parrots were seen flying by. There was a myriad of bird sounds with these animals apparently drawn by the fruit trees in the vicinity of the cave.
CHALLENGING
The road to the cave was somewhat challenging due to the recent rains.
However, the enthusiasm to see the cave remained and most of the group walked down the 10 or so steps leading into the cave. For many, it was the first time they were going into a cave with running water inside. On entering the cave it is cool and inviting and you can hear the incredible sounds of the flowing water, described by many as being out of this world. When you enter you have a choice of going left or right. On going to the left, we walked through clear water 2ft deep, and then we came upon a series of caverns and cascading waterfalls. Eventually, we came upon a huge cavern capable of holding up to 100 persons, and here most in the party stayed and frolicked. The five most adventurous continued the exploration through 5-6ft pools of water and ended up on top of a beautiful 20ft waterfall. Looking back on the rock formation it gave a feeling of time, space and age. Here you considered what some of our forefathers went through to survive. This feeling was so profound that it actually moved one person to lead us in a prayer of thanksgiving and appreciation for what our ancestors must have gone through.
On the route to the right, a few went down into 2-3ft of water holding hands and ended up in a large cavern. From here there is an opening to the outside. We continued again through a series of cascades until we ended up at the foot of a lovely waterfall. Most of this group had a refreshing and invigorating time bathing under the waterfall.
Too soon, it was time to leave with most of us vowing to return.
