Nashauna Drummond, Staff Reporter
PHOTO BY NASHAUNA DRUMMOND
RECENTLY, I took a trek through uncharted territory in south St. Thomas with the Jamaica Geographic Society.
On Saturday, April 16, I rose before the sun and, packing way more liquid than instructed (better to be safe than sorry), I arrived at the department of geology at the University of the West Indies, Mona campus, before everyone else who was obviously operating on 'Jamaica time'.
The hike was to take us across five miles of 'unspoilt' beach in the southeastern tip of the parish.
A few miles beyond Port Morant we left the main road that had taken us from Kingston and through the western part of St. Thomas. This took us through Bowden, past Pera Point and to our drop-off point at Old Pera. We got there at about 10:00 a.m., close to two hours after leaving Kingston.
From Old Pera, the hike was to take us to Canoe Bay across to the fishing beach at Rocky Point Bay. Then on to Rocky Point, Foul Bay and the Great Morass, one of Jamaica's largest wetlands.
OLD WINDMILL
While the group assembled, I gathered my camera, along with two other photographers, and went back through the cane field to take a photo of an old windmill. This is one of the few remaining windmills in the island. In 1768, St. Thomas had 14 of the 44 windmills in Jamaica. This one stands on an incline, towering above the cane field. As you climb up the incline you are afforded a breathtaking view of the coastline. From here, the brown (due to the recent drought) of the cane field seem to merge with the various blues of the Caribbean Sea and frothy white waves that come crashing to shore.
Leaving the old mill and walking to the shore between rows of cane, the area seemed void of human life. The only sounds were the orchestra of the crashing waves and the rustling from the cane field. Not even the sound of crunching feet on the gravel registered in this recital.
FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND
By the time we got back to where the bus had dropped us off the rest of the party had gone. Following directions we had received earlier, we headed for a grassy area along the shore. We followed the footprints in the sand that led to an embankment taking us into the cane field where we were met by Dr. David Barker who had come looking for us. Dr. Barker, a senior geography lecturer at the university, led us past a few forks then directed us to a grassy plane that led to the shoreline we would be hiking along.
As we went along the white sand beach a sense of calm descended upon me. This was really unspoilt territory. We were walking on a stretch between the wide open ocean and the cane field. There were no houses in sight and the sound of traffic was but a distant memory. It was just the rhythmic crashing of the waves and we.
The stretch of coastline was strewn with residue from the sea including sea weed several inches high that made if feel like you were walking on a field of sponge. The only break in the shoreline was a raised coral reef.
SPONGE FROM THE SEA
Then I made an interesting discovery. I saw what looked like a piece of rock sticking out of a piece of sponge. A closer inspection and a touch test revealed that it was indeed sponge -- sponge that had been thrown up by the sea.
Just as I was enjoying the peace and serenity of the landscape, my reverie was broken by the powers above. A drop of rain hit me and then another, and before you know it a torrent of showers. At first the idea of walking in the rain seemed like fun but out here there is no real shelter for miles. After a while we decided that this wouldn't work (especially with the camera) and decided to stop under an almond tree. No sooner had we done that than the rain changed its mind.
If you ever thought a coastal hike is like a walk in the park, think again. Stopping to enjoy the scenery and to snap pictures can turn a two hour hike into four hours. More than that, however, walking in wet sand takes effort. With your feet sinking with every step walking requires more strength and can quickly become tiring.
Salvation was in sight. In the distance we could see the outline of the fishing village at Rocky point Bay. I could also make out our bus which were there to meet us. At the sight of the bus my feet began to give out and I started lagging behind. My companions teased me, saying I was only tired because I had seen the bus. At this point, continuing to Foul Bay like the other hikers ahead of us, was the last thing on my mind.
WEIRD AND SCARY CREATURES OF THE SEA
At the fishing village some of the locals were chilling out in hammocks or relaxing under shady trees. Others tended to their boats while some cleaned up the day's catch. As I watched them interact I was a pleasantly surprised to see how they worked together based on some unspoken understanding. They took turns helping each other to boats were willing to give away a bit of their catch.
The final catch of the day was interesting because, without writing down anything the fisherman seemed to have memorised how much each person took as he weighed and passed on each portion.
Moving in for a closer look I saw some of the regular inhabitants of the sea -- butter, goat and parrot fish, for example. Then came the weird and scary as I was introduced to the buck buck . It was not something I would want to see on my plate. No more than five inches long and flat on its underside, this grey creature gets its name from the two horns at either side of its narrow head.
Then there was the barracuda. Although it was almost two feet long, villagers say it was just a baby as the adults can grow to more than five feet long. There was also the soft and juicy looking chubb fish.
Sometime after 2:00 o'clock the others returned from Foul Bay, and while the adults relaxed after a satisfying fish meal the few children in the group took the opportunity to roll in the sand, getting good and dirty.
Life Science lecturer Rick van Veen said he had made two interesting observations during the hike -- crocodile tracks and six sea turtle nests that had been destroyed. He added that the nests were likely destroyed by dogs. This is significant because "sea turtles are super endangered (all over the world). In Jamaica we see evidence of adult turtles being eaten."
All in all I enjoyed the trek because it took me away from everyday life and showed me a side of the island that I would not have seen otherwise.
