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Not long ago, we hiked up the side of Mt. Soufriere, the volcano of St. Vincent that reaches high in the sky and dominates the landscape.
Before our hike, we drove with our guide along the Windward (Eastern) coast overlooking the rolling waves of the Atlantic Ocean. During hurricane season, this side of the island usually experiences the brunt of the storm. Having seen both the Windward side and the Leeward (Western) side of island, there are some comparisons to be made – the Windward side is more humid with a (relatively) smoother landscape, whereas the Leeward side is dryer with a (relatively) rugged and more mountainous landscape.
Usually I’d like to add a little blurb on food here with some differences between each side of the island, but it’s not surprising to see any crop grown nearly anywhere on this island; it seems like the island as a whole is very fertile for crop production. That said, while driving up to the visitors’ center for Mt. Soufriere, it’s hard not to notice the seemingly endless fields of bananas growing. Even more interesting, according to a few folks as well as our guide, back in the late 1990s when banana exporting was more lucrative the scale of banana production eclipsed what we were seeing!
Our hike took us up the Windward side of the volcano. This side is considered the easier path to take; the opposite Leeward side of Mt. Soufriere all-in-all appeals more to enthusiasts. However, what I saw hiking up Mt. Soufriere was uniquely breathtaking – it was like stepping back in time with no signs of civilizations to be found less the discreet earthen steps that made our trek a little easier. The lush forest and brilliant greens were a sight to behold and was made even more beautiful by the gentle mists and showers that came and went.
Never had a visited somewhere so vibrant and lush. It was beautiful, and I cannot wait to go again. Unfortunately, the sun did not burn away the fog during our hike and we didn’t see the island-wide vistas we hoped to see when we reached the summit; fortunately, the mist added a lot of charm to the tropical forest with which I had a field day using my camera.
Photos by Connor Fullerton on MAy 26th, 2018 on Canon 7D with 18-135mm IS STM.
