Wednesday 8th November
La soufriere
We pick up the car at 7.30 this morning, we really want to be at th bottom of the slope before the sun is too hot. Although looking at the top if the volcano shrouded in clouds, I don’t think that we are running the risk of sunburns! Not such a long way in the car from the marina to the entrance point of the national park and the beginning of the trail. Took us less than half an hour, climbing all the way. The first part of the path is easy paved all the way with many steps. We reach the flat bit before the real climb and the Soufriere is invisible, layers of fast moving clouds obscuring the slope and the top. The path becomes smaller and steeper but still very comfortable, well marked and not too strenuous. We climbing in the clouds, and the world around us very soon disappears. Even the birds have gone. The slopes of the mountains are covered with lush vegetation, little flowers and a thick carpet of fluorescent green lichens. The vegetation is so luxuriant that we forget that we are on our way to the top of an active volcano. Only the smell of sulphur coming and going as we reach vents holes reminds us of where we are. We reach the caldera in a howling wind and there is no view to be had, only a thick wet fog. We could be in Scotland in December, it’s so damp and cold. It is very atmospheric sharp rocks emerging from the mist and quickly becoming hidden in the fog. The top is out of bounds, so we go around the caldera before making our way back down. We find another path going around the volcano about a third of the way up. So we go around the cone once more. Still no views. The sun does not reappear until we reach the flat bit at the bottom of the steep climb. This probably was the nicest trail we have come across in a long while, a real pleasure. Back at the bottom with still a good chunk of the day available we decide to visit a rum distillery, Frankie and Steve are quite keen. Unfortunately, it is not the most scenic we have seen, should have taken to see the ones on Marie Galante. Back via the beach for an ice cream and we end up the day beach combing and watching the sun slowly sink into the sea.
Back at the marina, we met with Junior and Marion, we saw them last in Le Marin, wher Junior was working on Christine. A lot has happened to them since then, good (Marion is expectiong and looking fabulous) and bad (they lost their mast during hurricane Maria). They look that they are still enjoying the lifestyle and it was nice to catch up with them.
