I vowed I wasn't going to go out with the Park Volunteer crew and do trail work but, damn it, the Boss came by the house and we got to chatting and before I knew it I was feeling the old yearning to kick some jungle brush butt! He has the Sierra Club down this week and some walk-ins. So I geared up and went.
Water, gloves, sunscreen, sweat rag, boots, long pants... all set.
We did the Bordeaux Mtn. Trail, starting at the bottom and working our way up. Some worked on water bars, some cleared the sides, some cleaned up after the clearing (me), some ran up to the top to do the vista. Bwana Jeff has run the Tuesday and Thursday volunteer maintenance program for the last 6 years, I was one of his first recruits. This is the last year for this program, he's heading off to greener pastures, so who knows what will happen with the Trail Bandit gone and the trails left to the mercy of the Park.
The Bordeaux Mtn. trail is the steepest, hottest trail on STJ. The times I've hiked it I've come from the top and gone down. Coming from the top you get the best views and can see the structure of how this old road was built. The best way to see this trail is to jockey cars at the top and bottom, it's a killer. I was dragging my behind by mid-morning.
The good news is the trail looks great, we all did a wonderful job. Every little bit counts, right? At the bottom of the trail is calm and clear, alluring Lameshur Bay where I stopped to dunk my feet.
Your Blogger
It's me! I'm still alive! Hello!
And speaking of butts, here's some of that enticing view I was talking about...NOT! That's quite the banana sling! What's with the animal print? GRRROOOOWWLLLL!
The only thing creepier than seeing a guy in a Speedo is seeing a guy in a Speedo staring back at you.
Turn around.. NO! NO! Don't turn around!
When I got back to the house, George was out in his straw hat and bag o'tools cutting down vines. Since I was already a mess I joined in with other garden work. Vines will take over everything if you don't keep up with them. They choke out the world. You have to find the start and cut back there, otherwise you'll just have more vines. After the vines are cut pulling them down may not be a good idea, you can break healthy branches off or pull wasps nests down on your head. In a few days you wind up with ugly brown dried up tendrils and leaves everywhere, but they will eventually disintegrate. Birds use the dried bits for nesting material.
I am not in the best shape for this type of labor in the heat. I'm a Northern cold weather human. My ancestors were probably Eskimos. I hate heat and I don't like the sun. For someone who likes the cold I sure spend a lot of time in the heat, yathink? 6 hours of work lifting large loppers and hiking in the sun knocked me flat. Good thing it was yoga night, it was the best thing I could have done.There's air conditioning in the studio!
As
I was going back into the house by the back gate I noticed the baby
papaya tree had been bitten off, and there was a pile of donkey doo.
Suspicious. Round up the usual suspects.
If
you like wildlife like I do, and maybe interested in tropical wildlife, check out this link. The author of this lovely Bahamian Blog contacted me about using one of my photos and I got to get a
look at what a REAL Blogger can do. It's fantastic and an inspiration!
Maybe a road trip to Rolling Harbour, Bahamas is in order? They have parrots! It looks absolutely gorgeous! Some comparison island research? All for the good of the Blog! Let's go!
http://rollingharbour.wordpress.com/
Though I love all animals and like to think I have an affinity for them, I'm partial to birds. Though you can't hug and pet a bird, it doesn't mean they don't have the ability to connect. They interact with you and each other. They're smart with individual personalities. My favorite island bird, as you know by now, is the Bananaquit. He's active, pretty, alert, he seems to get along with everyone. Living in the moment, he goes about his day with a light and cheery attitude. Whatever happens, happen. He's inquisitive, brave. He doesn't mind the attacks and dirty looks he gets from the intense Hummers. He'll take on a wasp if they get too annoying, with a quick snap of the beak the insect is toast. Yet he's tolerant of the honeybees. I think he's a good judge of character, our Keets! We should all be more like the B-Keet.
There are many species of birds here. I only see about 10 of them and they aren't very pretty or vibrant. I think a lot of the birds that get recorded here are migratory, just passin' t'roo. It's said there are parrots in town, captive escapees, but I've never seen them. Why can't parrots and other tropical birds live here? Because this isn't a moist tropical island. It's dry and there aren't the fruits parrots and colorful birds need. The birds here are primarily insect, seed and nectar eaters.
I never get tired of watching the birds. Every day it's a different story.
Truce!
Gray Kingfisher and the Lesser Antillean Bullfinch (below)
Buds!
Smooth Billed Ani
Kestrel
Scaly-Naped Pigeon
George made this Artform for the birds, and he took this video.
My apologies for the youtube formatting at the end. I have to figure out how to do away with it, any suggestions send them to me.
Ok I had to tell this story. I hope the video comes across and it's not a thing where you just had to be there. It unraveled like a comedy of errors. I just couldn't believe the stupidity.
George and I go into town for our basic errands - groceries, get the water jugs filled. It's a Monday , which isn't a good day. People are coming off the weekend, they're hungover, they hate going back to work... whatever!
We pull into the parking lot at Mongoose Junction. Parking here on normal days is insane, but today was total madness. Some people should not be in control (?) of 2000lbs of metal. Rental cars have gotten too big, there aren't enough spaces and the lot is hardly maneuverable.
In front of us is a delivery truck. In the video he's on the right facing us. He pulled over to let the woman on the left pass him. She's in a large SUV, but she has room. She feels she can't pass. So she sits, paralyzed. No one does anything, no one comes out to guide her, which looking back the truck men should have done. We sat for nearly 5 minutes because we couldn't go forward and we couldn't go back, there are cars behind us stacked into the street.
Suddenly she starts to back up. Fast. It's like I'm not there! A couple leaving their car beside me calls out "NO! NO!" and gestures. I'm saying "Stop! Stop!" The woman stops suddenly and says something angrily out the window. Like it's MY fault for being behind her? Go forward! Big picture! Big picture!
Then from behind the delivery truck another SUV pulls out to pass the
truck. What's this all about? It actually confirms what I always knew,
she could have passed the truck in the first place.
A man from the Wrangler on the right tells the woman he's coming out, if she backs up he can get out and she can take his place. Seems simple enough. Driving 101. We're saved!
Tick... tick... tick. He's sitting in his car, the SUV that came from behind now has HIM blocked.
This is when George pulls out the camera and starts the video.
Now what can a person be thinking at this time? That you can sit there forever? Well, they're ALL thinking that because NOTHING IS HAPPENING. The only explanation is she's in shock.
The guys in the truck just leave. They get out and walk away.
At that point I back out into the street, luckily the people behind me have left. Everyone had to leave the parking lot in order for this one woman to free herself from the snarl SHE created by becoming immobile.
To add to this, as I pull out into the street the woman who was behind me wants to park in a tight space. Unbelievable. I couldn't have made this up. You watch this happening in front of you and you think "Is everyone braindead?"
I lately started putting my videos on YouTube because the quality is better than downloading the video from my computer files, but I don't like the ads at the end. Ignore them. I'm trying to figure out how to make them stop.
Driving on STJ is a different experience because you drive on the left. No one is sure why. One story goes the donkeys were brought here from Denmark and England where, thanks to right handed sword wielding knights, they rode on the left side and refused to change. And let's clarify this: it's not the "wrong side" it's the other side. If you're on the right side YOU are on the wrong side, so get back on the correct side, which is the left side!
However it is, it just is and so we keep lef'. It's a cultural ting.
But there are more driving nuggets to be aware of. The good news is, unless you're a water truck, it's almost impossible to go faster than 25mph, so whatever happens will happen slower. There are a lot of vehicles here with right front fender damage and hanging right rear view mirrors -oops - dangling like a plucked eyeball from its socket. Duct tape is a popular automotive must-have.
There are no traffic lights on STJ. There was one but it's sitting in storage somewhere. No one wanted it.
There is one straightway. Floor it. If your car backfires and has no muffler, even better. It's the only chance you'll ever have to experience the thrill of speed, going from 20 to 50.
Let's start with the yellow line in the middle of the road. What is this? It's a suggestion, straddle it. What's all this about "two lanes"? Lanes are for the WEAK! If the yellow line is on a curve it has even less meaning.
George
likes to play "chicken". He will use up his whole side (notice I didnt
say "lane") and not move over for the centerline drivers. He likes to
make THEM move over. I don't ride with my elbow out the window.
Speaking of which, you also get a reverse farmer-tan. Your left arm is the one that gets the sun.
If someone is on your tail, like really on your bumper, he isn't being rude, he's communicating. You're supposed to pull over and let him pass. He'll honk his horn in thanks.
Isn't it ironic that the main road across the island is called "Centerline Road"?
fig 1.
This driver is not quite up to centerline travel (fig.1) . Though its impossible
someone could be coming around the corner from the other direction he's
playing it safe and staying lef'.
fig.2
Now this is more like it (fig.2). Nice style, better straddle definition. We really aren't sure what he'll do or how fast he will react if something comes around the curve. Like a water truck, or a tourist on the wrong side of the road.
It is totally acceptable when a road follows the curve of a hillside to ignore the curves and take the straightest line from point A to point B as in the blue dotted line of fig. 3.It could save you 1o seconds getting to the rum!
fig.3
fig.4
The water truck (fig.4) at Telephone Pole Corner. He's barreling around the
corner blaring his horn in true water truck style. Nothing will stand in
his way. An aside to this story is the telephone poles. There is always
a stockpile of poles here, thus the name. Why is this? As he comes around this curve he'll hit a steep hill .
At the bottom of this hill is the Reef Bay Trail, where hikers are
hanging around and people are parked with doors open. Oh joy! We're having fun now!
On top of this, we have donkeys in the road, chickens (more often collateral damage), pigs, and Mr. Moses' herd of wandering cattle. There are microphoned taxi drivers narrating tours and stopping in the road to point out the scenery - "here we have a cotton plant...." . Then you get to PASS BLIND. There's the bus, way too big for the road, a behemoth, but the drivers do a good job, they don't hit anyone, people hit THEM. It was actually a short period of time before people understood how to use the first and only traffic circle, though some people still drive across the middle of it. You think the trash bins left there at the "MILE 0" sign will help?
But isn't this fun? The worst shape your car is, the more fun it is. Anyone can rent an SUV , shut the windows, turn on the AC, stay within the line and play it safe. You'll still have to watch out for Mr. Moses' pigs.
When the wind is up, like it was today, it's a good time to do ........
the Lameshur Trail!
Because the first part is exposed and rocky, the heat can be intense. A
strong breeze will really help. Getting there by 8.30 is a good plan too, I'm off!
I can't believe how bad the Lameshur Road has gotten! Just
getting out there is an insane drive. The rocks stick out of the ground
like teeth, like giant thorns. I was sure I'd blow a tire. The Jeep
tilted sickeningly sideways as two wheels sunk into the water filled
holes and rode the ruts. The worst places have been paved, which is
good, but why not grade the rest? Without a 4x4 you won't make it out
there. I crept along at 3mph doing a macabre seat dance.
I parked down by the rum factory where the trailhead is signposted. It's 8.45AM, no one is there.
Lameshur Bay Rum Factory
The Lameshur Trail is another plantation road that links to the popular Reef Bay Trail. To see the Reef Bay sites I prefer this trail. It is less intense and much less traveled, but don't be fooled, it's still a workout.
Tamarind Tree
The beginning of the trail is flat and shady. Soon I come to the huge Tamarind tree, the Spirit Tree. This tree is gigantic and is still alive even though it's been split in half. It must be almost 200 years old.
Soon the trail begins it's climb and it will go up steadily for half the hike. Lately there's been a lot of rain so there is some shade and the trail is lined with tall Guinea Grass. The rain also means the two vistas that I worked on to clear with the Trail Crew have all but grown up. Park (lack of) maintenance. This is why I quit. If I wanted to dig a hole, fill it, only to dig it again I could do that without fooling myself that I was actually doing some good.
At
times the trail is soft with leaf cover and packed clay. But most of
the time it's a variation of this - loose rocks and scree. I do well
going uphill, downhill is a strain. Holding myself back on rocks is
tiring on the legs, and the uneven terrain is hard on the ankles and
soles of my feet. I've learned to use Lambs Wool, like ballet dancers
put
in their shoes, to protect pressure points and inner soles for padding.
Wool socks are better than
cotton because wool wicks moisture. But these old roads are beautiful.
In the 1700's when they were built with slave labor they would have been
paved with even stones, now they are simply a narrow road or a single
person pathway. STJ was denuded of trees, the hillsides would have been
pasture and crops.
Nice!
More Typical
I like to stop in on the Reef Bay Great House. A short spur trail that
follows the old driveway takes you up to the house on a hill. It's a
beautiful example of plantation architecture perched on a hill
overlooking the valley. Sadly, it's falling more and more into
disrepair. The Trail Bandit website has photos of what it (and other buildings) looked like
when the Park took it over only 50 years ago. Its fate is the same as
the rest of the historic structures within the
Park. Teetering. Today
the back door is open and it looks like there's been some clean up
inside. It used to be a haven for hundreds of bats, the floor was thick
with their guano. It would be a wonderful gift if they would renovate
the house. It would be so easy to do this and have a display of the
period building. STJ has nothing like this, unlike St Croix, an island
that seems to take more pride in their heritage.
c. 1950
The house would have had a central hall with living and bedrooms on
either sides. This house has galleries or porches, off the bedrooms.
Behind the house is a little visited or encouraged area of ruins consisting of the cookhouse and a tall wall, maybe part of a large storage building. The front porch portico is gone, the stairs with it's "welcoming Arms" railing is covered in Mexican creeper vine, as is most of the building.
Inside the House
Everywhere is the tall Sansevieria or Snake Plant. It was brought here as an ornamental, has run amok and is considered an invasive species. The driveway would have been open and pretty impressive as it wound up the hillside to the front door, now the garden plant has taken over. The good news for us Land Detectives is this is one of the plants whose presence most likely means there was a house near by.
Great House "Driveway" with Snake Plants
Below
these ruins is the scattered debris of living over generations. Some
artifacts are from the plantation era, some the trash from later households. The ground it littered with the detritus from the property as it was reused and re-inhabited up until the 1940's. I find bottles, what might be
enamel chamber pots, cooking pots, Clorox bottles, pottery, tin corrugated roofing. It's against the law to take any artifact from the National Park, so treasure hunters have to be satisfied finding their loot and photographing it.
Later Bottles and an Enameled Mug
Early Iron Cookpot
Chamber Pot or Wash Bowl?
The next stop on my route is my favorite road, the Par Force spur. When I first found this road about 10 years ago it was gone, reclaimed by nature. I came upon it by accident when I was going to the Great House, which was also uncleared. Maybe it was a legal Park trail, I don't know. Clearing it was illegal but I did it anyway. It's been made legal now when the new trail map was approved in 2009. I remember pushing through the tangle of bushes and vines and making my way slowly. Each time I went back I cleared more using loppers and a folding hand saw until it was passable. Now it's a well used and documented trail. I think it's one of the prettiest and shows the beautiful stonework construction on the downhill side. This road has survived for over 200 years!
The Beautiful Par Force Spur Road
Retaining Stonework on the Downhill Side
I have to walk it even if it does come out in a more sinister feeling place, the ruined buildings of the Par Force sugar factory. This is one group of structures that won't last long; every time I come the walls have fallen more. Maybe it wants to fall, to return to the earth. In contrast to how pretty and light the trail here is hugging the hillside, overlooking the Reef Bay Valley, the ruins are dark, foreboding, unwelcoming. A cloud moves in casting an even darker aura over the hidden walls. I feel like I'm being watched. I get the shivers.
This Is Falling Down Fast
Par Force Sugar Mill
Creepy
I don't stay long, too creepy, just long enough to take a peek. Nothing new. Unless I turn around and go back to the Great House there's no avoiding it as a shortcut to the Reef Bay Trail and the petroglyphs.Forward!
On the main trail, the ever popular Reef Bay, a left turn takes you to the spur path to the Petrogyphs.This is another pretty road with some fantastic stone walls. The Reef Bay Trail is the Park's baby. Every year hundreds of tourists traipse it, visiting the factory ruins and the Petrogyphs. Some pay to take the interpretive guided hike that includes taking a boat back to town so they won't have to make the return 3 mile trip uphill. No argument, it's a doozy of a hike with lots of cool ruins, plants and environments, but not the best on the island, in my opinion.
To the Petroglyphs
It's a short walk to the waterfall and the Petroglyphs. Today the waterfall is off. No water is running, just a trickle, but there is always some water in the two pools. The water is brown, like tea, but clear enough to see crayfish and squiggly bugs. Large red dragonflies skim the surface. It's like Rivendell - without Orlando Bloom, so what's the point.
And I forgot about the resident Mongoose! I should have brought trail mix or part of a sandwich. He hangs around waiting to get any picnic leavings.
Ye Mongoose of the Sacred Pool
Aside from a couple sitting quietly by the upper pool. I have the lower Sacred Pool to myself. The trickle from the waterfall is a soothing sound.
I don't know what the carvings mean, it's thought they were made by
Taino Indians, the people who were here before the Spanish came and sent
them packing or killed them off with disease. The Spanish were good
at that.
But suddenly the peace is broken. There is screaming and screeching! The birds fly away, the mongoose darts into the woods.
It's.... little boys!
The boys proceeded to run over the rocks, slide on the carvings, jump from one rock to another, pick up sticks and sword-fight then dig into the carvings, stabbing them as if they were space aliens - all the time Mom is saying "SSHHH" and "Don't do that, it's slippery" and "Don't touch the carvings!". Obviously, the unfortunate boys were DEAF. The first couple left. Then it started to rain, really rain, torrential rain. The gods are angry. I was soaked in less than a minute. This only fueled the boys who were slipping on the rocks which were now like deadly, slimy ice floes, climbing on the slick, sheer rock sides above the pool. Mom is still making useless sounds. I couldn't watch because now someone's head was surely going to be split open and their brains become mongoose food. Meanwhile, the father was trying maniacally to make a sort of tent out of a trash bag and herd the boys under it. Time to bail.
There was nothing more important to these parents than their kids' desires. There was no lesson to be learned about respecting nature, a quiet place where others were enjoying a reflective moment, about the value of antiquities. The world revolved around them, they are in for a surprize. It was annoying to be sure, but also a pathetic statement about how parents have lost the sense of being a parent.
Minhoca HU Ha Ha
Hiking when you're sopping wet is ok. When the breeze blows it really cools you off. The sun was strong by now. I decide to call it a day and head back. My ankles and toes are starting to hurt.
I get a second wind by the time I reach the flats again close to the car, so I take the spur trail to Europa Point. This is another little known but pretty road with a gorgeous view when you reach the end.
Time to wrap it up, it's 1.15, hot, I've gone about 5 miles, and it's the end of an excellent day on the old roads.
Europa Point Trail
View from Europa Point
For more info about hiking on STJ go to www.trailbandit.org
