Dominica's Boiling Lake
The hike to Dominica's Valley of Desolation and its' Boiling Lake was AWESOME! Though challenging, it has been my most favourite hike to date. It was long (7hr.) and it was arduous (almost all up or down - rarely flat), and we got wet and muddy; but the sights were spectacular.
I was joined on this hike by Joan, a guest aboard S/V Cape Crusader (whose captain & crew had already completed this hike), Alex & Dan (from England and living aboard a 42' sailboat with their two young children and Alex's parents!), and our guide Octavius (Sea Cat). Gil chose to pass on this hike as he hadn't slept well, and felt he would not enjoy himself if he got too sore.
Sea Cat picked us all up from our respective boats; took us to his dock and loaded us aboard his van for the 30-40 minute drive to the trailhead at Titou Gorge, near the town of Laudat.
clean shoes at the start of our day
The first hour of this hike was relatively easy, starting with a moderate ascent, followed by some ups and downs, until we reached the Breakfast River. This section of the trail was lush rain forest. Sea Cat invited (dared?) us to try swinging on a vine, and shared his knowledge of the many trees and plants and their uses.
3 human monkeys...
Dan
me!
Joan
3 species of fern
(4 stalks, 6 stalks, and many stalks)
Sea Cat washing mangoes for us in the Breakfast River
Then we had a 45 minute hike up the steep and sometimes slippery slope of Morne Nichols. About half way up we were enveloped in clouds. Many times it appeared that we were about to reach the summit, only to find another bend in the trail and yet more steps to climb. Rain forest gave way to montane forest, and eventually to elfin woodland, trees stunted by strong winds and whose branches are encased in mosses and lichens. To the west, we could see Rosseau (where our boats were anchored).
that's Rosseau down there...
To the north, we had a view of Morne Macaque.
Morne Macaque
plants of the elfin woodland
To the south, we could see the sharp cone of Morne Watt.
Morne Watt, partially obscured by cloud
hiking along 'the ridge' up in the clouds
Just before we reached the 3000' summit of Morne Nichols, we hiked along an infamous section of this trail - 'the ridge.' At one time it was much narrower than it is today, and it is extremely windy at the summit of Morne Nichols. 'The ridge' has claimed the life of this trail's only known fatality.... whether by misstep or from a strong gust, one hiker fell to her death here. We arrived safely to its summit, the half way point to the Boiling Lake.
Joan & Sea Cat at the summit of Morne Nichols
(half way there!)
...a long way down to the Valley of Desolation
It was a slow tricky descent into the Valley of Desolation on a slippery mountain goat trail of rock and mud. There was a long series of steps leading down from the summit, but they were placed so far apart that it was impossible to just walk down them. These 'steps' were placed here to prevent trail erosion, not to help hikers. They were also slick, and it was a scramble getting down.
we could see steam rising... we were getting closer
a tricky descent into the Valley
steep and slick
the colours of sulphur ... almost there!
Dan & Alex up ahead of myself
Bubbling pots of water or mud dotted the valley, and steam rose up...
video of steaming vent
Coated in sulphur, the earth was coloured gold, orange, silver, green...
out of this world
There are more than 50 fumeroles and hot springs in the Valley of Desolation.
boiling water
the steam was great for our complexions!
bubbling (facial) mud pot
free facials!
eggs boiled in a fumerole
flowing water took on a milky grey-blue colour (from magnesium)
It was still another tough 30-45 minutes before we reached the Boiling Lake; scrambling UP yet more boulders. Sea Cat treated us each to a drink of spring water, from a cup he made from a leaf.
drinking spring water from a leaf cup
Joan, Alex, Dan & Sea Cat
magnesium colours the stream a milky blue-grey
Finally, we turned a corner and there it was, the Boiling Lake! Though it's Dominica's smallest lake, it is apparently the world's largest boiling lake. Its' nearest rival is in New Zealand. We were the first little group to reach the Boiling Lake that day. A few others arrived after we'd wolfed down our lunches.
Dominica's boiling lake may be the world's largest
The Boiling Lake is believed to be a flooded fumerole, a crack through which gases escape from the molted lava below. The natural basin of the lake collects rainfall from the surrounding hills, which then seeps through the porous lake bottom, where it is trapped and heated by the hot lava. The actual part of the lake that boils is only about 20-30 yards wide; the entire lake being about 70 yards wide ... the remainder of the lake just simmers.
boiling water with steam rising from the boiling lake
video of the boiling lake water
The Boiling Lake has changed over time. We were told that it stopped boiling when Mt. Pelee (on the island of Martinique) errupted, when Montserrat errupted, and during the tsunami in Phuket!
steep walls edge the crater of the boiling lake
lunch stop at the boiling lake
It was hard to start back after lunch, knowing we had to do all that again in reverse!
Sea Cat against the wind++
back down into the Valley of Desolation
the colours of sulphur in the Valley of Desolation
we still have our game faces on :)
then up again, out of the valley...
(my legs felt like lead weights)
down .... out of the elfin woodland
Sea Cat had a wonderful surprise for us on our return trek. He showed us a short side trail which took us to a warm waterfall which had a natural hot tub pool at its base! It felt so good to soak our aching muscles in there. It was so healing, and a perfect respite from the trail. We lost our game faces here. Mind you, it felt cruel to put our shoes back on after this.
hot waterfalls
human monkeys
Joan soaking in the natural hot tub
all clean again
Dan & Alex soaking it up
(the kids are with grandma & grandpa)
We reached the trail head again at 3:30pm, 7 hours after we started the trek. It had been an awesome day!
wet and muddy shoes ended our trek
Awesome blog as an American living on the island it has always been my dream to make this hike unfortunately I have metal screws in my spine thanks for sharing your journey I enjoyed reading your experience! Hope you return and enjoy Dominica once again
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