Indian River Trip

Beez Neez now Chy Whella
Big Bear and Pepe Millard
Tue 17 Mar 2009 23:51
Indian River Trip
 
The most popular tourist thing to do when on the north of Dominica is to take a boat trip up the Indian River. Dominica has three hundred and sixty five rivers, rains every day in the wet season and is proud of its World Heritage sites, Indian River is one of the most protected.
 
 
         
 
 
 
The entrance to the river is not glamorous, Albert our guide picked us up from Beez Neez at 07:00 and we headed toward one of the larger wrecks lying across the river entrance.
 
 
 
           
 
 
 
As soon as we entered the river, Bear got out and bought river tickets at the Texaco garage, gave them to the warden and off we went. I pass no comment about inserting my husband between the wrecks at the river mouth .........
 
 
 
 
   
 
 
 
A colourful t-shirt, for a colourful canoe and oars to match. When we got under the bridge Albert had to turn off the outboard and begin paddling. The river proper soon showed its beauty.
 
 
 
 
 
 
We were soon in dense tropical forest, the river at its widest is one hundred and forty seven feet, but much of it is winding and narrow.
 
 
 
   
 
 
 
Albert with his finely tuned eyes soon pointed out an iguana waiting for the sun to come out and warm him. In the first picture we had to be told where to look, more obvious in the second where you can see the shape much more clearly in the central branch. What he looks like up close.
 
 
 
   
 
 
 
We rounded a bend and I was delighted to see our first chap, centre. Then a red leg and another.
 
 
 
       
 
 
 
A land chap in hiding, a red leg chap, dusky moorhen we saw feeding at the waters edge, fiddler crabs we saw hundreds - the biggest in leaf -lined des-res - small ones nearer the waters edge and a red necked pigeon.
 
 
 
         
 
 
 
The Swamp Bloodwood Tree is so named after the sap which oozes when the tree is cut, if the tree is not destroyed by hurricanes or soil erosion will live up to one hundred and eighty years, they have what is called buttress roots which are eighteen to twenty feet long. The wood from the tree is too soft, so not of any commercial value. Albert told us that many plants and trees are used in home made remedies but that the skill is not being handed down anymore as regular healthcare and pharmacies take over. The oldest women who ever lived on Dominica  was born nearby in Planvilla and died aged one hundred and twenty eight, many went to her for herbal advice. We saw many fragile looking wild hibiscus that here was pale orange, also seen on the same plant pale yellow, yellow and deep orange. We also saw many Elephant Ears, Wild Sugar Cane that yields no sugar and is known as Roseau Weed. Glory Cedar looks similar to the White Cedar used locally for furniture making, Albert told us he had been treated with Glory Cedar. The leaves are mixed and ground with sea water and it is rubbed on to nappy rash. Leaves boiled and cooled with fresh water is drunk to "clean the blood".
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Disney spent six months in the area building and preparing for the scenes shot for Pirates of the Caribbean. They built the witches house on the shore in the first photo. They filmed on a gloriously sunny day but used lots of fog machines to give the effect in the finished movie.
The full list of shots taken on Dominica are:
Indian River - site of the witches house
Vieille Case - Old Church
Hampstead Bay - Waterwheel
Titou Gorge
Londonderry River - Beach
High Meadow, Soufriere Scotts Head - Cannibal village
 
 
 
   
 
 
 
We saw a couple of baby Green Backed Heron and could hear mum nearby. She landed but made the babies come to her for breakfast.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Mum and babies are well disguised in the centre of the photo, but the babies were happy to climb up and pose for us.
 
 
 
   
 
 
 
We could see from the first shot how high the river gets in the wet season, we had trouble passing a couple of places as the river is currently some six feet shallower. The deepest part seventeen feet where we saw hundreds of Snook and grey mullet. Albert told us the fish had been getting progressively bigger as fishing was banned some eleven years ago.
 
 
 
     
 
 
 
We went further on until the landing jetty. There was much sniggering as to how easily I would extract myself from Albert and his boat. Bear of course immediately orderred himself a rum punch as soon as the bar showed itself, I opted for a beer - the earliest at eight forty five I have ever had a beer bottle in my hand.
 
 
 
         
 
 
 
While Bear was buying the drinks I went off to explore, finding some interesting plants and flowers.
 
 
 
     
 
 
 
The workman / gardener here sleeps al fresco. Above his bed he is currently finishing what will become a couple of tree top chalets for guests to B+B. Full wash and toilet facilities and his tool at the ready.
 
 
 
     
 
 
 
Albert put a spoonful of sugar at the edge of our table and within seconds a female bullfinch landed, first one then two Bananaquits, quickly and greedily digging in. Then one decided sugar was no substitute for rum and helped himself off the bottom shelf of the bar. You can just see him in the centre of the shot.
 
 
 
      
 
 
 
We finished our drinks, just time for me to get a plant, Zandoli and some creeping fern (there are a total of one hundred and eighty different species of fern on Dominica ) and back to the boat for the faster return trip. The current meant Albert had very little rowing to do.
 
 
 
         
 
 
 
The only sound to break the peace and tranquility was Albert's mobile phone.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
ALL IN ALL a perfect way to spend a morning, that evening a marvellous sundowner on board Bees Knees with Jim and Ann, joined by Phillip and Joanna from Delphinus.