Indian River Trip, Prince Rupert Bay, Dominica
Seaduced
John & Jane Craven
Mon 21 Mar 2011 22:54
Whilst here we did a short trip up the Indian River, the mouth of which is just across the bay from where we are moored. This is one of the few navigable rivers on the island, and even then you can only go 1 mile up because after that it gets too shallow. You have to take one of the official tour guides with you and there are no engines allowed in the river - only oars. Fortunately, all we had to do was sit back and look at the rainforest, and enjoy the peace and quiet. There are about 9 varieties of land crabs which live in the river, only 2 of which can be eaten. There are also various types of birds, fish and other animals as well such as iguanas and boa constrictors. Until fairly recently the locals ate the iguanas, apparently they taste like chicken - but these are now protected. Also, despite the amount of fish in the river, there is also no fishing allowed. The trees on each side of the banks are swamp bloodwood trees, so called for their red sap.
The river also, very surprisingly, had the only rail track that we seen on any of the islands - it went across the river and was used in the very early 1900's to transport lumber. It was however destroyed in a hurricane around the beginning of the century and, as the company who owned it went bust, it has never been rebuilt.
The whole experience was different to anything else we have done and was an incredibly peaceful and relaxing way to spend a morning.