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It’s vacation planning time again, and you know for sure that you want to spend it quite differently than you have in the past. A different holiday because maybe the year so far has been difficult and stressful with all the talk of job cuts, economic uncertainty and now even swine flu. Why not just go on a walking, hiking, and hiking holiday in the peaceful tropical Caribbean island of Barbados? Get back to nature, interact with friendly locals, cool off with scenic walks, fresh air, and the soothing sound of waves lapping against the fine sand beach.
A walking holiday in Barbados takes you on a journey that reveals the uniqueness of Barbados and Barbadians, through four scenic, eye-opening and positively memorable walks. The walks and accompanying stories highlight how Barbados was born, seemingly out of nowhere beginning in 1627, when the British settled and transformed a jungle that others shunned, into the jewel it is today. Even the geological formation of the island is a unique story of something “out of the blue”. Many visitors to the island hope to meet the local personalities of the village and learn about the prominent Barbadians of yesteryear.
Walking on an east coast beach of crisp brown sugar sand, one can explore the sandy shoreline and may discover “sea coconuts”, “lucky seeds”, a washed up Portuguese warship, just to name a few likely finds. . Venturing inland, there are different walking surfaces, namely uphill green trails and rugged sandy clay trails. Continue climbing to a height of 167 m (547 ft), to reach the very windy viewpoint, which offers a wide panoramic view of fifteen percent of the island.
Descending from this viewpoint along steeper paths, which give way to paved roads, you enter a typical Barbadian village. A town of wooden houses, concrete houses, at least five small churches, in this small community, and of course not forgetting the rum shops, surprisingly only two serve this town. Visit a village resident who is an accomplished potter and is a descendant of potters going back 200 years.
These hills of the district of Scotland are a fusion of sandstones, clays and alluvial muds. This part of the island actually looks like another country, compared to the other 85 percent of the land mass. In fact, geologists refer to this District of Scotland as Ancestral Barbados, and it is actually the material from another country, which is three hundred miles south of Barbados. From this seemingly inconsequential material, Barbados was formed, rising like a sphinx from the Atlantic Ocean, just two million years ago.
Learn about Manjak, its various uses as you visit what remains of this mine. Manjak is a type of hydrocarbon that was used as fuel in the ovens of local trains, it was also exported to be used as the main ingredient in the manufacture of black paint, as well as in the production of the first, but fragile music records of 33 1/3 vinyl.
On a walking holiday in Barbados, one can visit a national park, the site of the ruins of a historic Great House and, via carriage roads, a wildlife reserve. The highlight is a heritage site, a grand 355 year old Jacobean plantation house, steeped in history, tales of greed and murder to name just a few. It is a working sugar plantation, with a fully renovated and working 19th century steam mill used to extract juice from sugar cane. Just last year 2008 this old plantation won an international award for its fine rum, its outstanding stories continue.
In this area there are cozy rural villages, a very picturesque viewpoint that offers a majestic view of the district of Scotland. a two-hundred-year-old sugar windmill, which operates during the local sugar harvest season, effectively demonstrating how sugarcane juice was extracted using wind power. There is also an interesting goat farmer, who is a popular newspaper columnist and musician in a local marching band, a notable personality in his own right.
There are downhill trails for those who don’t want to engage in mountainous terrain, as well as flat, rugged, and scenic coastal trails. Barbados offers trails that lead between sugar cane fields and ravines (also known as ravines) with rock formations such as stalactites, stalagmites, columns, and flow stones.
A hiking holiday in tropical Barbados is rewarding in many ways, healthy fresh air and exercise, with vitamin D from the sun, a welcome relaxing change of pace, as you discover a new land and its people. Being in the natural environment is relaxing and has been shown to be therapeutic for the spirit, soul and body. A healthy and rejuvenating way to spend a vacation.