On a clear day it is often possible to see the neighboring islands of Martinique to the south, as well as Guadeloupe and Marie Galante to the north.

On a Sunday afternoon we drove to Portsmouth and beyond, crossing the island through the crater of an extinct volcano.

From the crater we could see the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.

Because of the mountains and steep terrain, the vast majority of the island remains pristine and untouched.

The east coast receives a constant battering from winds and the ocean. The sea is rougher and can be dangerous for swimming, but the bays and coves are just as pretty.

Look carefully at how the trees grow sideways due to the constant winds blowing from across the Atlantic.

A local historian has a good site which tells the story of the Cabrits, from the geological formation to present day. Read it here.

The town of Portmouth lies in Prince Rupert Bay, a natural harbour, a popular refuge for passing sailboats.

The English cut down all the trees on Cabrits for better lines of sight to see passing ships. Today it has all regrown.

There is also some interesting wildlife.

This part would lead us from Soufriere to Bellevue Chopin, high up in the mountains, so before we set off we knew we were in for a climb – over 500m according to the sign!

And climb we did, right from the outset, until we were way above Soufriere.

Upon reaching the summit, we were glad of a village and a chance to refill water bottles.

Before heading straight back into the rainforest – and more hills.

It wasn’t just uphill, there were some downhills too.

Along the trail were some unusual insects

And a chance for a Tarzan impression

Overall the walk took about six hours, and involved a lot more climbing than segment one.

The Waitukubuli National Trail (WNT) is 184 km (115 miles) long and is made up of fourteen (14) segments. It runs from the southern village of Scott’s Head to the Cabrits National Park in the North, and comprises a series of trail networks.

One Saturday morning, Yami and I hiked the first of the 14 segments – from Scott’s Head to Soufriere.

The trail started off at sea level, however it led uphill almost immediately. The trail markers are a mixture of signs and blue/yellow strips of paint.

It took a while, but we gradually climbed until we were way above sea level, looking down at Scott’s Head peninsula.

At the top we took a short break to appreciate the view, and celebrate making it thus far from the village, which now seemed so far below!

We followed the signs through a pasture, avoiding the grazing cows.

We continued to follow the various kinds of trail markers

As we got further into the rainforest, we spotted various fruit trees

After about 4 hours we made it to Soufriere, where we caught a bus back to Scott’s Head to have a swim, collect the car, and watch some local fishermen haul in the catch of the day.

More information about the trail can be found on the website, or on Facebook.

We did get to see a pod of dolphins, which swam along our boat for a good while, enjoying the speed.

I’ve put some of the photos of Dominica as seen from the sea, and some of the dolphins.

The road is steep, narrow and winds up a mountain and back down again over an eleven kilometre stretch.

There are some steep drop-offs on the road and recently there have been two 4×4′s and a bus that have gone over the edge. Here’s a photo of one of the 4×4′s that went over the edge either last night or this morning.