Day two Virgin Gourda.
2005-03-17

I know I promised more vacation stuff, so I'll try and muddle through, even if I really am not in the mood.
Day two in Virgin Gourda started as beautiful as day one. The sky was clear and blue, the temps warm enough to go right to shorts as soon as you got up. We ate breakfast on the boat and I took the dink in with the trash, to see what time the water shuttle left for Gun Creek. The man at the water services booth smiles and told me it leaves every hour on the hour. Perfect. I dumped the trash (1.50 per bag)picked up ice and headed back to the boat to discuss our plans.
We all figured 10:00 was a good time to go so we got ready and headed around 9:30. Of course there was much falling and crashing getting into the dink by our illustrious crew. This was to be a pattern repeated often. While we always got in without anybody ending up in the drink, style points were seriously lacking the entire trip.
We got into shore and headed over to the dock. No boat... I checked in with the staff again and got the reply, oh yea mon, every hour on the hour except for 10:00. Tyical Carribbean response and planning. Fortunately, the Bitter End is the most beautiful place on earth.
M.E. Robin and Fred grabbed lounge chairs under a thatched roof on a beautiful sand beach surrounded by red flowers. Ken and Joyce grabbed a hammock hanging in a rock grotto just behind the beach. Me? I shucked the shirt and wallet and dove into the crystal clear water. The hour passed quickly.
The water shuttle to Gun Creek was uneventful. They dropped us off at the brand new visitors center where we were to pick up a cab. Except there wasn't one big enough for the six of us. One guy said he'd go get his big open air taxi if we promised to wait. We did and found a little shack on top of a rock with a million dollar view and $3 drinks. Score...
20 minutes or so and a couple of drinks later he arrives in a beat up old Ford 150 with a fringed top and 4 beat up seats where the bed should be. We got in. We were headed to the Baths, a weird but beautiful series of rock formations and caves made of these huge boulders that look like they came from the moon.
The ride takes you right over thr top of Gourda peak. The road is narrow, the cliffs straight down and the views spectacular. If we could make it up the mountain. We got stuck once and had to back down nearly a half mile. The driver was convinced he could do it. I was conviced we'd half to push. Fortunately he was right.
The driver picked up a couple of natives and we talked about the sites. I know he made up at least part of his speil, but it was fun any way. At the top of the mountain, the views were just so spectacular it took your breath away. You just couldn't believe there were so many colors of blue in the world and here they were all in one spot. Even the pictures which came out unbelievable could not do it justice.
We passed Spanishtown and its' "mall" and arrived at the Baths sometime just before 1:00. The driver said he'd pick us up at 3:30. It sounded perfect to me. The top of the Baths use to be occupied by just this open air bar, Mad Dogs. It was founded by an Englishman who came and decided not to leave. Smart man... Now there were shops and restaurants and a visitors center that charged $3 a head. Progress? Not...
The trail down to the beach and caves was a rocky affair and very steep more suitable for goats than people. Some of the folks had a bit of trouble but we just kept plugging. I bet it was a ten minute walk. At the bottem were lockers you could rent for a buck. We each got one and stuffed all our stuff in it and headed for the caves.
They aren't really caves. Picture a white sandy beach surrounded by perfectly clear water and then dump a bunch of huge irregularly shaped smooth boulders on top in random pattens. That is the Baths. At times the openings were barely large enough to squirm through. At times the rooms were huge to hold a concert in. Sometimes you walked on sand, sometimes rock, sometimes in water up to your chest. I guarded the camera and we plunged it.
It took a good 30 minutes to get from the begining to Devils Bay at the other end. There were families, singles and a travel book writer along the way. At one point, bent to the waist under a huge rock I got stuck for several minutes while some idiot took pictures of his girlfriend. My back did not appreciate this and would remind me of it for the rest of the trip.
Robin who is claustrophobic managed to survive this will only minimal complaints, but when it was time to get out, you'd have thought she was trying out for the Olympics. It was like she was shot out of a cannon and we made the trip out in less than ten minutes. We hit the beach for some snorkeling, had a painkiller ot two at the beach bar and then marched back up the hill to Mad Dogs for more drinks and to await the cab driver.
The trip back across the mountain was more spectacular than the trip up. We stopped at all the scenic overlooks, took tons of pictures and hit the shuttle back to the dink right on the money.
That night we had beef kabobs, rice, salad and it all got eaten. The Bitter End launch came by to advise that it was thier 30th anniversary and tonight there would be fireworks. Who could have planned this any better, right?
We grabbed blankets and settled in the tramps to watch the show. I was comfortable, full and relaxed. The first boom was right on time. Unfortunately it was off the back of the boat and we all had to scramble to the cockpit to watch the show.
I like fireworks in general, but when they are happening without the light polution if the city and with island mountain peaks they are more spectacular than you've ever seen, and these were.
M.E. and I sat around for a bit afterward and just enjoyed the night while the rest of the group crashed. Just another simple day in paridise.

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