COLD SOUFRIERE

At the northern end of Dominica is Morne aux Diables. There is a Mountain road (?) that crosses the northern slope of this Mountain, starting in Pennville on the east and terminating at Guillet on the West. At the crest of this road lies an idyllic valley known as Soufriere but if there ever were a Garden of Eden, this is it. Even snakes, specifically Boa's, are present.

This panorama is a composite of 5 photographs.  The view direction along the left side of the image is southerly, and the view along the rightside is westerly.  You can see the Caribbean in the background.  The road is visible and passes through the notch located just left of center.  The smaller hill on the right has steep slopes - note the forest clearing for crop cultivation.  In the valley is a forested area, and in the center of this forest is the location of the cold sulfer springs. Click on this link to see the actual panaroma using a java driven Live Picture viewer.

To reach this location, we drove to the eastern coast of Dominica and then in a northerly direction through Vieille Case and Pennville.  These villages were originally settled by French peasant farmers from Guadeloupe and Marie-galante.  The road to Sourfriere begins at Pennville.  At first the road is paved. On the paved section we spied a horned steer that had pulled it's stake from the ground. Realizing it's freedom, it was running downhill. I would hate to be the driver that encountered this bull on the typical hairpin turns, so typical of the roads on Dominica.

Nearing the summit, our guide Bertrand stopped so that we could appreciate the majestic view of the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Bertrand found some wild Raspberry's. Now Raspberry's are a wonderful berry wherever they grow. However, the Dominican raspberry, and I suspect all those of the Caribbean have a markedly tropical flavor.

Bertrand is the BEST naturalist on Dominica, his laugh is infectious. At this same location we found a small wild flower in the family Malvaceae, the family of plants that includes Mallows and Rose of Sharon.

Nearby we found another plant known Leaf of Life (Bryophyllum pinellum) which is related to the house plant Mother of Many. The flowers can be inflated and native children are said to 'pop' these on the back of someone's head.

We parked by a trail that descended into Soufriere valley.  Along the road we found a tree with the orchid Epidendron difforme growing as epiphyte on its branches.

Before decending into the valley, we watched small clouds drift over the hills, over us and descend into the valley. Wonders of wonders. From here we hiked into the wooded valley. In the center of this forest are volcanic vents that emit cold sulfer ('Soufriere'). The sulfer collects as white deposit on the soil and rocks. Unlike the hot sulfer springs - which flow red, these are cool and white. Plants do not grow on these springs. Boa's congregate aroung the springs.

 From this valley originates the Lamothe River, which flows westward and discharges in the Caribbean.

For a more complete description of Soufriere, visit a description written by Arlington James.