48 hours in and life is irie in Jamaica!

It’s good to be back aboard, in the loving arms of Capt. D and hanging with Mr. K – who is ship bound until we leave 🙁

Jamaica has been great.  No offense, Bahamas, but it’s good to be on an island with soil and everything your soil yields: fruit, vegetables, local eggs, trees, mountains and waterfalls.  Oh yes, fresh water, we have missed you and it’s been great to see you again.

D picked me up in Kingston and after a restful night we woke up to this view of the foothills of the Blue Mountains from our lovely B&B, Neita’s Nest:

 

 

 

 

 

 

After an amazing breakfast of fresh mango, Jamaican apple (it’s more like a pear), and akee and fish, we head over the mountains to Mother Jones, anchored on the north coast in Port Antonio.

The road over the mountains was full of drama:  lush cloud forests, rust-colored rivers, big ‘ole boulders, scrappy little mountain towns and, yes, hairpin turns and more than a few potholes you could bury a burro in.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once we hit the north coast, we joined an incredibly smooth American-style  highway.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Along the hour-long drive to Port Antonio, we passed a  ton of sweet little bays.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Buff Bay, we stopped to take in the sights of the old colonial church which is still being used to this day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And, there was this weird little gem of an art house reminding us of funky south Austin:

 

 

 

 

 

 

A little further down the road, we enjoyed the refreshingly cool waters of Somerset Falls.

 

 

 

At $12 pp, the grounds include a couple of natural and man-made swimming pools, the quintessential Jamaican-waterfall experience and rafting is included.

 

 

 

 

 

 

While at Somerset, we got more than we bargained for: an exciting guided swim/rock-hopping to the back of one of the big waterfalls led by our experienced and Tarzan-like lifeguard, Mark.  He literally took me by the hand, had Damon grab onto my foot and swam us down a canyon, then instructed us to perch our fingertips along the rock ledges and punch our way under the pounding waterfall.  While we’re both great swimmers and generally up for any adventure, half-way through this unexpected journey, we were definitely exchanging “Are you sure!?!” faces!  And, with all the water coming from overhead and churning below us, we experienced moments we later likened to water-boarding (it doesn’t simulate drowning, it is drowning).

But, like any good adventure, once he reached our destination, it was totally worth it.

Once through the Falls, we literally caught our breath and peered around the cavern: it was full of bulbous yellow stalagmites; how cool!   Just a few moments after standing in awe, we realized we’d eventually have to figure out how to get . . . out.  And, there was only one way:  JUMP!  So, we did, and after surfacing from under the Falls again, we were treated to a lazy float downstream on our back with the black canyon walls to guide us down and dense green jungle ceiling overhead.  AMAZING.

Needless to say, if you’re in the Port Antonio area, we’d highly recommend taking the short drive to Somerset Falls.  We had originally planned on taking the day trek out to Dunn’s River Falls but were totally satisfied with our experience at Somerset: both exciting and relaxing and completely absent of any tourist kitsch (we were the only non-locals there).

Back on the road, we made a brief stop at an unmarked little outpost overlooking Port Antonio.  We wanted to get a great picture of Mother Jones down in the harbor, but without my long lens, it required squinting your imagination a little too much for a great photo.

However, we were totally treated to a surprise show by Mother Nature as she displayed a couple of waterspouts we were glad to be safely away from:

 

BTW – the little unmarked outpost we stopped at happened to be “Dicki’s Best Kept Secret“.  It’s part-hobbit house, part fine-dining and at $30pp for a 5-course meal with mixed reviews, we’re still deciding on whether to make the trip over for dinner before we leave.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All in all, it’s been a fantastic couple of days in Jamaica.  I know Damon and Will had less than stellar first impressions of Jamaica before I arrived and I’m not surprised (nor humble) to say I think I just may have turned all that around!

Until we get some wind later this week, we’ll continue to enjoy the area, eat as many Juici Patties as we can and just hang with our new friends on Tribe who just made it in today as well as old friends Hans and Linda (we met in Portobelo, Panama last year!) as they continue wait for their new mast – it’s a long story 🙁