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The Matka Canyon just outside of Skopje is an excellent place for a hike

So it is Orthodox Easter and virtually all the sights are closed. What to do in Skopje, North Macedonia for a day? Jenny found a nice hike nearby in the Matka Canyon. It was listed as Easy to Moderate, which we learned in Dominica this past December was our sweet spot. There was one problem, though. The half a million Skopje residents were also looking for something to do, since — you know —everything was closed. Orthodox Easter, and all that!

Most of the throngs of people there on Easter Sunday were going for the boat rides

No, there really weren’t a half million people on the hiking trail or at Matka Canyon. However, when we approached the parking area and saw cars parked on the side of the road (including three tour buses), we were a little dismayed. It was thronged with people, many in their “Sunday Best.” Surely those elderly ladies in dress shoes weren’t planning on hiking, were they? We followed the stream of families, strollers, dogs, and occasional folks who looked like they were dressed for hiking. Once we ran the gauntlet of ice cream and coffee stalls, and passed the hydroelectric dam, we saw that most of the people were here for the boat rides or kayaking. There were two types - one that did a loop to see the scenery and another that stopped at a cave and let people off to explore.

The Matka Canyon hike threads along the cliff walls, most of it across sun-drenched rock face

We weren’t there for either - we wanted to finally get some hiking in! We chose wisely, as within 30 minutes on the trail, we virtually had it to ourselves. The trail was very well maintained, and alternated passing through small sections of woods with portions cut into the rock of the cliff faces of the canyon. The trail climbed quickly up along the canyon face until we were about 50 yards above the beautiful, greenish-blue river threading its way through the gorge. Then it kept a fairly steady height, rising and falling only as necessary to stay on the canyon slopes.

Occasionally, the trail winds back inland for a very short section, through shaded woods

Beneath us, tour boats plied the waters, passing every few moments heading in the direction we were hiking, or on their return journey. Some played music or had families singing as they enjoyed the day under brilliant blue skies. The canyon slopes were clad in multiple shades of green, also seemingly dressed in their Easter finest. Contrasting with the brown and orange bare rock face, it made for a beautiful panorama no matter which way you looked.

A steady stream of boats passed beneath us as we hiked along the trail

We began to see tiny cabins on the opposite shore, seemingly only accessible by boat. They each had their own tiny dock and looked like weekend getaways for the wealthier residents of Skopje. At times, the trail ducked under the trees for a couple dozen yards or so, and the temperature dropped a few degrees. It wasn’t too hot, but it was warm enough that the shade felt refreshing as the hours of hiking melted away. We had three miles to the end of the trail and then three back. It was wonderful, though, with the constant lovely views of nature and the gorgeous sunshine and refreshing breezes. As it turned out, we couldn’t have picked a better day to hike Matka Canyon than today. The trail was a perfect, Easy-to-Moderate exertion to make you feel like your hiking through nature, but not so much to feel like you’re slogging to a destination just to say you did it.

One of the gorgeous views that greeted us at every twist and turn along the Matka Canyon trail

Some hikes have long, grueling climbs up steep slopes with trees closed in all around you so you don’t see much. In Matka Canyon, you never really lose sight of the beautiful river and it was one lovely view after another. It was only the last half mile or so of the hike when the trail seemed slightly less kept up. We had to push aside the occasional branch or underbrush. At a couple of spots, the intermittent hand rails over steep drop offs were in disrepair. Still, hats off to the local government or hiking society that maintains the trail. It was joy to hike along it (and back). At the end, we saw the tour boats disembarking their passengers to investigate the cave. Disappointingly, it was on the opposite bank and there was no way to cross for hikers to visit it, too.

The trail ended at the spot opposite where the boat rides disembark passengers to visit the cave

When we returned to the parking area, the throngs of people had multiplied. If we thought Matka Canyon was packed before, it was ridiculously crowded, now. We couldn’t thread our way out fast enough! We hightailed it back towards town and our next sight - the Millennium Cable Car. Nature was free and open on Easter! Fortunately, the cable car was running and there was no line of people waiting to get on. The line ascends to Mt. Vodno, which overlooks Skopje from a height of 3,497 feet. Considering how busy the canyon had been, we were surprised how the top wasn’t packed with people enjoying the holiday.

The Millennium Cable Car takes riders from Skopje to the top of Mount Vodno

After our 6-mile hike, we rewarded ourselves with a cold Macedonian beer and sat at a cafe and enjoyed the view. On the ride to top, we had passed over the hiking trail leading to the summit. Had we felt more energetic, we could have planned to ride the cable car up and hike down. We had done the bulk of our walking already, so were content to walk around the perimeter at the top and check out the various viewpoints. The slopes of Vodno are not very steep, so the buildings of the city were pretty far away. Compared to other mountain top panoramas overlooking a city, Vodno wasn’t a “can’t miss” sight. Still, I was glad we did it.

View of Skopje from atop Mount Vodno

After a short scare of the cable car shutting down (Did it close early on Easter? Why didn’t they tell us?), it started running again after its half hour “break.” Really? A cable car needs a scheduled union break every hour? What? Did someone insert a cigarette in its mechanical lips so it could chill for a half hour of its long shift?? The people in charge really couldn’t figure out a way to schedule personnel to relieve folks on their breaks? We laughed about it afterwards, but weren’t really looking forward to walking down!

The top of Mount Vodno, with its Millennium Cross and the unfinished telecommunications tower

It had been a great day, again. North Macedonia springs seemed to have an inexhaustible supply of picture-perfect days. Would it have one more in store for us on our final day of sightseeing? If so, it would certainly be a great Easter gift for us!

We stayed up till midnight before Easter to watch the festivities at the city’s main church

My favorite piece from the Archeological Museum of Macedonia, a tiny, bronze Paeonian dancer

We were up relatively early for our drive from Ohrid to Skopje, the capital where we would spend our last three evenings in North Macedonia. We had two stops planned along the way, and hoped to get into town in time to visit one museum. The next day would be Easter, and all of them (and many other sights) would be closed. And the following day, our last, was a Monday. Most museums in North Macedonia are also closed on Mondays.

The not-so-Submerged Church of St. Nicholas in Mavrovo National Park

Our first stop would be Mavrovo National Park. We didn’t have time for hiking there, but wanted to visit St.Nikolas Church, often known as the “Submerged Church.” When the dam that created Mavrovo Lake was built, the church was partially flooded and a new one built on high ground above the lake. The pictures I’d seen of the old church in the water looked pretty cool, and it was only about 15-20 minutes off the highway. So, we decided to include it on our itinerary for the day. The night before, I read more about It and noticed comments saying that the church was partially under water only during times of high water.

Sitting underwater hasn’t done wonders for the church’s structural integrity!

Wouldn’t you know it? Spring is apparently not a time of high water in Mavrovo, despite the snow melt from the mountains and spring rains. The church sitting was high and dry about 30-40 yards away from the lakeshore. That allowed us to enter and walk around, noting the water damage and the columns that were collapsing or leaning against walls. It was still a scenic sight on the lake shore in the deep valley, but not what we’d come to see! We spent only a short time, then headed back out on the road.

Some of colorful interior paintings in the Tetovo mosque

The next stop was the town of Tetovo and its Painted (or Colorful) Mosque. This small mosque was originally built in 1438 A.D., its construction financed by two sisters who are buried in the courtyard. It was rebuilt during the 1800s by Abdurrahman Pasha, who was an aficionado of Western artwork. Some sources say the decoration was influenced by Italian baroque, but it is the paintings on the interior that amaze visitors, today. The entire surface is colored in bright paintings, depicting towns, floral designs, Quranic quotes, vases, and wreaths. One aspect of Islamic art is typically it is focused on abstract or geometric designs — not necessarily realistic depictions of animals, people, or buildings. This mosque definitely breaks that mold, including scenes of Mecca and the tomb of the prophet Mohammed.

Closeup of one of the paintings on the mosque’s interior walls

The exterior is also brightly colored with rectangular panels in various shades or orange, yellow, green, and blue. They are depicted with more traditional geometric designs, but give an almost tiled look to the outer walls. Their alternating, pastel colors give the mosque a very Mediterranean feel. There is no dome, as the mosque was originally built before the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople, and the Turkish adoption of the domed mosque as its standard architecture. It was definitely an interesting stop, though — not somewhere you would linger for hours, but well worth a short diversion.

The almost equally colorful exterior of the Painted Mosque

We arrived in Skopje in mid-afternoon and checked into our hotel. It was excellently located just a short walk away from the main square. It was very modern and comfortable. We unpacked and quickly set out for our afternoon goal: the Archeological Museum of Macedonia. We’d read through the descriptions of the various museums on our list and picked it out as our number one (if we could visit only one, which we were pretty sure would be the case). It creatively houses artifacts from the Stone Age all the way up through Ottoman times. Its emphasis definitely seemed to be in the Classical Greek, Macedonian, and Roman times. All of the well-lit exhibits were labeled in both Cyrillic and English, so there was no guesswork at what you are looking at or having to use Google Translate.

The displays in the Archeological Museum are all well lit and labeled in English and Cyrillic

The sheer number of artifacts on the three levels of the museum was astounding. Greek and Roman statues, decorated Greek pottery, bronze and iron weapons, coins, jewelry, and more lined row after row of glass cases. At times, the organization seemed to pop back and forth between various time periods, but the signs did an amazing job of placing the items in historical context and giving visitors an idea of what was going on in Macedonia at that point in history. There was no over-emphasis on Alexander the Great or his father, Philip II. The culture and history of the area was clearly shown as a synthesis and blending of various influences. Probably my favorite piece in the entire museum was a tiny statuette of a dancer created by the Paeonians, one of the early people to settle in the area. The liveliness of the tiny figure jumps right out at the viewer, which is why I chose it to be the lead photo on this blog post.

Gold coins - one of the many hoards in the glass cases…how many citizens had used these for purchases?

Of course, I enjoyed the weaponry — seeing the bronze helmets of the Macedonians and Greeks, iron Roman pila points (the legionary’s heavy throwing spear), and actual Homeric era bronze swords was quite the thrill. The various coin hoards were beautiful, too. It was immersive to look at the weathered faces of various rulers and think of all the citizens that bought goods with these over the centuries. Roman glassware had been polished and cleverly lit in display cases to show off its translucent beauty and color. Seeing the pieces, it is no wonder Roman glass was treasured and traded along the Silk Road for so many years. It was also cool to see the original gold foil masks that we’d been seeing replicas of throughout our travels at various souvenir stands. Many believe they are of various Mycenaean kings from the time of the Trojan Wars. Was I looking at the death mask of Agamemnon? Achilles? Odysseus?

Golden death mask for some ancient Mycenaean king - is this Agamemnon? Achilles? Odysseus?

One very cool thing for a history buff like me was the statue-lined, pedestrian Bridge of Civilizations leading across the Vardar river to the museum. As well as Alexander and Philip, they are of other important figures from Macedonia’s past, including my favorite Byzantine Emperor, Justinian. Also making an appearance in bronze are Tsar Samuel of the Bulgarian Empire, and the famous saints from Ohrid, Methodius, Cyril, Clement, and Naum. After our visit, as light was fading, we took a walk around the massive central square in Skopje. There, even more statues greeted us. The city is sometimes known as the City of Statues. The largest was a multilevel one of Alexander the Great riding his famous horse, Bucephalus. Underneath him, Macedonian pikemen with their long spears and round shields guarded the fountain, which was lit in various colors as night fell.

Roman glassware was a specialty - it was highly prized and traded across the world

Although our first sight of the day had been a bit of a bust, the Archeological Museum was quite the finish to our first day in Skopje. I certainly got my fill of history there, and highly recommend it to any visitor to North Macedonia!

It is mind boggling at how old this anthropomorphic, Stone Age pottery truly is!

For military history buffs like me, actual iron points for Roman pila - the legionary’s heavy throwing spear

Driving up and up in Galicica National Park, enjoying beautiful views of lakes and mountains

I think the perfect amount of time for a visitor to spend in a town or city that has a lot of sights is 3-4 days. The first day, you are getting the lay of the land and figuring out where things are. You walk around and see some high points. The next day, you make it through your list of things to do in town, for the most part. After that, it is time for a day trip to a sight or two nearby that intrigues you. And so it was, with our fourth and final day in Ohrid, North Macedonia. We had seen pretty much all we wanted to in town, driven along the lake to St. Naum and the Bay of Bones, and now it was time to venture further in our rental car.

We drove from Ohrid along the lakeshore in the distance to this lofty scenic overlook

We would be combining my two favorite things to experience on vacation — History and beautiful scenery. We woke relatively early and drove along the lake again to the entrance of the Galicica National Park. Although we wouldn’t be doing any hiking, we were headed up, up, and over its mountains. The guidebook we’d read said the road from Ohrid to Lake Prespa — an even higher mountain lake than Ohrid — was supposed to be gorgeous. Our gracious hosts at Villa Dea had confirmed the route for us, and another cloudless blue sky awaited us on our drive.

The mountain peak and its Two Lakes Trail, partially hidden amongst the feathery trees

I kept an eye out for places to pull off and get a nice scenic view as we ascended. The best one we found was just short of the mountain pass. As we got out of the car, we saw in front of us an amazing panorama of the sparkling blue waters of Lake Ohrid. Framing them were the distant, snow-capped peaks of neighboring Albania. The small towns along the near shore were clusters of tiny, white buildings far below. While in the hazy distance, Ohrid sprawled along the lake and into the foothills. It was a beautiful view — exactly what we’d been hoping to see. Once again, the weather was incredible, with radiant sunshine gracing every day of our travels.

Cresting the mountain pass is rewarded with a view of equally gorgeous Lake Prespa

We also took photos of the snowy mountain peak still ahead of us. Feathery pine trees poked out from the carpet of white which extended towards the top. Only once on the drive would we see actual snow on the road, nestled in some shade, . Otherwise, the road was well maintained, wide, and smooth. As I examined the peak more closely, I saw the trailhead and path of Two Lakes Trail. One of the more popular hikes in Galicica, its path goes from one side of the mountains with views of Lake Ohrid, to a summit where you can see both Ohrid and Lake Prespa on the other side. We’d considered doing the hike, but weren’t sure exactly how much time driving our route would take, so contented ourselves with driving and stopping at viewpoints along the way.

The sparkling waters of cold, clear Lake Prespa - Europe’s highest tectonic lake

From there, it was a just a few minute’s drive till we crested the mountain pass and began descending quickly towards Lake Prespa. It was the source of the incredibly clear springs we’d seen on our boat ride near St. Naum’s Monastery, the day before. It is connected by underground channels to lower, Lake Ohrid. Prespa’s blue waters sparkled even more than Ohrid’s if possible. We improvised our own scenic overlooks along our descent. Lake Prespa is Europe’s highest tectonic lake (created by shifts in the earth’s crust). It is fairly deep, though its depth falls short of Lake Ohrid, which is nearly three football fields deep! Lake Ohrid is also thought to be Europe’s oldest lake.

Heraclea Lyncestis was founded by Alexander the Great’s father, Philip II, in the 4th century BC

In no time at all, it seemed like we had reached the bottom of the mountain and were driving along the lake shore. Prespa’s shores were lined with reeds in some places and spring flowers in others. We saw a number of closed campgrounds and hotels along its shores. It was still very early in the season for Lake Prespa’s altitude (2,800 feet above sea level). The air was crisp, but the warm sunshine kept it from feeling cold. It’s too bad our visit to North Macedonia missed its high season, though. There was an island in the lake called Golem Grad with Roman and Medieval ruins we’d wanted to see. It was also a nature preserve and home to a number of snakes and poisonous vipers. Hmm, maybe it was a good thing we came before its tourist season opened up!

The Roman bath complex at Heraclea Lyncestis, the town grew in importance under their rule

Still, we’d get our fill of ruins, today. Now that we’d crossed the mountains, we were headed to the town of Bitola. It is the site of North Macedonia’s most well-known Ancient ruins, Heraklea Lyncestis. This ancient city was founded by Philip II (Alexander the Great’s father) in the 4th century B.C. It was expanded further by the Romans when they conquered Macedonia. During Philip and Alexander’s time, it was a fortress city against raids by hostile tribes, while in the Roman times, it was an important city on their major east-west road through Greece, the Via Egnatia. Our Apple Maps GPS was working flawlessly in North Macedonia, and we found the ancient site easily. There were only a couple of other cars in the lot, so it would be wonderful to have the site mostly to ourselves. In fact, I think we did have it completely to ourselves for most of our visit. To me, ancient ruins are improved by the silence — no crowds, no tour buses, and no Instagram goddesses posing self-indulgently amidst the columns and crumbling walls.

The columns of the Basilica, a market area under the Romans, and a church under the later Christians

I felt Heraclea Lyncestis was set up wonderfully for visitors. At each major building or portion of the site, there was a sign and map with short explanation. There was also a QR code on the sign which took you to a narrated description with historical background for each stop on the way. Several of the narrated passages were almost four minutes long, others just a couple minutes. You would use your cellphone camera, click on the link, and then listen in as the narrator took you back to Macedonian or Roman times. Of course, you need a phone with service and access to the internet to do that, which confirmed for me that we are doing the right thing by paying a small fee each day to extend our Verizon service overseas.

The theater is the most stunning part of the ruins of this ancient Macedonian and Roman town

It was wonderful climbing around the ruins — there were few roped off areas or places you appeared forbidden to go. It is an active archeological site, with new finds unearthed every year. Unfortunately, there were no archeologists working there the day we visited. In fact, we had a slight disappointment in that the Roman mosaics they’ve unearthed so far are actually covered up by gravel to protect them during the off-season. Spring is technically off-season, so we had to be content with photographs of the mosaics and samples we could see in the tiny museum near the Greek theater. I guess I can accept that slight downside when the alternative is to have throngs of people at the site. The border with Greece is less than an hour away, and it appears that tour groups do stop here semi-regularly in the summer.

Some of the seats are still inscribed with the names of the families who they belonged to

The high point of Heraclea Lyncestis is the theater. It has been reconstructed so that you can walk along the aisles, climb the stairs, stand upon the stage and recite lines from Homer — whatever you wish. The Romans also used it as a gladiator arena, and you can still see the entrances to the subterranean cages were wild animals were kept to fight the gladiators. The inscriptions of Greek letters designating the luxury boxes and seats of the wealthy are still visible, marking which family they belonged to. You can plop down in them and imagine yourself being entertained by either Aristophanes or brutal combats. The sun was beating down as we climbed to the top row of the theater and admired the beautiful, Balkan countryside stretching away into the distance.

Carvings and decorations like this give you a sense of the beauty of the town

Truly, you couldn’t ask for a more gorgeous day nor a more almost private visit than we had in Philip’s old colony. Once we were completely sated with our taste of Greek, Macedonian, and Roman history, we thanked the attendant at the visitor center, asked him a few questions, and then decided to head into the town of Bitola for lunch. It seemed like a holiday in town and nearly everyone seemed to be out walking on the downtown streets and enjoying the sunshine. We chose a restaurant the attendant had recommended, and enjoyed the air conditioning, cold sparkling water, lunch, and a treat we were growing to love in North Macedonia — Shopska salad. Friends know I love my cucumbers and tomato salads, but the shredded white sheep cheese and dressing really set off taste of the fresh vegetables.

Modern statue of Alexander the Great in the park in downtown Bitola

After our late lunch, we walked downtown to see the statue of Alexander the Great, the town’s mosques, and the medieval clock tower. We remembered it was Easter weekend, so apparently North Macedonians celebrate Good Friday with a work holiday. It was fun to see so many people out and enjoying the gorgeous, sunny day. Judged by my standards of seeing interesting History and beautiful scenery, it was another perfect day in North Macedonia! Tomorrow, we’d leave Ohrid’s lovely shores and head to the capital, Skopje. Hopefully, we’d have wonderful weather and great sights to see there, as well!

It seemed everyone was out walking, enjoying the sunshine, in downtown Bitola

Established in 905 AD, the Monastery of St. Naum is picturesquely sited on a hill above Lake Ohrid

We wanted to visit the historic monastery of St. Naum, perched on a hill above Lake Ohrid, and just a few hundred meters from the border with Albania. We'd seen boat rides that offered up a cruise to St. Naum (along with a handful of other sights along Ohrid's shores). However, we decided to drive the 45 minutes there (and to the other sights we wanted to see), instead. Perhaps we could end the day with a sunset cruise on Lake Ohrid to get our time on the lake? The main reason we chose to drive was because tours often give you a limited time at a site. Plus, we'd be seeing it with the rest of the crowd on our boat (and any of the many other similar boat tours that happened to land at the same time). I much prefer to experience a historical sight with as few others as possible, to take advantage of the silence and commune with history.

The church inside the monastery grounds is the same beautiful, brick and stone Byzantine style of many in Ohrid

We left relatively early in the morning and drove south along the winding, but fairly well maintained, road on the shore of Lake Ohrid. In fact, when we arrived at the parking lot, our car was one of the first in the lot. Woo-hoo - success! With no crowds to follow, it took us a minute or two to figure out which small paved roads led to the actual monastery, as there are other tiny churches on site, restaurants, and a hotel, too. When we walked through the gateway of the monastery, we saw we had been preceded by a small group of a half dozen Asian tourists. We had to wait a minute or two for them to finish their Instagram selfies before we could take pictures of the beautiful, brick and stone monastery shining in the morning sun. I figured my photos of the thousand year old church would look better without preening, would-be Instagram stars in the foreground! Our patience was rewarded, and we were able to experience and photograph it for a few moments by ourselves.

Beautiful interior of St. Naum - we lucked into a service here in the main chapel that was taking place

Next, we headed inside in the church, paying our roughly $2-$3 entry fee to the friendly, talkative monk at the cashier stand. We stepped through the doorway and immediately heard a service was going on. There were about eight worshipers standing in front of the altar reverently, heads bowed, as two monks alternately chanted and sang the words of their liturgy. Two short, octagonal towers of brick rise up from the church, and from their tiny windows, the interior was dimly illuminated. The room where the service was going on was pierced by shafts of sunlight high above, cutting through the dimness. All around us, the stone walls were painted with dark, medieval frescoes of biblical scenes. The monastery was small, but divided into several tiny, separate rooms. We listened for a few moments, then backed up to explore the rooms closer to the entrance. The frescoes seemed to illustrate stories from the Bible. I believe one was David and Goliath, as a much smaller man was perched upon a fallen giant of a man, plunging his sword or knife into him. The people of the Middle Ages did not understand the concept of anachronism, so both figures were dressed and armed as if they were medieval soldiers. A side room had what appeared to be a bed covered in red velvet. We found out later from the friendly monk that the bed covered the tomb of St. Naum.

The tomb of St. Naum lies beneath this red velvet bed - visitors are encouraged to listen for the saint’s heartbeat

Visitors are encouraged to kneel on the floor, and place their ear on the velvet surface. If they listen carefully, and are truly devout, they will hear the heart of the venerable saint, still beating beneath them. Both Jenny and I tried, but neither of us were able to experience the miracle, sad to say. As always, the frescoes were beautiful, but after examining all of them, we were drawn back to the room with the service. We were visiting North Macedonia over its Orthodox Easter, which was only three days away. As quietly and respectfully as possible, both of us took short video clips of portions of the service. The call and response of the monks singing was very soulful and beautiful. We were alarmed, though, when the monk from the cashier booth locked the door to the small church behind us. Not knowing why or how long we would have to be in there, we let him know through the window that we wished to be let out. He smiled and opened the door for us, then quickly closed it behind us, locking it.

One of the many painted medieval frescoes on the interior walls of St. Naum

Outside, the world had changed. Three busloads of Macedonian high school kids had arrived during the 20 minutes or so we had been inside. A number of other tour groups also thronged the courtyard. Wow! We were so glad we'd left early and got here to experience St. Naum in the peace and quiet for awhile. We wandered around for a while, exploring other bits of the monastery, but everywhere was crowded with people. Eventually, the monk opened the door to the church back up, and people immediately lined up to enter. We decided to sit on a bench and watch the spectacle. We took pictures of the peacocks wandering the grounds, laughing at their squawk -- obviously the inspiration for the movie "Up" and its towering, prehistoric, bird character, Kevin. After awhile, the crowd died down a bit, so we ventured back inside the church. There were still lots of people in the room where the service was being held, so we had no more opportunities for photos.

Peacocks roam the courtyard of the monastery, fluffing their beautiful feathers for visitors

Once we felt we had fully experienced St. Naum, we walked back out through the gateway. We noticed below us that there were no tour boats tied up to the stone pier. So, all of these tourists had arrived by cars or buses -- the boat tours we had been considering hadn't begun to arrive, yet. We descended the hill and walked out onto the stone pier to get some panoramas of the monastery looming above us and the beautiful lake and surrounding scenery. Next, we decided to hire one of the small boat rides nearby. They are rowed (not motorized) and take about 20-30 minutes to do a loop over the spring-fed creek. The water is crystal clear, and you can see the bottom as if looking through a pane of glass. The water for the springs drains from Lake Prespa, not far away, but at a higher altitude. It is filtered through the granite of the mountain and emerges in the creek like liquid glass. And it isn't just a trickle! You can see the current of the creek as it empties into Lake Ohrid, and the water is disturbed by white caps for about twenty yards from the pressure of the creek feeding into the lake.

Some of the clearest water I have ever seen is in a nearby, spring-fed creek

Since there were just two of us, the boat ride was a tad more expensive (about $10 each), but it was worth it. The guide was informative and very considerate. Whenever one of us leaned out to take photos, he would stop rowing so we could get a better shot of the undisturbed, crystalline waters. The water looked amazing, with a bottom of sand or vegetation. He pointed out where you could see bubbles from springs rising up from the sandy bottom, percolating like a sandy cauldron, though the water was icy cold. It was a nice relaxing row through the marsh-like vegetation. We saw ducks and other waterfowl paddling through the water. At times, the tableau beneath the water looked like a jigsaw puzzle, with a bewildering variety of shades of green and russet brownish-red, all accented here and there by the reflection of the gorgeous sunshine off the surface.

You can hire a boat to row you through the creek and admire the beautiful natural setting and the waters

The monastery of St. Naum is a big tourist destination for this area of North Macedonia. There is a long row of souvenir stalls and cafes extending about a hundred yards back towards the parking lot. We browsed through the offerings, but didn't find much we were really interested in. A small market had the coldest soft drinks we'd found yet in the country, though. Most of the "refrigerated" cases of drinks we'd encountered so far barely chill it above room temperature. A cold drink was a savored blessing! We returned to the parking lot and stopped in our tracks. It seemed the whole world had arrived since our vehicle was the first car to park there! The lot seemed nearly full with automobiles and tour buses, though I imagine during the summer and high tourist season it is even more packed.

The monastery is ringed by mountains and Lake Ohrid - a spectacular setting for monks to contemplate God

We drove a short way back towards Ohrid to our next stop, the floating museum, aka The Bay of Bones. This is a reconstructed version of a paleolithic village that archeologists discovered decades ago. The tiny village was built on a wooden platform about 20 yards offshore on top of log pilings driven deep into the lake bottom. The village is even mentioned in the writings of Herodotus, the famous Greek historian and "Father of History." Through study of the excavations on the lake bottom, underwater archeologists were able to determine quite a bit about how the Stone Age people lived in this village built just off-shore. The best guess is that this site was for defense, but we really can't be certain. The parking lot for the Bay of Bones is high above the village, and we took a few scenic pictures as we descended towards the reconstructed village.

The Bay of Bones - a reconstructed Stone Age village that was built onto the surface of the lake

We walked across the bridge leading out to the village and immediately began exploring the various homes. Most were rectangular, but a couple were round, with seating all around the edges. It looked like they'd been constructed to appear to be places for meetings or gatherings. There were only a small handful of other visitors, so it was nice to pace around and imagine what it would have been like to live in this type of settlement. I joked that it was nice to experience this in the peace and quiet without our three busloads of teenagers. Jenny glared at me and said something about jinxing us. Sure enough, moments later, more than a hundred high school kids clomped across the bridge and began taking selfies as they explored the site. Jenny and I fled the village like it was on fire, and climbed the pathway which led up to what was supposed to be a Roman site.

“Scuba Archeologists” have excavated the lake bottom and learned much about what life would have been like in this village on the lake’s surface

The descriptions I read said the hilltop site had remains of a Roman Auxiliary fort. The walls had been partially reconstructed, and you could actually walk along their wide top to follow the outline of the fortifications. Roman auxiliaries were units of non-citizens recruited from the people they had conquered. They were organized and armed similarly to the legionaries (which were citizens). Upon completion of service in the Auxiliaries, a soldier was granted Roman citizenship -- a valuable thing. Otherwise, the soldiers were very similar to Rome's famous legionaries, and typically constructed fortifications wherever they were based. There were no signs or exhibits at the site -- just a sprawling outline of a stone walled perimeter on a hilltop beneath a bright sun. The view around the lake was stunning, and I could see why this spot was chosen.

The partially reconstructed remains of a Roman Auxiliary fort atop a hill overlooking the Bay of Bones

Once we were done exploring the fortifications, we returned to the village, whose ghostly defenders had apparently repelled the invasion of high school kids. We resumed our own wanderings among the wood and reed buildings, and then retired to the visitors center to check out the tiny museum. It housed some actual relics that archeologists had recovered from the lake bottom when excavating. I thought it was very interesting that qualified scuba divers could actually sign up to visit the ruins of the Stone Age village under water. I have to admit, I had yet to see scuba archeological tours before, though the idea makes perfect sense. It was an interesting site.

Although no one will likely visit Macedonia just for the Bay of Bones, it was an interesting sight well worth the visit

We returned to Ohrid and queried the excellent and very helpful staff at our hotel, Villa Dea, about our plans for tomorrow's day trip. They confirmed for us that one of our possible destinations is really only practical in high season. However, they helped us plot out on a map our route to see the other things we'd planned. We finished off the day with a sunset boat ride on Lake Ohrid. It was nice to see the town and surrounding mountains from the water, though as the sun went down, it became quite chilly. We toughed it out as long as we could on the upper deck before finally retiring below as it began to get dark. Once again, our day had been a beautiful mix of great scenery and interesting history. I was struck by the sheer number of sights that had relics from Prehistory through Ancient Time and up to the Middle Ages. People have lived in Macedonia for a long, long time. I was beginning to understand why!

We capped off the day with a few beers onSunset Cruise on Lake Ohrid

Another look at the preserved medieval frescoes on the walls of St. Ohrid

I loved the way the sunbeams pierced the dim interior of the church

Most photographed church in Ohrid, North Macedonia - Church of St. Jovan Kaneo

“North Macedonia…? Where is that?” My friends who asked may be familiar with historical Macedonia and Alexander the Great. What’s this north thing, though? Well, I would explain, there’s a bit of irony in the answer. Back in Alexander the Great’s time (we are talking about the same area, by the way), the Greeks did not really accept his people as true Greeks. They were semi-barbarians, speaking an uncouth, badly-accented form of Greek. And when Alexander’s father, Philip II, conquered most of their city-states, that only made it worse.

Rugged mountainous terrain inhabitanted by the Macedonians in Ancient times, and now North Macedonia

In modern times, though, the Greeks feel completely different. They want to claim as their own the world’s greatest conqueror (in some folks view), and his subsequent spreading of Greek culture and ideas around the world. He’s a Greek, they will argue. So, when Yugoslavia began to split up and form new countries, the Greeks would be damned before they saw some upstart province of Slavs claim that name! The compromise (after a time being called, literally “The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”) was to add “North” to their country name. I may catch some grief from Greeks, but any that truly study their history know the Greeks were very particular about who was Greek and who wasn’t. The others were barbarians. Heck, they invented that word for people who couldn’t speak Greek, and sounded like sheep bleating when they talked, “Baa…baa.” Baa-barians!

Beautiful Old Town on a hillside above Lake Ohrid, North Macedonia

Anyway, my journey to Alexander the Great’s, semi-sheep sounding homeland was prompted by my love of History and the description of its gorgeous, mountainous setting on the Balkan Peninsula, north of Greece and east of Albania. And - of course - by the fact that I hadn’t been there, yet! North Macedonia would be country #104 for me. We landed in the capital of Skopje, home to nearly a third of the small country’s people and a city of half a million or so. From there, we rented a car and drove west to the UNESCO World Heritage town of Ohrid. It is a picturesque town perched on the shores of beautiful Lake Ohrid, which it shares with Albania. There is a LOT of history in Ohrid…well, really in all of North Macedonia. It is particularly known for its medieval churches and monasteries, their interiors painted with fading, but stunning frescoes by medieval artists. There are so many churches in Ohrid that the saying goes there is a different one for every day of the year.

Ohrid stretches along the lakeshore and its crystal clear blue waters

I did visit a number of churches in Ohrid, but not 365! We arrived as the sun was beginning to sink in a gorgeous blue sky towards the snowcapped mountains of Albania on the lake’s western shore. Our hotel room at Villa Dea had large windows revealing an amazing view of the lake’s crystal blue waters. We even had a tiny, breezy balcony which I immediately took advantage of before unpacking to snap my first of many, many photographs of it. The road in front of our hotel was a lakefront boulevard with a wide, brick promenade along the shore. Families walked along it, people were out exercising their dogs, and boats motored along its shore. A short distance away, the terra cotta roofs of the old town rose up onto a small hillside, which was crowned by medieval fortifications. It was hard not to be smitten with love at first sight with beautiful, beguiling Ohrid!

Statues of the Byzantine missionaries, St. Cyril and Methodius, who created the alphabet for the Slavic language

We didn’t have enough daylight hours left to begin our sightseeing, but couldn’t resist a stroll along the lakeshore. The breeze had worked up the waves enough so that they slapped against the promenade, sending splashes high into the air and causing nearby children to shriek. I even saw a few perturbed ducks waddle away from the edge of the promenade, shaking their beaks at the unexpected shower. The colors of Ohrid deepened as evening arrived, with a swathe of orange sherbet along the horizon as the sun sank beneath the mountains. Being from mostly flat Ohio, the sight of snowcapped peaks is always a thrill. I would see many mountains crowned with snow on this trip. The green of spring had yet to fully arrive lower down on the slopes, so the rest of their color was more of an olive blur, with bare limbs of trees mingling with the darker green of pines.

Sunset on the Lake Ohrid coastline silhouettes a medieval monastery

Our real sightseeing began the next morning. Our goal was to explore the Old Town of Ohrid and its historic sites. We started where we’d left off the day before, in the harbor. North Macedonia is big on statues (particularly in Skopje, we would find out towards the end of the trip). Here were three tall statues in a park area. One was of Cyril and Methodius, two Christian scholars from the Byzantine Empire who were sent as missionaries to preach to the Slavs who had settled in much of the Balkans. Together, they took the Slavic language and created an alphabet for it that would become Cyrillic, which is still used in much of Eastern Europe and Russia, today. Another statue was of St. Naum, whose monastery we would visit tomorrow. The third one was of St. Clement, the patron saint of Ohrid. The fourth I never really understood. It was of an athletic, naked man (ancient Olympic athlete?) holding up a cross.

Tiny Church of St. Nikola Bolnicki near the entrance of the Old Town

I had found a walking tour online of Old Town Ohrid and we followed it, step by step. We traced its course and read its commentary and up down the cobbled streets. Remember the 365 churches - one for each day of the year? It should comes as no surprise that our first stop was a pair of tiny churches, St. Bogorodica Bolnicki and St. Nikola Bolnicki. Unfortunately, the first was locked and apparently undergoing renovation. I was disappointed because it was supposed to have nice, medieval frescoes on its walls. We peeked through the windows and could see barely see them. Jenny had the idea to use her iPhone to getter a better view. We discovered that you could move the camera lens to a point where it would see through the metal screen and even snap images of the frescoes. I had experienced the iPhone “seeing” something better than the naked eye, before. Besides using it to zoom in and see something very tiny better, it also works well in dimly lit museums, and even in picking out an aurora borealis in the sky. The IPhone’s built-in, image enhancement seems to bring out the colors more than your eye can see. The same seemed to be happening here.

Colorful medieval frescoes on the walls of the interior of St. Nikola

Thankfully, the second of the Bolnicki churches was open. In fact, no one was present at the cashier window. We saw no signs restricting photography, so merrily captured images of the gorgeous frescoes that seemed to cover every inch of the wall and ceiling. Ever since a visit years ago to Cyprus, which had stunning medieval frescoes on its monastery walls and ceilings, I have always felt a certain thrill in seeing the inspired work of medieval monks and artists. When the woman who was supposed to be manning the cashier window showed up, we happily paid the entrance fee of 150 Macedonian dinars ($3). As I went to take a last photo, she said those dreaded words, “No photo.”

Colorul icons attached to the Iconostasis in the Orthodox Church of St. Nikola

Interestingly, only about half of the churches or monasteries displayed signs prohibiting photos, while many did not. Now, I realize that among hundreds, thousands, or millions of tourists visiting a site, there are always doofus’s who don’t know how to turn the flash off on their phone or camera. So, to protect the colors of ancient paintings or other works of art from that harmful flash of light, many museums or churches prohibit photography. Heck, some doubtless prohibit it to try to sell more books of photos in their gift shop! “Here, buy this book where we do the thing we’re telling you NOT to do”…ha,ha! However, I am fairly confident that I am not a doofus. In fact, I DO no how to turn off my iPhone’s flash - it is how I always keep my camera. So, I tend to base my following of those rules off how closely they are watching me. In other words, if I can take a surreptitious image with my iPhone, I tend to do so. Judge me as you choose, but I know I am not harming these great works of art. And if my photos and words about these amazing places encourages more people to come and admire them, well then I feel I have had a net positive effect. I am bringing more to appreciate their beauty than actually doing damage.

Expecting simply a refurbished late Medieval home, the Robecvi was a pleasant surprise

The next stop was the biggest surprise of the day. We stopped by Robecvi House, which has been partially refurnished as it was when it was occupied by two wealthy merchant brothers and their families during the later Middle Ages. The house was divided with one family on one side and the other opposite. A couple rooms were shared, like the top meeting room. I have been to restored houses and ethnographic museums, before. They are usually not my thing. Looking at old furniture and clothes gets, well, old for me after awhile! However, this was both house and general museum, with all kinds of categories of items and artifacts. There were 6th century bronze helmets, weapons, coins from a range of Macedonian rulers and Roman emperors, tombstones, jewelry, and more. Floor after floor of amazing, cool relics of the past. The family also had an amazing view from its upper story windows looking out over the town, lake, and mountains beyond. I was so glad Jenny had this on her list - it was easily an hour well-spent!

Stunning bronze helmet from the 6th century BC, part of the Robecvi collection

Next, it was on to the Church of St. Sophia in the middle of Old Town Ohrid. Once again, admission was incredibly inexpensive. During the day, we remarked that in France or Italy, attractions of this quality would typically cost $20! We were paying about $3 each for entry, and could use out credit card or cash. In fact, very few places in North Macedonia didn’t take credit card! I think I ran into more sites that wouldn’t take credit cards in Germany a couple years ago than Macedonia! St. Sophia was the largest of the churches, and also the only one in Ohrid that had a person selling their services as a guide. We declined his 20 Euro fee and used my walking guide for information. I wasn’t crazy about his approach or attitude. Plus, with him hanging around, it would likely mean no photos. I enjoyed having most of these sites to ourselves! We encountered very few other tourists in our wandering that day. The walls and ceilings were covered in medieval frescoes here, as well. The church was much more restored than many of the others. However, I didn’t understand why they had the apse (curved end) of the church unnterior blocked off with decorative panels. There were gaps between the panels, though, and we used the same trick we had at the first, closed church to view the frescoes and apse, itself. Nothing really looked much different in the closed off section, except one of the frescoes had semi-naked men depicted. It was possibly depicting a scene of Hell and damnation and maybe that offended more conservative people in the congregation?

St. Sophia church in the interior of Old Town, one of the larger ones on Ohrid

It was getting warmer and the sun continued to light up the town with beautiful views and dazzle us with blue skies. Next, we climbed around inside the Ancient Theater - first built by the Macedonians, then renovated by the Romans. It was obvious the town still holds performances there, what with the reconstructed stage and covering over it. We were near the upper gate at this time, so stopped by a small market and had a cold beverage and snack to refortify ourselves. Next, we checked out the gate and headed to - you guessed it - another church! I loved their Byzantine style brickwork, and the frescoes never failed to impress. This church had an Icon Gallery next to it, which was well-labeled in English and Macedonian (like most sights, so far). We passed through the upper part of town next, enjoying the decorations of the tiny homes. We were headed towards the Fort of Tsar Samuel, but missed our way and passed through the early Christian ruins of Plaošnik, first. There hasn’t been a lot of reconstruction on this area yet, so I felt it wasn’t as interesting as the rest of the Old Town.

Stunning medieval frescoes painted on the walls of St. Sophia’s interior by medieval monks and artists

The ruined castle atop the hill, though, couldn’t fail to impress. What’s not to like? A medieval hilltop fort, with a stunning view over the terra cotta roofs, church domes, blue waters of the lake, and distant snow-capped mountains beyond? Some of the expansion of these fortifications, which had been in use since before the Age of the Greeks, were done when Macedonia were ruled by the medieval Bulgarian Empire under Tsar Samuel. All the various conquerors - and there were many who overran the Balkan Peninsula - left their mark on the fortifications. You can walk along most of the walls and climb into the towers, enjoying the gorgeous views. There aren’t reconstructed buildings or museum exhibits, though. Just the joy of a grown up “little kid” exploring a ruined fort!

Tsar Samuel’s Fortress overlooking Ohrid’s old town has been in used since very ancient times

As the sun sank towards the Albanian mountains, we trudged tiredly to our final stop. The most photographed church in all North Macedonia - or so the story says. St. Jovan of Kaneo is perched on a spur of rocks all but hanging over Lake Ohrid. It is beautiful when looking down on it from above, with the blue waters spread out beneath it and the mountains beyond. It is also beautiful when seen from the water, hugging a point of reddish rocks, with the waves lapping against them. It is famous for its setting. Honestly, I felt it probably had the least impressive interior, but most impressive exterior, when you include its natural setting. It had been a long day, and it was less than a half hour before the church would close when we arrived. My feet could feel the thousands of cobblestones and rocky surfaces I had walked across for the last 7-8 hours. We finished the day with dinner in a cafe along the lakeside, basking in the sun and memories of the gorgeous sights and interesting things we had seen on our first full day in Ohrid, North Macedonia.

Looking down from the walls on the terra cotta roofs and church domes of OldTown

If anyone has questions or comments about sights I saw while in North Macedonia, or about traveling there, feel free to reach out to me by email at:
[email protected]

A final look at lovely St. Jovan of Kaneo church along the beautiful coastline of Lake Ohrid

Taking pictures at Red Rocks on the north coast of the Caribbean island of Dominica

Our next day in Dominica was about as low key as I do on vacation, it seems. Typically, I have a full day planned and try to squeeze in as much as I can in the time I am somewhere. However, the island’s constant rain was having a negative effect. Dominica’s challenging roads were not helping, either. We looked at the weather forecast ahead of time and picked a snorkeling “tour” to Champagne Reef for our next-to-last day of sightseeing.

Snorkeling at Champagne Reef is like swimming through a glass of champagne, with bubbles rising up all around you

Champagne Reef is only about a half hour away from where we were staying, south along the coastal road. We had driven that way when we went to Soufrière Bay a couple days ago. However, the reef where we would meet the tour company is not all the way down to Scotts Head. We hadn’t brought any snorkeling equipment with us to Dominica, not sure we were going to do it after the amazing experience in Galapagos. I figured that anything would pale before that experience.

A short video clip shot with my GoPro underwater camera of me paddling into Champagne Reef

It was raining all morning, and also when we arrived at the reef. Essentially, there is a wider section for parking alongside the coast road and you take some concrete stairs down to the shore. We found the company, and when it was time to go out in the water, they gave us a snorkeling mask and fins, and an airline-style life vest with no flotation at all. I think it is more for visibility than anything, so they can easily spot everyone in their group. Luckily, our group was just the two of us!

A close up of one of the geothermal vents on Champagne Reef that I shot with my GoPro

The beach is a rocky/pebble beach, which made entering the water difficult with fins, but we managed. Our guide led us past an area with lots of yellow tube coral, sea grass, and occasional fish. After that, we headed to the “bubbles.” Geothermal vents cause dozens of strings of bubbles to rise to the surface in this area, like you’re swimming through a glass of champagne (thus, the name). Just before we paddled there, the sun broke through for about the only time that day. So, we timed it perfectly!

Another snorkeler dives down to get closer to the vents

Swimming through the various streams of bubbles, you feel the water get slightly warmer. It was really cool to see the various columns of bubbles, swaying back and forth in the current. They reflected in the sunlight and flowed around you as you paddled over them. It is not a big area, which makes me glad we hired a guide. Later, when we got out, we heard from snorkelers who never found the bubble area. Jenny is a huge fan of all things bubbles, so I am sure it was even cooler of an experience for her. Once we’d finished imbibing in Champagne Reef, our guide led us back towards where we’d started. Along the way, he pointed out a smaller sea turtle. Nothing like the massive ones we saw in Galapagos right next to us, but it is always cool to see “Flippy the Sea Turtle,” wherever we go.

Our first stop on our final day of sightseeing in Dominica was at the Kalinago cultural center

And honestly, that was about it for that day. We went back, showered, and fought with our GoPro cameras to upload and go through the footage we’d taken. Tomorrow would be our last day of sightseeing in Dominica, and I was hoping for better weather! And so it was! We woke up to the sun rising over the green hills, and it would stay out for most of the day. We were driving to the Atlantic coast and then up and around the northern tip of the island. Once again, the roads were challenging getting to our first destination, the Kalinago cultural center. The Kalinago, formerly known as the Carib Indians, have a reserve in Dominica they administer — much like our native American tribal lands in America.

A reconstructed traditional dug out canoe used throughout history by the Carib/Kalinago Indians

We timed it to arrive exactly when it opened, and were successful at that. As hoped, we were the first (and only) visitors when we arrived. Two cruise ships were docked on the island that day, and we hoped to avoid the throngs as much as possible. We met Kenrick, a middle aged Kalinago man, who would be our guide and show us around the center. After reading the displays and placards in the interpretive center, we joined him for a walk around the center. A number of replicas of traditional Kalinago buildings are constructed there. It is also located on a dramatic cover, with the waves of the Atlantic Ocean crashing against rocky shores.

The Kalinago Reserve is located on a beautiful and idyllic spot on the Atlantic coastline

We asked a lot of questions, and it was interesting to hear Kenrick discuss the challenges faced by his people in adapting to modern society. He said most Kalinago have adapted to a modern cash economy and don’t practice subsistence agriculture, hunting, or fishing (how the tribe traditionally made its living). So, fishermen now sell their catch. Farmers sell their crops in markets then use the cash to buy what they need. Others have joined the island’s economy by getting jobs employed as policemen, drivers, tour guides, etc. I asked if they are having a problem with the young leaving the reserve and the residents of the area “aging,” like in many rural areas across the world. He admitted that was the case. Young and old both want to have ‘things” — internet, nicer homes, cars, etc. People who build their homes in the area tend to use modern materials, and will have concrete homes like in other parts of the island. It was a fascinating time listening to him talk about his people and how they’re adapting.

One of the scenic stops we made on our drive along the northern coast of Dominica

Next, we rejoined the main road and circled around the scenic shoreline to the northern part of Dominica. We stopped at a couple places to take photos, as the sun continued to stay out, almost as if it knew this was its last chance to impress us since we were leaving the next day. Our next stop was the Pointe Baptiste Chocolate Factory. We found it, having switched from our Apple Maps app to Google Maps, as it seemed to cover Dominica better. We were given a quick, 20-minute tour of the factory. They walked us through the stages of making chocolate, from pointing out the bulbous cacao beans growing on the trees, to harvesting and removing the separate seeds or beans inside, drying them, and then the technical, machine-aided steps in the air-conditioned inside of the small factory building.

Cacao beans drying before processing into chocolate at the Pointe Baptiste Chocolate Factory

The best part of any chocolate tour is, of course, tasting! They let us try a piece of as many of the dozen or so varieties they had for sale. We ended up buying four large bars, including mint chocolate and 60% dark chocolate. Jenny often gets together with friends for a “chocolate” eventing, so she would have a chance to share some of Dominica with them.

Red Rock Cuisine is the best place to park to explore the scenic Red Rocks area of Dominica

From there, it was a quick drive down the street to Red Rock Cuisine. This restaurant and bar is the best place to park your car to visit the scenic Red Rocks area of Dominica. We once again timed it perfectly, arriving as we were hungry for lunch (even after our chocolate appetizers!). The restaurant is an outdoor one with a very “Tiki bar” type of vibe. We enjoyed lunch, then hiked through their gate and down the short path to Red Rocks. Part of the “red” is actually the reddish clay colored dirt, but there is no question the rocky point is very scenic. You get an amazing view of two wide bays, one nearly uninhabited and the other a gentle arc of the village of Calabishie. Towering rocks overlook the ocean’s surf as it sends wave after wave to crash into the shore.

Panoramic video that I took of the coastline and views at Red Rock, Dominica

Growing up in landlocked Ohio, I’ve always enjoyed the panorama of a rocky shoreline. The sun shone brightly, but the ocean breeze meant it wasn’t too hot. We took dozens of photos, zooming in on where the waves crashed or panning back to get the sweep of the shoreline. I switched between my Nikon camera with its two different lenses, iPhone, and GoPro camera for super-wide angles. There was only one other couple enjoying the scenery, so once again, we had it to ourselves (or almost). It was great to inhale the salty air, feel the sun on my face, and enjoy the wide sea vistas. I wasn’t 100% sure what to expect from the descriptions I’d read of Red Rocks, but I’m glad we stopped. It is not a hiking area, so to speak, but rather an extended scenic viewpoint.

You views of two separate bays, including this one of the Calabishie beach and town front

When we were finally sated on sky, sun, and sea, we hiked back to the restaurant and began the drive back to our hotel. We continued around the northern part of the island to come down the west (Caribbean coast). In our eight days of driving around Dominica, we agreed the western coastal road is in the best shape of all of them on the island. We would have to drive back to the airport the next day, up and over the interior hills, so why not celebrate the sunshine with the closest thing Dominica has to an easy drive?

Close up of the Atlantic surf crashing onto the rocks at Red Rocks, Dominica

With the drive finished, our exploration of the “nature island” of the Caribbean was done. Was it everything we’d hoped for? Honestly, I felt the the unseasonable almost constant rain had marred the hiking experience. The roads, which we knew would be a challenge, were probably more so than we expected. The capital Roseau was a disappointment, too. There was a dearth of places to eat or drink, which for an island that sees so many cruise ship passengers disgorging on a daily basis, was a surprise. All in all, I would say Dominica needs some time to level up its infrastructure for tourists more. If you’re not stopping as a one-day cruise port of call, eight days is too much. I would do fewer, find a hotel that matches your expectations, and book daily tours from there. Doing without the hassle of driving on the roads might improve your experience. Not that we had a bad time, by any means. I would simply say it was less than my expectations upon reading about it. But hey! We saw quite a bit of Country #104, and I was glad we went!

Dominica is not the Caribbean island of white sand beaches - most are black volcanic sand

The “Nature Island” of the Caribbean is not your typical sun and sand destination

The view from atop gorgeous Scotts Head looking back towards the mainland in the south of Dominica

The rain has been giving us fits when it comes to making plans here in Dominica. Today, we wanted to try a “Moderate” hike, according to the All Trails app we’ve been using. However, it was supposed to be raining till about noon. With all the unseasonable rain they’ve had over the last couple weeks (according to locals we’ve talked with), the trails are muddy and slippery enough. Throwing in fresh rain on top of its substantial “base” seemed like a foolish idea. So, instead we started the day off with a drive to the southern tip of the island. It is a point called Scotts Head joined to the main part of the island by a thin causeway. There is an easy hike to a colonial gun battery platform overlooking Soufrière Bay that we could climb. Plus, it is supposed to be a beautiful area.

The remnants of the British cannon battery atop Scotts Head is an easy and panoramas hike

The drive down was its usual Dominica pain in the you-know-what, with at least two wrong turns we can blame on our thoroughly confused Apple Maps app. It thinks hairpin bends in the road are left or right turns, then completely forgets to tell us which way to go when the road forks. I complain, but I can’t imagine trying to drive here without some kind of GPS. it is not always obvious what is a continuation of the main road and what is a side street or even a drive way! Still, we made it to Scotts Head where it was actually a beautiful, sunny day. We immediately set out for one of the easiest hikes we’d do on the island. The way is paved with concrete and stone - not for the convenience of hikers, I imagine. Rather it is for trucks servicing the cellphone tower on the steep green hill at the end of the causeway. I took some photos on the way up, but the best ones were from the stone platform and cannon still in place at the battery’s location. There was a gorgeous, amazing view of Soufrière Bay. You can see all the way to Roseau, which you can tell not by its greater collection of houses. Instead, you know it is the capital by the colossal bulk of not one, but TWO cruise ships in port today. They really are huge!

Cloaked in greenery and surmounted by a cell phone tower, Scotts Head is a lovely southern tip of the island

We enjoyed the view and brisk breeze atop Scotts Head for awhile, taking photos at our leisure. Just as we were about to pack up, we heard the crunch of tires on gravel. Not one, but two minibuses full of cruise ship passengers were disgorged. We surrendered the position, just like the British did when the French retook the island from them during the Seven Years War in the 1750s. We took our time walking back downhill, enjoying the view and deciding what else to do. First, we walked a few steps to one side of the causeway to take pictures of the waves crashing on the rocks. That side was the Atlantic Ocean. Walk a dozen steps or so, and you’re staring down at the calmer sheltered bay, which is part of the Caribbean Sea. We saw a pathway leading along the shore of Scotts Head towards the point, so followed it. We saw three snorkelers enjoying the calm water and peaceful solitude. As you walked further, the rocky and pebbly shore actually turned into a small sandy beach. It did indeed seem like a perfect secluded spot to snorkel. Except, I don’t like seclusion when I snorkel. I much prefer more targets in the water for the sharks, er I mean the companionship of other snorkelers…haha! Those who know me understand that I am so scared of sharks that I refuse to go in the water by myself. Give me a splashing boisterous crowd of snorkelers to scare off the sharks. Or give me at least ONE other person, so I have a 50/50 shot of it chomping the other person instead of me!

A sheltered and isolated cove frequented by snorkelers in the shadow of Scotts Head

Walking back towards tiny, idyllic Soufrière, we stop to chat with a young man who had a table full of souvenirs set up in the shade. He asked us if we were going to snorkel and we explained we hadn’t brought our gear. He said he could rent it to us, and waved us over to show us his cell phone photos of the octopi and eagle rays he’d photographed in that tiny cove. He was nice, polite, but very enthusiastic. He said we’d regret not snorkeling there as it is the best place in Dominica for it. I took his WhatsApp number and told him we’d contact him if we decided to return. We said goodbye and continued our walk along the rocky shore towards Soufrière. Colorful fishing boats were in the bay, making a nice contrast with the blue water. Across the bay, the town’s equally bright and colorful houses stood out brightly against the green-clad hills rising sharply above the town. This is also the start of the Waitukubuli Hiking Trail which runs from the southern tip of Dominica to its northern point, near where we hiked at Fort Shirley. If you wanted to hike the whole trail, which runs the length of the island, it would only take you two weeks!

The colorful boats and homes simply add to the beauty of Soufrière Bay

Speaking of hiking, the beautiful sunshine and lack of rain encouraged us to head back and try our first real difficult (sorry, “Moderate”) hike on the island. It was one of the major reasons we had chosen to come to Dominica. So, it was about time to get some boots on the muddy trails and see how we measured up! Middleham Falls is only about 20 minutes from our hotel. It is another “there and back” linear trail, just under 2 miles long. According to All Trails, you gain 626 feet in your climbing up and down the slopes, which should take about an hour to an hour and a half. The first snag was finding the trailhead. Apparently, that has recently been moved, but those doing so neglected to inform our Maps app. We passed a supposed turnoff and it politely kept asking us to turn around and “Proceed to the route.” There was a LOT of construction going on, and we quickly figured out they are building a resort at the trailhead. A resort for Hobbits, apparently. I’m serious! The rounded buildings for tourists are covered in vegetation, except for the doors and windows, looking for all the world like unfinished Hobbit holes. When we saw some workers and asked where Middleham Falls was, they waved us on - keep going. Our GPS continued to plead for us to “Proceed to the route!” We shut it off, and eventually found what was obviously the trailhead, with a shelter and very hiker-looking people changing footwear.

Local fishermen chat on the concrete pier and enjoy the sunny day

I questioned some of them and they said they had made it to the Falls at the end, but said the trail was very muddy and slippery. They cautioned there was some scrambling over wet boulders at the end. One couple had a guide, but the other said they had not. They said the trail was very easy to follow. So, we set off, hiking poles in hand and daypacks shouldered. We had also heard you had to ford a stream or two, which we encountered immediately upon setting out. It was only ankle deep, and we were wearing hiking sandals, so no problem! Once across the stream, we began climbing. For most of the trail’s length, timbers with crosshatched grooves had been planted in the ground, especially along the steeper portions. Sometimes there were actual stairs, other times tree roots substituted for the wood planks. The trail was indeed easy to follow. The hiking poles were a godsend. Otherwise, I am sure my feet would have slipped out from under me at some point - like on the hike near Fort Shirley.

“…In a hole in the ground in Dominica, there lived a Hobbit…” Strange new resort under construction at the falls’ trailhead

We stopped for a few breaks to catch our breath, but proceeded steadily onward. It was when we were nearing the end of — when we could actually hear the rushing water of the falls themselves — that we ran into trouble. We encountered a pool surrounded and submerged with boulders. We couldn’t see where the trail continued once we crossed the pool. Had we made a wrong turn? There was a set of stairs maybe 20 yards behind us that we had just descended. I retraced our steps and saw no missed turn. I pulled out my All Trails app, which supposedly tracks your location to keep you on the path. It showed that we had veered off. I crossed the pool to the other side and rechecked. I still wasn’t on the trail anymore according to its electronic eye. Looking around, all I saw was more boulders to scramble over. It would be a guess, at best, which way to go.

A view of a section of the trail to Middleham Falls - note the cross-hatched logs

Filling the pool was a little waterfall dropping down from about 20-30 feet above us. The app showed us so close! In the end, we decided to call it quits and hike back. We had seen “Littleham Falls,” I quipped. We were both disappointed in ourselves that we failed to make it to the end. We had navigated the slippery trails and slopes successfully. So, we should take heart in that. It was the uncertainty and the lack of clear direction that ultimately caused us to lose confidence in our way. This also happened to us with All Trails in Colombia. We had downloaded the maps so that we didn’t need a cell signal to follow the map. Yet we had still been steered wrong both that time and this time. Perhaps we need to break down and hire guides on anything other than simple trails? We would talk about it that night and decide to give ourselves one more chance on a loop trail that circled a large fresh water lake. If that hike failed, maybe it was time to drop down from Moderate hikes to only Easy ones?

A small set of falls before Middleham that I dubbed “Littleham”

The omens were not good the next morning at breakfast. We were waited on immediately after we sat down, but a half hour later still did not have our food or juice. Eventually, we had to remind them. Slow service is par for the course in Dominica - you are on “island time.” After finally getting our breakfast and eating, we drove to the Freshwater Lake trailhead. The last couple miles were on an incredibly narrow road - the smallest we had encountered so far. We honestly had no idea what we would do if we met a car coming the other direction. About half the time, there is a tire swallowing ditch at the edge of the road. Pull too far over and you have wrecked your rental car! It was raining the entire way there, too. When we pulled into the visitors center, there was only one other car in the lot. It was another rental car, so very likely other hikers. We parked and listened to the rain beat down on the windows. Did we really want to hike a steep, muddy trail in pouring down rain? We decided to wait awhile. After about 10-15 minutes, the rain slowed to a light drizzle.

On a rainy morning, mist shrouds the edges of Freshwater Lake

A deep mist hung over the lake and the surrounding bowl of hills. Apparently, the lake is a caldera of an old volcano. Trees and vegetation clung to every inch of the slopes. The wet wind whipped us relentlessly as we changed into our hiking shoes, put on our rain coats and got ready. I started up the All Trails app and crossed my fingers. Luckily, the loop we were taking started and ended on a road for a very short distance. Once we reached the dead end of Freshwater Lake Road, we crossed a bridge and immediately began climbing. The trail had the same cross-hatched logs laid out for about three quarters of its length. In some places, they had rotted away to mush. In others, they were firm. Periodically, they would disappear entirely into a muddy brown soup. We knew our hiking boots would get muddy, but you don’t want the liability of an inch thick coating of muck around them to make it even more slippery! Every 10 minutes or so, I would double check the app. It showed our path that we were taking was straight down the middle of the route indicated on its map. So far, so good!

Log sections serve as steps on an ascent in the early portion of the trail

The path ascended in stages as it began to circle the lake, which was shaped like an “h”. We got few glimpses of the mist-shrouded water in the early stages of the hike. That was just as well, as the clouds hung close all around us and covered the slopes between us and the water in great irregular bands of light gray. When we had ascended about halfway, approximately 500 feet, we caught our first real glimpse of the lake. The clouds were beginning to clear a little. From time to time, it was like a gray curtain was drawn aside and we would hurriedly take photos. Going up was tiring, but by finding a firm place to plant the hiking pole and pushing off with it, I could take the steps no matter how high and made for ogres or giants they seemed. I was covered in sweat as we neared the top of our climb and the wind began to whip at us fiercely. Finally, at just over a half a mile into the hike, we had reached the top. From this point, we would begin to descend.

A”moderate” (at best) hiker, aka me, begins to descend a portion of the Freshwater Lake Trail

if going up was tiring, coming down was extremely challenging. The mud of the trail was thick and slippery. Often, you could see not a secure log to place your foot or plant your pole. Rocks were even more slick and treacherous. Luckily, in many places, there were ropes strung between thick wooden posts for you to grab onto. When I came to the “ogre steps” going down, though, sometimes my legs simply weren’t long enough. More than once, I wrapped both hands around the rope and slid down as slowly as I could till my feet could touch the ground. If the way up had seemed steep, the path down seemed at times to be almost vertical! A slip could easily result in a broken bone. Oh, and neither of our phones showed any cell service. This is FUN, right?? I persevered, though, taking my time to carefully consider where I planted each foot or my pole. A lot was riding on this hike. Not only could a fall be dangerous, even more importantly, this would determine if I was “Moderate” or “Easy!”

On a sunny day, this would be a stunning view - mist shrouding the distant hilltops and valleys as we hike along the caldera rim

As we were sweating our way through the hike, the clouds cleared up a little. The drizzle had stopped long ago, and more and more often, the view would clear enough to take photographs. Sometimes, we peered into the mist cloaking the hills rising in the distance, along with the deep, green valleys, and declare this hike would be absolutely gorgeous on a sunny day! The last third of the roughly two mile hike was relatively flat. Once again, we pondered how to cross pools of mud and water without losing our boots to the sucking mud. The real exertion was done, though. As we rounded the top of the “h”, we were able to take more and more pictures. Pretty soon, we were walking on solid asphalt road. We had made it! No asterisks! With this success I felt officially Moderate…haha! Honestly, thinking back on yesterday’s failure, we handled everything that Middleham threw at us until the boulder and pool scrambling. Perhaps that part that defeated us was actually “Hard” (All Trails most difficult classification)?

The view cleared up considerably towards the end of the hike - we could see all of the lake!

Either way, I was glad we did this hike in Dominica. It gave me my confidence back. There’s no denying it, I am getting older. To many people, 62 is old — plain and simple. Sure, there are probably 70 and 80-year-old mountain goats of hikers out there who make me look like a jelly doughnut. I am okay with that. As long as I remain in better than average or even good shape for men my age, I am happy. I will be satisfied knowing that I can do a Moderate hike and not come home in a cast. As we drove back to the hotel, muddy and happy, the sun actually came out, By the time we were close to our hotel, the skies were sunny and blue. It had turned out to be a moderately nice day in Dominica.

A scenic view along our drive back to our hotel - Dominica in sunlight (a not so common occurrence)

The view of Dominica’s gorgeous coastline from our whale watching cruise

I was super-excited when our third day dawned bright and clear. It was our whale watching tour day, and I was hoping the third time would be a charm for me. Twice before, I had taken boat tours to see whales and twice been disappointed. I felt the weather was a good omen. The tour wasn’t until the afternoon, though, so we had decided to fill the early part of the day with sightseeing in Roseau, the capital and biggest town on the island.

The view from atop Morne Bruce of Roseau spread out beneath us

I have a mantra when I travel about scenic views. If the place I’m visiting has a hill overlooking the city known for its views, or if there is a church tower stretching to the heavens, I am flexible about scheduling what day to visit it. The first sunny day I usually seize the opportunity and make a beeline to that place. So, with today being sunny, our first stop was driving to the top of Morne Bruce and its scenic overlook. The town of 25,000 was spread out in an arc along the Caribbean. The bright blue sea had a few boats clustered near the shore, but today’s floating hotel of a cruise ship must have been docked further away, on the outskirts to the north. Buildings seemed clustered together tightly, white and pastel colors jostling one another for the highest rooftops. The soccer stadium and botanical gardens were patches of green stretching to the base of Morne Bruce, the hilltop where we stood. There were less than a dozen other tourists taking pictures and admiring the view.

A huge and ancient banyan tree deploys its multitude of roots over the course of the years in the Botanical Gardens

After we had taken all the photos we wanted, we drove the twisting road back downhill. Our first task was to find a parking spot (always a challenge in Roseau with its narrow streets), hopefully near the ferry port where our whale watching tour would pick us up at 1pm. We scored a spot a minute or two walk away. Where to next? We decided on walking to the Botanical Gardens, which I had read some good review of during my research. Unfortunately, it was a long, hot walk away through Roseau’s streets. There is no visitors center, no placards, or walking guide to help you navigate and identify the best sights. However, it was hopping with tour groups from the cruise ship. Each had their own guide leading a couple dozen tourists of all ages and many nationalities. They were stopping at the same spots and giving their several minutes spiel about each tree or plant…in English. Hey…! Yep, we did that thing tour guides probably hate and bounced along the edges of several different groups, listening in on their description. We saw the baobab tree that had flattened a school bus way back during Hurricane David in 1979, and is still alive and growing. We listened in as the guides described the “Tarzan Tree” (an ancient banyan tree with dense clusters of roots that had dropped down in an ever-widening circle). And we walked inside the clusters of bamboo, marveling at how dense and thick its vegetation is (as the guides described helpfully recited facts about the wood).

The monument to Dominica’s escaped slaves and their war for freedom from the European planters

Next, we made our way into town, checking out various sights along the way. The Neg Mawon Emancipation Monument is dedicated to the escaped slaves who waged war as Maroons against the English and French plantation owners. A heroically proportioned slave stands proudly in the middle of an intersection with his chains broken, signaling an attack by blowing on a seashell conch horn. Continuing on, we found all of the more interesting churches were undergoing renovation after the devastation of Hurricane Maria in 2017. So, we couldn’t visit them. We took an indoor break from the heat and visited the Dominica Museum. This small museum is located in a thick-walled, colonial era building. It traces the geology, history, and culture of Dominica’s people, from the earliest aboriginal inhabitants to the African slaves, mixed ancestry Creoles, and European planters. We were the only visitors at the time, so it was nice to take our time and learn more details about this interesting island.

Our small tour boat and passengers and crew ready to hunt whales…the giant sperm whales…!

It was still hot out, so we ducked into an ice cream shop to cool off and have a snack and refreshing drink. It was about time to head to the ferry port to meet our tour. This was done fairly easily, and the six of us who had signed were soon listening to the captain and guide explain to us how they would attempt to find on of the twenty or so pods of sperm whales that stay year-round in Dominica’s waters. We would first head two miles out to sea, then they would deploy a listening device to hear the clicks the giant cetaceans communicate with. Another boat with a different group would head out and do the same thing several miles away. Each would call the other if they had contact. If nothing, we would move north along Dominica’s coast and try again. And again. I hazarded a question: Had the morning tour seen whales? Everything we read estimated our chances of spotting sperm whales as 75-90%. My heart sank when the captain shook his head no.

No whales were sighted, but we did see this pelican hanging out!

I had brought along a hoodie and rain coat, expecting the wind as we buzzed along in the boat to be cold. I even wore a long sleeve wicking shirt and long pants. I definitely over dressed! It wasn’t chilly at all (or at least I didn’t feel cold), but it wasn’t very comfortable either. The small boat bounced along the waves at high speed, throwing up spray regularly. Guess who was sitting in the front of the boat with the wind in his face? Eventually, we stopped, and the crew deployed their listening gear. I deployed my camera with its 300mm telephoto lens. We waited, enjoying the sunshine and being on the water. Bad news, though. No clicks. They reeled everything in and we set off for what seemed like easily a half hour bouncing across the choppy water. Eventually, we reached the desired location, stopped, and watched the crew hopefully. About 10-15 minutes later, it was no dice, or no clicking again. We set off again bouncing across the waves.

Bright and colorful homes dot the slopes all along the island’s coastline

The crew had encouraged us at the start to stay vigilant and look for signs of whales (or other sea mammals). So, the whole time we were racing along, I was being a good little lookout and keeping my eyes peeled. My neck was sore from craning around to scan the surface of the water. My hands were soar from gripping the wet railing. It was definitely not comfortable Caribbean cruising on a sunny day! When our third stop turned up empty, we headed back, albeit more slowly. I think the crew felt sorry for us, so we motored close to the shore so we could enjoy Dominica’s beautiful coastal scenery. Although it wasn’t sperm whales, the villages and communities along the green, rugged coastline are stunning. I flipped my camera to the motorized “sport” setting, where a push of the button fires off a burst of shots. Intended to catch athletes in motion, I figured it would also work for a moving boat. At each scenic view, I snapped shots. The captain noticed, and began slowing down when I was taking pictures. Soon, most of the passengers were getting in on the act. The captain turned our voyage back into a scenic coastline tour. I love taking pictures of beautiful scenery, so this made up a bit for my disappointment at not seeing any sea life - no dolphins…nothing!

Rocky sections alternate with jungle clad slopes all shining in the afternoon sun

We finished off the day with pizza and beer at a “dive bar” - a waterfront snack bar attached to a very expensive hotel frequented by scuba divers. It didn’t help they were excitedly talking about all the fish they’d seen on their day of diving! The pizza was good, though, and after we finished we drove back to the hotel as darkness fell. We got a small taste of why travelers are warned not to drive at night on Dominica! The next morning, though, we were back in the car headed to the far northwest part of the island. We started off by visiting Fort Shirley, a stone fort on a hilltop overlooking the tiny seaside town of Portsmouth. It was built by the British in 1765 when they controlled the island. Half of its 32 cannons or mortars are still in place. The battery walls had a wonderful view of the harbor below and the surrounding countryside. It had been raining off and on all morning, and for a change, the sun came out while we walked around the fort.

Built in the 1700s, English Fort Shirley guarded the harbor from French invaders or pirates

Next, we fired up our All Trails hiking app and took the Bluff Point Gun Battery hike. It was a relatively short hike even further up the wooded hill looming over the fort. The way up was fairly steep at times, and either the rain swept through again or the wind dropped previous raindrops from the leaves onto us. There was one viewpoint about halfway up, with a nice view of the Atlantic coastline. Then, it was back under the trees for the final bit of this nearly two mile hike. The path was easy to follow, but fairly muddy and slick. Eventually, we made it to the top and were rewarded by a stone platform with another cannon guarding the view. We marveled at the men who had to drag this hunk of iron on wheels up the wet, rocky slopes. We enjoyed the sweeping views of the ocean, and caught our breath, and savored the breeze. This was a “there and back” hike, so we began trudging carefully downhill. Apparently, I wasn’t too careful, though. At one point, my footing slipped and I fell forward. I landed on my knees and palms. Unfortunately, in a case of awful placement my mouth smacked into one of the larger rocks on the trail. I was okay, essentially just having been punched in the mouth by Dominica. My knees got some minor scrapes, but my palms were just muddy. Needless to say, I was even more careful the rest of the way down!

View from out hiking trail that climbed the forested hill overlook the fort

Next up was an Indian River boat tour. We booked a local fisherman to paddle us along Dominica’s deepest river about 30-40 minutes through the marshlands and forest. Aza pointed out the local plant and animal life. A half dozen times or more a rain shower would pass over us. It really rains a LOT here in Dominica! Still, we saw a green iguana in a tree overhanging the river. There was a blue heron, white crabs, and more. The surface of the river was still, and the only sounds were of Ana’s commentary or his oars dipping into the milky green water. As we rounded turns, we wound our way further back into a green tunnel - green vegetation beside and above, and green water below.

View from our rowboat along the Indian River

One of the sights we stopped by was the “Witch’s Hut,” a small wooden cabin built for one of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. A lot of the scenes were filmed on Dominica, and various places around the island have connections to the movie. The structure is slowly crumbling, so there is no getting off the boat to explore it. The setting is perfect, though, and you can see why the film crews chose it for its creepy jungle vibe. Aza pointed out as we left the marshlands and crossed into rain forest. Sometimes, the overhead branches hung so low we had to duck to pass beneath. He gave us a little History, too, how the Carib Indians (referred to as Kalinago now), used this river to trade with the Europeans. He also pointed out the sad, concrete remains of a railroad bridge pier. The British established a teak plantation upriver, only to have it fail and be abandoned. Our final stop was a little wooden tiki bar and garden of various local plants. We enjoyed a drink, watched another rain shower pass through, and took some photos of the blossoms in the garden.

The Witch’s Hut from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies

Finally, it was time to head back. The paddle back with the current took a lot less time, of course. We asked Aza the most times in a day he did the trip up and back, and he said about six times. He agreed that the increased cruise ship traffic was good for his business. Still, in our entire hour and a half on the Indian River, we saw only three other boats with tourists. The river is fairly narrow, so there probably is a limit to the amount of tours that can be going at once before it spoils the quiet and solitude. I enjoyed the experience, though I would have liked it more without the constant rain! Of course, I could probably say that about the four days so far in Dominica! There is always tomorrow, and the hope it dawns clear and sunny…

Last look at the Indian River scenery

Trafalgar Falls and its two waterfalls, Poppa and Momma

The theme so far on this trip to my 104th country, the Caribbean island nation of Dominica, is water. Water falling from hills as waterfalls, water collecting as pools in the jungle, and of course, rain from the skies. In fact, water in its frozen form almost scuttled our trip here. Columbus would receive at least five inches of snow on the Tuesday morning of our departure. The flight from Columbus to Miami would arrive hours too late to make our connection to Dominica. However, we had outsmarted Old Man Winter’s way too early arrival and flew out Monday evening instead. An airline friend helped us out and we arrived as planned, Tuesday afternoon.

The left hand waterfall, nicknamed Poppa by the locals

Our next adventure was on the roads in our rental car. The airport is about an hour and a half away by road from the biggest town, Roseau. Our research told us that Dominica’s roads were awful. Not only do they switchback their way through jungle-clad hills on this very mountainous island, they are also narrow and in a poor state of repair. We actually went back and forth about whether to even rent a car (never my first choice when abroad). In the end, it seemed most travelers not on a guided tour chose to rent cars, so we decided to take the risk. Our Apple Maps app guided us adequately from the airport to our hotel 10 minutes outside the capital, Roseau. We arrived as the sun was setting, which would be our goal all week long. The advice to travelers driving in Dominica is simple and straightforward: Don’t drive at night!

Supposedly, a trail starts here at the base of the falls and leads to hot pools - we chose not to risk getting lost in the rainy jungle

Dominica is on “Atlantic Time” - I have to be honest, I didn’t know that existed! So, the sun rises at 6:15 or so and sets by 5:30. To take full advantage of our daylight, we would have to be up and moving early. And so it was on our first actual day of sightseeing. We wanted to beat the cruise ship passengers to our first stop, Trafalgar Falls. It was about 45 twisting and turning minutes away in our car, and we took off for there immediately after breakfast. Sure enough, we appeared to be the first car in the parking lot empty of all but the worker’s cars. It is a 15-minute hike up rocky stairs and paths to the Falls. We arrived and immediately celebrated having the site to ourselves. Trafalgar Falls is a twin cascade with one set slightly larger than the other. Of course, the bigger one is nicknamed Poppa and the smaller Momma. The two falls are separated about 50 yards from each other by a jungle-clad peak. It’s an impressive sight, and we took pictures of first one, then the other, and finally switching to wide angle to get both waterfalls in the image.

One of the best parts about Trafalgar Falls is we had it all to ourselves!

There is a short set of stairs you can climb down to where the water from Poppa rushes by. So, of course, I did. However, there is also supposed to be a hike nearby to a set of hot springs pools you can soak in and watch the falls. We didn’t see any trail, and it was supposed to be risky when it is is raining. You have to clamber over slippery boulders and brave the risk of a rainfall-induced flash flood. Not having a guide, path, or other hikers to follow, we decided to skip it rather than blunder around on the rocks in the jungle in the rain. Just as we turned to go, the first group of about 15 or so arrived - very likely from the cruise ship in port, today. Unfortunately, there will be at least one ship docked on Dominica all nine days we are here. We had dodged any crowds at our first site. Would our luck continue to hold? Our fortune had been dodgy on the weather, as it had sprinkled rain the entire morning, so far.

The incredibly well-maintained path leading to the Emerald Pool

Although our next stop, the Emerald Pool, isn’t that far from Trafalgar as the parrot flies, it was more than an hour away on Dominica’s stress-inducing roads. I mentioned they were narrow. That doesn’t deter huge trucks from plying their switchbacks, each collecting their own columns of cars behind them waiting impatiently for the rare straight sections to pass. Oh, I forgot to mention the road construction. Frequently, one side of the asphalt has crumbled away and sometimes collapsed and sunk completely. When that happens, the road crews put up fences and disinterestedly signal traffic in each direction when it is clear to zip through the one lane wide section. So yeah, stressful! We arrived safely at the Emerald Pool, though, which is actually a UNESCO World Heritage site. There were more cars in the parking lot, but it was by no means crowded. We immediately began the forest walk to the pool on what is likely the best maintained path on the island. I won’t compare it to the roads - honest!

This little guy was also enjoying the well-maintained trail to the Emerald Pool

Much to my surprise, Dominica has colorful land crabs. They were scuttling sideways on the path, likely appreciating the smooth surfaces like us. When we came to the first scenic overlook of Emerald Pool, we saw quite the crowd below us in and around the water. We shrugged our shoulders, took some photos of the view, and continued on our way down. The pool itself seemed quite small to have such a lofty title of UNESCO site. A small waterfall fills the pool, which does appear green with all the lush vegetation surrounding it. There are moss-encrusted rocks all around the pool like squat bathing attendants waiting to hand you a towel. Vines hang down from projecting trees overhanging the pool. It is a very idyllic spot, which was marred only by the two dozen or so folks floating in the water or exiting it to towel off and re-dress. They were leaving, though. As we waited, the numbers around the pool dwindled until it was only an older French couple taking pictures of themselves and relaxing.

Our first view of the Emerald Pool from an overlook: “Oh, no! People!!”

I had my bathing suit on under my pants, so when I finished taking photos, I headed down to a small cave-like area beside the pool. I finished taking off my hiking boots and socks, and when I was ready to get in, I looked around and noticed we had the Emerald Pool to ourselves. Everyone else had gone! The water was shockingly cold. I guess that it would have felt a lot better on a typical, muggy 80+ degree day. However, with the drizzle and gray skies today, it had felt relatively cool. I floated or waded around the pool for a while. I got somewhat used to the chilly water, but it was still a bit uncomfortable. After about 10 minutes, I gave up and returned to the cave to dry off. I switched from my hiking shoes to my hiking sandals. Since we were still alone at the site, I changed out of my swimming trunks into my dry clothes. Why not? Surely the birds, tiny lizards, and land crabs wouldn’t be offended!

The Emerald Pool -perhaps a little small for a UNESCO World Heritage site?

it took maybe 20 minutes to complete the rest of the loop trail. There were two more scenic overlooks. One was of green hills across a river valley. Mist rose here and there across the valley and into the hilltops opposite us. The other looked out into the distance where you could barely see the Atlantic Ocean. We saw a few more sideways scuttling crabs and a bird or two, but little other wildlife. When we arrived back at the visitor center we checked out the small room with displays and information about the geography, wildlife, and history of the island. I was interested in the section on the Maroon Wars during the 1700s and 1800s. Jamaica had Maroon Wars, too, so I was interested to read about Dominica’s. Maroon refers to escaped slaves hiding out in the jungles and hills - not the color! When we finished with the displays, we decided to grab lunch at the snack bar. While waiting for our food, a staccato roar began pounding on the tin roof of the open air shelter. It was pouring! We had timed our Emerald Pool visit perfectly, after all. We couldn’t imagine trying to visit the pool in that downpour, which actually just got stronger and stronger.

Although small, the Emerald Pool is an idyllic spot that you might expect to see sylvan elves bathing in

We had to wait about 20 minutes for the rain to stop. Heck, we were also glad we weren’t driving when the rainstorm hit. There are few places to pull off the road and wait it out. And drivers in Dominica are rather impatient. And in a hurry. And don’t always take curves carefully. So, when the rain stopped, we crossed our fingers and drove back to Roseau. We stopped at a supermarket for some water and found an ATM for some local currency. After completing both those tasks in the light rain, we headed back to our hotel for the night. We hung up our wet clothes, had dinner, and hoped for less water falling from the sky tomorrow. We had a whale watching tour scheduled (more water!) and would like a clear day for that!

The loop trail for the pool also took in some great views of mist rising from the jungle

Our home for a week - the 14-passenger catamaran, Nemo II

A trip to the Galapagos Islands is a classic “bucket list” item. And true to form, I had been wanting to go for decades. Each time I looked at the prices of the cruises, though, I was scared off. Too much! However, I am retired, now. Once you’re retired, it’s time to start planning those bucket list destinations before you, well — kick the bucket…ha, ha!

The best-known bird in the Galapagos Islands — the Blue-footed Booby

Both Jenny and I did our research ahead of time. We read lots of traveler blogs and websites talking about Galapagos cruises. Based on other people’s ratings, we assembled a list of island stops we really wanted to make. Then we went searching for cruises that hit as many of those as possible. Of course, the first thing you need to do when selecting a Galapagos cruise is decide on how big of a ship or boat you want to go on. Bigger ones will likely have more creature comforts and more space, but you’ll be traveling with bigger groups of people. The last thing I wanted to do is spend lots of money on a weeklong cruise and then struggle to see what the guide or naturalist is talking about because you’re stuck behind a crowd. The smaller the group, the better, we agreed.

Our group of 11 travelers posing behind a massive Galapagos Tortoise

We actually had purchased our tickets to Ecuador far in advance. Last year, Jenny saw a roundtrip airfare from Columbus to Ecuador for $600 each — too good to pass up! When the trip was about 4-5 months away, we knew it was time to make decisions on the cruise. In the end, we chose a small catamaran with a maximum passenger size of 14 folks. We ended up with only 11 on our cruise, so we got our wish for a small group. We’re glad we chose Nemo II (the name of our boat). Our fellow passengers, the naturalist, and the crew were all wonderful! Never once in the entire week did we feel we had to fight to see something, or that we were traveling in too big of a crowd. In fact, our guide/naturalist would make last-minute adjustments every day to avoid other groups. She also felt that too many people could spoil the Galapagos experience.

Santiago Island in the Galapagos

I went back and forth deciding how I would write my entry about my experiences in the Galapagos. There was no way I could do a typical, blow-by-blow, account of each day. We simply did too much and saw too much to expect any reader to stay with me till the end. It would also be difficult to keep everything straight. As unfair as it may seem, I decided to restrict myself to a single blog entry about the entire cruise. So, how would I organize my tale? It is probably best to start with where we went. We allowed the cruise company to book our flights from Quito and back. We felt that if they were in charge of making the arrangements, they would making sure the boat didn’t sail without us! Otherwise, you never know! In fact, all 11 passengers were on the same flight as us, so there was no way it could leave without us!

My favorite animal from the Galapagos, the sea lion - the cutie-patootie puppies of the wildlife there

We flew into Baltra, a former U.S. military base during World War II. You could see the foundations of many of the base buildings as we were bused from the tiny airport to the “canal,” as they called it, where the Nemo II would be waiting. Although we didn’t see a lot of animal life on Baltra, we were greeted by a land iguana as we walked from our plane to the terminal. We also saw one of Darwin’s famous finches while standing in line for the bus. Good omens for creatures we would see over the next week! We took the first of our many rides on the inflatable rubber dinghy out to the catamaran itself and met our guide, Elizabeth, and the crew. After a welcome beverage — a tradition the crew would keep up after every excursion — we met our naturalist. She talked about what we would see and encouraged us to change into swimming trunks for our first trip to Bachas Beach.

The first animal to greet us after we arrived, the land iguana

Named after the barges used by the American troops during WW II, we went for a short hike there and then relaxed in the warm, sheltered waters of the bay. Oh wait — I wasn’t going to give you a blow by blow, right? Okay, here we go. That evening, we sailed to Genovesa, where we would visit Darwin Bay and El Barranco. Darwin’s Bay was where we learned how serious our guide was about both birds, but also the sanctity of the wildlife. We were warned not to approach within 6’ (no matter how cute the baby sea lion was…!), and we were to keep the noise down. A larger group arrived about a half hour after us. Elizabeth was visibly irked by the microphone and speaker the guide was using to talk to his larger group. Sea lions and sea birds were the highlight of Darwin Bay (Red-footed Boobies, Frigate Birds, and Nazca Boobies). We would also do our first snorkeling in Rabida. We saw lots of fish, including parrotfish and angel fish. None of the “biggies,” yet — sea lions, sea turtles, marine iguanas, or penguins!

A Nazca Booby and its hatchling on Darwin’s Bay

That evening, we would sail again to Santiago for a visit to Sullivan’s Bay, and to the tiny island of Rabida. On Sullivan Bay (humorously, I thought Elizabeth was saying Suleyman’s Bay — the Ottoman sultan), we would hike its lava lunar landscape. That was interesting, but the wow factor amped up once we got into the water for snorkeling. This would be the first of several times that I was all but engulfed by a school of fish. In this case, they were absolutely beautiful Yellowtail Surgeonfish. We also snorkeled right off the beach on Rabida, and several sea lions befriended Jenny and curiously swam all around her. This was also where I had my close encounter with a shark (see the snorkeling section below).

Sea lions cleverly receive attention from visitors by camping out on pathway from the landing point

From Rabida, we would sail in the evening once again to Santa Cruz, the main island, so to speak. We would visit the highlands and see the iconic Galapagos tortoises. We would also visit the Charles Darwin Station and be given a short time in town to shop. The skin on my head was already slightly burnt from our snorkeling, so I was on the hunt for a “Buff.” Prior to the trip, I had never heard of a buff. Essentially, it is a brightly colored tube of light material you can wear in a number of ways — including as a scarf to protect my bald head! It seemed strange that we were already at the halfway point on Santa Cruz, but it was true.

The iconic Galapagos Tortoise surveying the area around him

The highlights here were the Galapagos tortoises, of course. There are several different varieties, which you can tell by the shape of their shell. On the bus ride to the highlands, we would spot them numerous times in the fields or gravel side roads, trucking along in unhurried tortoise fashion. Once we got out at the Highlands Tortoise Reserve, we saw them up close — eating, lazing in the mud, and even making baby tortoises…ha, ha! We also drove to a couple densely forested sinkholes that were gorgeous to see. Finally, we went to the Charles Darwin Research Station, a mix of a museum and a breeding ground. Elizabeth led us through that and had lots of interesting stories about the efforts of the government of Ecuador to breed tortoises and help ensure their survival.

A tortoise with the remnants of his meal still on his face

For the next stop on our tour, our captain kicked the boat into high gear and we bounced and jinked all night for our longest sailing of the trip. We were headed to long Isabela island, starting at Elizabeth Bay. There we would take a dinghy ride in a sheltered inlet bordered by thick mangroves trees lining the shores. We would see all kinds of wildlife in the protected waters, including sea lions and penguins. We also hit Urbina Bay for a nice hike that day where we would see many land iguanas and more Galapagos tortoises. Later that day, we would snorkel in the waters and swim with their cousins, the sea turtles. This was our first time seeing them on the trip and they swam so close to us it was thrilling.

A Galapagos Penguin swimming through Elizabeth Bay

Day 6 was Tagus Cove on Isabela, where we would see the scenic beauty of Isabela island. We hiked up to an overlook of a blue lagoon nestled in the interior. Both coming and going, we were greeted by a little family of sea lions, who had plopped down on the path up from the landing point. Here, we also got a chance to do some sea kayaking, as well as a dinghy ride along the rocky shores. From there, we sailed to Espinoza Point on Fernandina island, our furthest western point in the Galapagos. This is an island practically draped in marine iguanas. They huddle in huge mosh pits, resting up after their dives into waters of the Pacific where they graze on coral and seaweed. This was also one of our best snorkeling spots, where we would see penguins, sea turtles, marine iguanas, and an amazing array of fish.

A marine iguana surveys the area around him

It was another long sailing that evening as we headed back to Santiago Island, stopping at several points on its western side. We were on our last day, sated with the sights we’d seen. We had a nice hike along a black sand beach and got a chance to meet more sea lions — probably my favorite Galapagos animal. They are so curious and with their huge black eyes look and act like puppies. If it had been allowed, I would have gotten even closer to them and played with them. They have so much personality!

A Red-Footed Booby

We had one last dinghy ride the next morning before the Nemo II took us to the airport. We saw baby sharks cruising along the mangrove lined shores, blue-footed boobies crowding a rocky island, and sea turtles lazing in the waters. Our North Itinerary, as it is called in Galapagos parlance, took us to so many places where we’d see so many animals and such wonderful scenery.

A Blue-Footed Booby dives towards the water hunting for its next meal

Snorkeling

check out my playlist of 18 videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0nN6aCuHEXpdV9emJJxL3D7S5IsnixEA

Those who know me also understand that I make no bones about my fear of sharks. I’m terrified of them, so much so that I refuse to get in the ocean alone and will always make sure someone is further away from the shore from me. I know, I know — the odds! However, a shark attack needs to happen only once to put that argument to rest…ha, ha! The waters of the Galapagos is home to many kinds of sharks. I knew that, but I was determined to snorkel anyway!

A school of Yellowtail Surgeonfish swims right by me

Before leaving home, Jenny and I took a refresher snorkeling course from a local dive shop. In addition, I had acquired a full face snorkel mask. I have snorkeled many times over the years. My biggest struggle is always with the mask sealing improperly and also fogging up. A full face mask would supposedly alleviate that, as the part around your eyes is separate from the part that covers your mouth and nose. The snorkel is self-sealing, so drains any water that comes into it (making a rather loud, alarming noise, though!). The big drawback is it is harder to dive down below the surface with a full face mask. I was willing to give that up if I would not have to be constantly stressing about my mask leaking or fogging up. I wanted to be relaxed — especially if there would be sharks around! I tried it out during the snorkeling refresher course and definitely liked it more. The course also taught me other things I was unaware of, such as the proper way to paddle with fins and more.

Wow! In one minute, penguins, sea turtles, and marine iguanas!

My mask would work great in the Galapagos, once I got it adjusted correctly. The course instructor had it too loose, but once we tightened it up, it was fantastic. Another passenger on the cruise had one and she was a help, too. Snorkeling in the Galapagos is truly amazing! In addition, both Jenny and I had bought GoPro underwater video cameras. I have one short video where I see Galapagos penguins, marine iguanas, sea turtles, and numerous other fish all in a space of a minute! I think my favorite animals to see underwater were the sea turtles. They’re so graceful as they paddle themselves serenely through the water. Another amazing sight is when a giant school of colorful fish will swim all around you, like something out of a National Geographic video!

Sea Turtle swims by serenely at home in the sea

We did get extended time swimming around marine iguanas, too. You would spot them latched onto a rock very fiercely, staying put despite the current with their claws. They were chowing away at the coral and seaweed. After awhile, they would finish eating, then slowly float up to the surface, their front arms held limply in front of them. Then they would begin to swim, lashing their long tail back and forth in an almost snakelike movement. They would bob along, head just out of the water, headed for the shore to sun themselves and warm their body temperature. Being cold-blooded, they would need basking time to regulate their body temperature.

Godzilla chowing down and then floating to the surface and swimming away

So, did I see a shark? Yes, a couple times. The first was the most memorable. We had just jumped in from the dinghy, and Elizabeth told us to be on the lookout for penguins. So, I wasn’t hanging back but was actually out ahead of the group. I was swimming along when I noticed a long, dark shape resting on the floor. It was unmistakably the outline of a shark — and a relatively big one, too! I surfaced to tell the group about it, calling out, “Shark, shark” and pointing. When I got back underwater, GoPro rolling, a couple of the others swam slightly ahead of me (fine with me!). The shark must have seen us, as he started moving, did a 180 degree turn, and swam right towards us. He was about six feet below us and moving along the rocks to the left. He swam slowly, unconcernedly, to my left, with me following him with the camera all the way. My estimate was he was about six feet long, a White-tipped Reef Shark, and the others who saw it agreed.

My close encounter with a white-tipped reef shark in the Galapagos

One of the other passengers saw a hammerhead shark (I didn’t), and another saw what she described as a “very big” one (she didn’t know what kind) following our guide. Some of the others in our group were very good at spotting sea life, and all trip long people were seeing rays. It wasn’t until one of our final snorkeling sessions that I finally saw two rays — an Eagle Ray and Manta Ray. Unfortunately, I am apparently a very slow paddler. Inevitably, I would begin to fall further and further behind the group. And I have to admit, in the open sea, that was kind of scary. I’d have to stop filming and paddle steadily for a minute or so to catch up. It was on one of those times that I saw the Eagle Ray cruise out of the blue gloom of the ocean in front of me and slowly swim off into the distance. My video doesn’t show it clearly, sadly. A short time later, though, a manta ray did the same thing to my right. I was able to capture some decent footage as he flapped by me, perhaps ten yards away. It is hard to estimate by looking at the videos, as the GoPro has a “fisheye” lens (appropriate, right?), and something has to be very close to look big in your frame.

Another school of fish all but swarms me - I believe these are mullet fish

Another really cool snorkeling episode was with sea lions. We were snorkeling off the beach, and we could see several in the water as we got in. Despite being told not to approach too closely, we still swam in their direction to get video of them. In the beginning of my favorite video of them, they are just lolling in the water — almost like manatees. After about a minute, Jenny swam slightly in front of me. Suddenly, the sea lions were all very interested. They started playing and swam all around her, very curious. It was amazing to see them doing flips, blowing bubbles, and having no fear of us at all.

My buddies, the sea lions, playing with snorkelers

Birds

Our guide and several of the other passengers were HUGE birders. They would all get very excited about the birdlife that we would see, as would most of us (at least until the last day or so when many of us were “finched out”). The blue-footed booby is one of the most iconic ambassadors of the Galapagos. They are cool to watch when they are diving for fish, too. They circle above in pairs and then, like a WW II fighter plane, wing over and dive for the water. They would hit the water like a missile, then return to the surface, and chew their catch or rest. They would then do a running takeoff along the surface of the ocean, gain altitude, and begin circling for another dive. Of course, you can’t see their bright blue feet as easily then. You have to wait till they’re resting on rocks, when it seems almost fluorescent blue. Their eyes are very intense, too.

Two Blue-footed Boobies, resting on a rock and enjoying the view

In addition to Blue-footed Bobbies, we saw Red-footed and Nazca Boobies, as well. Those would make their nests on the land, so you could approach them quite closely. In fact, some would actually build their nest right on the pathway, meaning you had to get close to go around them! If you go to the Galapagos, I highly recommend you bring a camera with a good telephoto lens. It makes taking pictures of the birds that are more distant much more fun. You can zoom right in on them and admire your shots like they’re something out of a nature magazine!

A Short Eared Owl checks us out, making sure we are neither a threat or edible

As far as birds go, we also saw frigate birds, and various types of owls, hawks, herons, gulls, doves, flightless cormorants, and mockingbirds. Our naturalist Elizabeth was amazing. She could imitate the sound of the birds, and even call them to where we were. She would hear them peeping away in the trees and stop us. She’d mimic their call, and sure enough, one would come flying up to investigate who was invading their turf! Time and again, she’d stop us and point out a bird camouflaged int the trees 20-30 yards away. She converted many of us into “birders” and we all competed to get the best photographs of the different species.

A Yellow Crowned Night Heron gives me the “Hey, Bub - you looking at me?” Look

I have entire folders of pictures of Blue-footed Bobbies, Nazca Boobies, Frigate birds and others. I will spare the readers of my blog by posting only one or two my favorites of each species! The others in our group were great photographers, too. It was a regular thing, once we came in from the day’s activities, to go through our photos and show off the best ones. Everyone was very encouraging, and it was the perfect way to wind down while we were waiting on dinner.

A male Greater Frigate bird inflates his red pouch to attract females

Speaking of dinner, the crew was great and had a full spread for all three meals. We were kept fortified with calories as each meal seemed to compete to outdo the others! They even let us store beers we’d purchased on the island excursions and keep them chilled them for us to enjoy at dinner. It was an early night for most passengers, though. Jenny and I were often the last ones to go to bed. We’d check the time and see that it wasn’t even 9pm! However, we started very early most mornings, with the sunrise. The early boat gets the animals! Elizabeth ensured that all of us would rather get up early, and be the first boat to the sights rather than laze around in bed for an extra hour.

Flamingoes in Black Water Cove search for food in the muck of the lagoon floor

I was able to get to sleep easily most nights (instead of like back home). The full day’s activities in the sun were usually enough to wear me out. Our cabin was tiny — smaller than I’d expected — even though we went on the website to compare views of each cabin before purchasing the trip. However, we were seldom in there. Just to sleep, shower, or change clothes. I peeked at the other cabins when folks’ doors were open, and I would recommend Cabin #1 or #2 as the largest of the group, if you book Nemo II.

What’s a group of Marine Iguanas called? A mosh pit! Or it should be…

We met wonderful other travelers, and had a great time getting to know them and reliving our experiences together with them. We got along with Steve and Mary very well, and intend to meet up with them this Fall. All in all, the Galapagos bucket list trip was worth the expense and the decades of waiting to go. So, if these islands are on your list, too, I recommend that you don’t wait any longer and seize the chance to go soon.

A Sally Lightfoot Crab investigates a less interestingly named Galapagos Starfish

A Yellow Warbler sings his heart out for us on the Galápagos Islands

These tiny Lava Lizards were everywhere in the Galapagos

Blue-Footed Boobies zoom above the water in the beautiful Galapagos Islands

A reason to visit in itself, the big eyed sea lions and their cuteness!