The green of the mangroves shines with the blue and turquoise tones of the Caribbean Sea, on Guadalupe Island, in the French Antilles. Small waves break in front of the coral reef such as a white foam ring that protects the island. They may not stop a hurricane, but at least they are supposed to keep sharks away. Inside the coral reef, the sea is a soft and peaceful water. A domesticated sea that no longer seems dangerous.
Strong clouds of rain loom over the island behind us. The SUFFERname of the Guadalupe volcano, is completely covered. Hidden among green thickness, hikers will not have it easy today. They have to make their way laboriously to the crater through muddy roads. “We are much better here in the bay,” Jean-Eudes, our captain, says the sun that is over us.
He is right. While we sail quietly through the calm waters of the coast, above it seems to rain intensely. But we don’t have much time to feel sorry for hikers, because a small island appears in front of us. It is actually too small to be an island. Maybe I should call it “sandbank with vegetation.” White sand, some green plants and turquoise water to the knees everywhere. A real little dream. Jean explains that this small island is the breeding area of a bird for very specific months. It comes here specifically to put your eggs in the sand, which is exactly the same color as the eggshell. In this way, the young are well camouflaged and protected from the predators who eat eggs. To ensure that humans do not represent a threat to eggs, it is strictly forbidden to enter the island during this period!
During the boat tour, Jean tells many funny stories. Explain how mangroves are formed and show which animals live here. Despite the jokes and fun we all have, it shows again and again how important it is for him to treat nature carefully. He insists that everyone understands how quickly this delicate balance can be altered.
Part of our boat trip takes us through the Rivière Moustique. By the way, the river is called that not because there are many mosquitoes here, but because it passes through a small town called a moustic and flows into the sea here. While initially we slide between mangroves, other plants appear soon on the shore. High trees climb our side, their roots now anchored in solid land. Now we are in the river. The coconut palm trees are inclined to the water to help their heavy fruits reach new shores. They are certainly too heavy for the wind, but taken by the waves, coconuts can really get anywhere!
When we reach an old knotty tree, Jean turns off the engine. Pause. We look expectant at the powerful site is paradisiacal. With at least ten meters high and with its numerous roots firmly clinging to the shore, it seems very impressive. After a conveniently reverent pause, when we are all nervous, Jean finally begins and tells the history of the zombie tree.
During the era of slavery, when many people brought with them their gods and religions of Africa, people believed that if they hung from the branch of a from, their soul would find the way back to Africa through the roots of the tree, where they would meet with their ancestors. In the past, the inhabitants of the Antilles believed that the Fromager was a haunted tree in which the Soucougnans They were looking for refuge. Soucougnons are a type of female vampires, half -dead ghostly creatures that want to absorb the living until they them dry. His favorite hiding place is this same tree in front of us.
Even the Native Caribbean peoples had so much respect for the kapok that were refrained from using their cotton -like fibers or their oil. Apparently, even today, many people prefer to avoid Fromaager. As a precautionary measure.
It is impossible to survive in mangrove inhospitics. However, many fugitive slaves hid among the thickets of trees that grew on water during their desperate escape. The persecutors quickly lost their trail here. But at night there seems to be a very unpleasant type of insect, much worse than mosquitoes. These little creatures bite and bite so unpleasantly that all you can do is flee. It is said that, in their despair, slaves hidden in the mangroves smeared with mud to protect themselves from the flies that bite them. When they could no longer bear it and emerged from the mangroves at night, covered from head to toe by a layer of white mud, the inhabitants of the surrounding peoples panicked. They were firmly convinced of having seen ghosts in the mangroves …
Do you really know how these mangroves are formed?
After the excursion to the stories and legends of the mangroves, we now pass to the scientific side. Actually, it is quite strange that plants can grow in salt water, landless, in extremely unfavorable conditions. Somehow they manage to take advantage of the high salinity of brackish water and filter salt. To help us understand the complicated mechanism, Monsieur Capitaine Compare the mangroves with a Britta filter. Everything clear?
The special mixture of fresh water of the river and salt water of the sea and the location protected in the coral reef make the mangroves a preferred place for the spawning of many fish. Hidden among densely branched roots, newborn offspring are quite safe from the big predatory fish. But mangroves not only protect small fish, but also us, humans. The small forests near the coast stabilize the shores. With their roots, the plants protect the coastal towns from the floods.
Unlike many plants that trust their small and light seeds to the wind, mangrove seeds grow to become long and thin arrows. They only separate from the mother tree when they are large enough to hold on the seabed and throw roots.
Now we have reached open waters and Jean has gone in search of some sea creatures. Carefully present a sea star, two different species of sea urchins and some other animals, which only gets out of the water for a very little time not to torture them.
Finally, in the coral reef, we can give ourselves a quick dip in the sea. Be very careful, please, don’t touch the coral! Just move where there is sand! It admonishes a French old man who is about to stumble with a coral covered rock. That was close.
While on the western side of Guadalupe the underwater world already suffered visibly the autumn hurricane, here in Marine cul-de-sac It is quite well protected by corals. In just one or two meters of water, a lot of small fish of colors swim just in front of my nose!
After four and a half hours of very entertaining and educational stories, Monsieur Capitaine takes us again to the first small island we saw at the beginning of our boat tour of the mangroves. Here we have another approach to say goodbye (but only one) and some tips of pleasant small restaurants. Then we return to the port. And now that the trip is over, I realize that I’m almost starving! I urgently need something to eat now!
Information about the boat tour of the mangroves:
In the small port of Sainte Rose there are numerous positions of various suppliers of this type of boat excursions. We chose Blue Lagoon because we don’t feel like drinking, but we want to learn more about nature, animals and plants. All tours have approximately the same price and the routes and schedules are also similar. So more or less it depends on which captain you like the most.
Jean-Eudes is an authentic original. By its unpronounceable name ( schohnütt? ) I simply call him Jean, or Monsieur Capitaine. With his incredibly dry humor and his charm, he entertains us so well and at the same time in such an educational way that the four hours fly.
You can book the boat ride on the mangroves directly in the port of Sainte Rose.
Blue lagoon
Fishing port
97115 you are rose
Guadalupe
The exit is at 9 am, but there is also a tour later.
Duration: 4 hours
Price: 38 euros
Web: Blue Lagoon
Tip: carry sunscreen, swimsuit and water. Nor does it happen to wear a small snack, because when we return from our tour around 2 pm, all restaurants were already closed, even the snack bar of the port.
Important: having a reasonable knowledge of French is an advantage on the island in general. Sometimes it can be difficult to use only English.
An interesting website about the “fromger” (in French): la-surder-et-le-medecin.com the kapok tree is called Ceiba Pentandra in Latin and belongs to the family of wool trees.
Did you know that more people die every year for the fall of coconuts than by shark attacks? Some interesting articles on the subject of “death by coconut”: www.zeit.de
This article and her photos was reproduced with authorization from the author.
The author loves to travel, and he believes that it is not always necessary to go very far, because even in the heart of Europe there are still small unknown places, exciting landscapes and exciting stories that expect to be discovered. After finishing his studies, Nicole moved to Spain, where he has lived near Barcelona for 23 years. As an independent author, she writes travel books, writes texts for various websites, conducts in situ research for television productions and informs about life in the Mediterranean in her travel blog www.freibeuter-reisen.org.
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