Good Times Off Grenada - Bring Your Camera

Bring Your Camera

Exotic and beautiful, Grenada’s dramatic West Indies scenery includes lush tropical forests, waterfalls and beautiful beaches. Climbing, river tubing, mountain biking, surfing, sailing, diving and snorkeling, open-air dining and sight-seeing are all part of this island.

I visited Grand Etang National Park and its crater lake and rainforest hiking trails, and fed bananas to one of the monkeys. A few miles away, I also took a short hike to photograph Annandale Falls, one of the island’s most beautiful. Bring your bathing suit to take a cold freshwater swim there. Other interesting waterfalls on the island include Concord Falls, Seven Sisters and the recently discovered Victoria Falls.

Known as the Isle of Spice, Grenada’s economy features nutmeg, cloves, mace, cocoa, cinnamon, ginger and more. Visitors should check out the interesting Belmont Estate. I toured the fully functioning cocoa plantation on the north side of the island. There I learned about cocoa bean processing for making chocolate as well as the variety of spices and vegetable products they harvested and processed.

Touring St. George’s historic Fort George, the colorful and noisy market square, and Carenage, the inner harbor waterfront with its Georgian and colonial architecture offers many interesting photo opportunities; same with touring a rum distillery such as the Westerhall. A separate jaunt to the fishing village of Gouyave and a snorkeling trip to the world’s first underwater sculpture park provides subjects for images both above and beneath the water.

Small islands between Grenada and Carriacou offer uncrowded beaches with coral reefs surrounding them. In the winter and spring, over 15 species of whales may be seen in these waters.

Other Notes of Interest

Grenada

• Official Name: Grenada
• Government: Constitutional monarchy
• Capital: St. George’s
• Area: 344 square kilometers or 133 square miles, with a length of 21 miles and width of 12
• Population: 103,000
• Beaches: 45 white sand and nine black sand
• Resources: Grenada is the only spice-producing area in the Western Hemisphere.
• Weather: The island’s two distinct seasons are dry (January through May) and rainy (June through December).
• Language: English
• Religion: Mostly Roman Catholic
• Electricity: 220 volts, 50 cycles (adaptors needed)
• Currency: East Caribbean Dollar (1USD = 2.67XCD)