Calibishie, Dominica

We finally had a day to sleep in, so of course we were up shortly after sunrise at 6:11. We’re west of Tete Montagne (301m) and Morne Balvine (303m) so the sun doesn’t hit Portsmouth until an hour later, and almost 8am before our hotel was in the sun. It was really pleasant in the shade.

We had a leisurely breakfast, including oatmeal which was really good. We then packed up for our day’s excursion to the north east of Dominica, in and around Calibishie.

The road from Portsmouth to Calibishie cuts through the mountains and is constant blind turns and narrow roads. It’s not for inexperienced drivers, that’s for sure. It does get very scenic once the road gets back to oceanside - driving through Bense and Calibishie is really atmospheric, one of the prettiest drives I’ve done. The buildings are painted a mishmash of bright colours, with hand painted signs for grocery stores and restaurants and the like.

Our first activity for the day was a trek to Chaudiere Pool. Various blogs had described it either as a 15 min walk, or a 45 min trek, depending on how far you drove in. We chose the 45 min trek, parking where the paved road ended. We were glad we did as the dirt road is in terrible shape, I’m not sure our little RAV4 would have made it. Also I could enjoy the view atop the ridge as we walked instead of focusing on the road.

There were a few friendly goats along the way, munching on grass. It took us about 30 minutes to walk to the cutoff to Chaudiere Pool, it’s well marked.

From the cutoff it’s a somewhat steep descent down for about 10 minutes. There was vehicle parked at the bottom, probably a guided tour & local driver. It’s then about a 5 minute walk through the forest over a maintained path to Hampstead River, where the crossing on big rocks is marked with painted arrows.

At first we thought we had to cross the 2nd half of the river as well, but the pool is just 50m further upstream. It’s a nice little destination. Most people have a swim in the pool, but we were just in it for the walk and the view.

It’s not busy at all at Chaudiere Pool. We ran into less than 10 people in total, including a couple with a driver/guide who were the ones with the vehicle we’d seen at the bottom. On our way out we saw a solo traveler who had also driven all the way in.

On the walk out along the ridge, the couple and guide passed by in their vehicle. One the goats had crossed the road with their rope around their neck, blocking the road. Heather had to help herd the goat back across so the vehicle could pass. The goat gave Heather a nice friendly look after.

We made it back to our car, about 1h30 walking in total. We weren’t quite hungry yet so headed for Red Rocks. As you might guess from the name, these are rock formations in varying shades of red, eroded by the ocean and rain. There’s lots of signage but still a bit confusing to get to. It’s a 5 EC (about 2 USD) per person to enter, as the access path cuts through private property.

It’s cool to see, different from the other sights here. The red rocks contrast nicely with the blue ocean. We ran into the same couple & guide from Chaudiere Pool.

We then headed back into Calibishie for lunch. We had planned to eat at Unique Seaview which gets great reviews, but it wasn’t open for lunch :( so we went next door to Coral Reef, which has a restaurant tucked in behind their grocery store. It has great views of the ocean, and is literally right beside Unique View, which makes me wonder about their name.

Anyways it got really busy just after we ordered, including our favourite couple and guide. It’s a common itinerary so it’s not unusual to run into the same people again and again.

Our food came out very quickly, and it was excellent. The restaurant was mostly filled with locals, which was nice. Calibishie is probably the furthest you can get away from the cruise ship port, and so one of the least touristed areas in Dominica.

For dessert we drove back towards Red Rock, to visit Pointe Baptiste Chocolate Factory. The tour itself (20 EC / 10 CAD for a group) was short yet informative, and covered from cocao pods to grinding the nibs to packaging. We got multiple samples cause we were just a group of two; my favourite was the chocolate with lemon grass (it’s commonly seen growing here). We bought a bar for later.

Last on our itinerary for the day was Batibou Beach. They charged 5 USD per person to access it and we just wanted a quick view, so instead called it a day and drove back to Manicou River.

Back at the hotel, we cooled down as best we could without a/c. It was less windy today and felt warmer. The forecast called for low winds the rest of the week so good thing we were moving south to Jungle Bay for the rest of the week.

We had dinner enjoying the view one last time, and then called it a night.