ST KITTS
St Kitts2019
18TH APRIL 2019: Climbing Mount Liamuiga
Stopping off in St Kitts during our Caribbean Cruise holiday, I took the opportunity to climb Mount Liamuigia, or Mount Misery as it used to be called!. This is a fun ‘rainforest’ trek and certainly a bit more challenging than the traditional cruise excursion
The route weaves though the trees, vines and foliage, along rough authentic trail, mixed with lots of tree roots and some boulders, rising to about 3,000 ft. This is to the rim of the crater of this dormant volcano, not the summit, which is across the crater at 3,792 ft
In terms of the hike itself, the actual ascent was about 2,300 feet (given the drive to the trailhead got to 700ft) and was about 5 miles as a round trip, taking 4 hours or so. Good (dry) weather and a pleasant temperature in the shaded forest made conditions ideal
Being in a tour group the pace was reasonably slow – not a bad thing here – with concentration needed on step selection in some of the rougher parts. I was certainly pleased to have a walking stick/pole. Ultimately the focus is on the immediate terrain, rather than seeking out the external views as is the case with many mountain climbs
Overall, a highly rewarding little trek, very different to anything I have experienced before. Memorable
