Dominica’s known as “the Nature Island” and for good reason. Lush high mountains. 365 waterfalls. Dense rain forest vegetation. The world’s second largest hot lake, after New Zealand’s Frying Pan Lake. All of this and a whole lot more in a country that’s 290 square miles.

It’s a little hard to “DIY” many of the attractions on Dominica: a guide is mandatory for many, and highly suggested for others. This isn’t a bad thing, as guides have training and licenses, but it does make it harder to explore on a limited budget. 

We’d pretty much decided that visiting Dominica and not seeing the sites wasn’t what we were cruising for, and we booked 2 full days of tours with Kish Richards, a female guide out of Portsmouth. Waterfalls, hikes, hot bubbling natural baths, black sand beaches, breathtaking rock formations . . . bring it on!

And then I dislocated my knee, the night before we sailed to Dominica. This put a major damper on big hikes and even small ones, and even though Kish found a pair of crutches I could use, we canceled the second day (the one with the big big hikes) of touring.

Still.

Even just driving around the island was a treat. Mango trees, breadfruit trees, almond trees, cacao trees. Papayas, pineapple, bananas. All growing just by the side of the road. Kish talked to us about the 13 varieties of bananas that are found on Dominica, and how they’re farmed. We careened around corners with firm beeps to warn an approaching driver. Passed political signs. And while I had to sit by the side of the trail for a couple of ventures, Jeremy and our friends Jamie and SunYoung, from Enki, saw some breathtaking sights. I did get to see some too!

Day by day my knee improved. Gotta love the cruising community. The first morning new friends (Cara and Eddie on Music) dropped off a couple of ice packs and a knee brace. Mindy and Ron on Follow Me unearthed a pair of crutches I could use on a longer term basis. Renee from Oceanaire made a point of coming by with ice each morning. And Karen and Steve on SoulShine, determined to show us one of their favorite spots on Dominica, arranged to have a friend of theirs drive us to the access point for a small waterfall and pool on the Picard River. This was on Friday, and between the brace, the crutches, and the ibuprofen regimen, my knee had started to allow for a bit more activity. We had a delightful afternoon wallowing in the cool water, drinking French rose wine and eating the snack-ish lunch we’d brought along.

Dominica details:

• Ports of Entry: Portsmouth and Roseau, both on the west side of the island.

• Currency: Eastern Caribbean dollar (EC), about 2.7 EC to 1 USD

• Language: English, with Kreyol and French also spoken

• Local beer: Kabuli

We stayed just over a week, and if my knee had been in good shape we’d definitely have done more exploring. Next time!