Active Travel

Caribbean Adventure

When it comes to adventurous pursuits in the Caribbean, the first activities most people think about are scuba diving and hiking. True, there’s nothing like standing on the summit of Gros Piton in St. Lucia or trawling around a submerged Russian war ship in Cayman Brac. But a host of other high adventures abound for those seeking vacations revolving around more than piña coladas by the pool.

There’s nothing that can spark up cocktail conversation back home than regaling listeners with the time you skippered a 12-metre racing yacht once used in America’s Cup. This happens daily in St. Maarten where groups board sleek vessels and participate in the whirlwind choreography of hi-speed sailing, including everything from manning the winches for tightening sails to flying the spinnaker on a dead run. Professional skippers shout out commands in good fun while up to five multi-million dollar yachts compete in mock races at sea, including two Stars & Stripes captained by Dennis Connor. At the end of the race, ask to skipper the sail back to dock. .

The new Wacky Rollers Adventure Park in Dominica offers a wide array of eco-tours and Survivor-like adventures. Within the park, a series of zip lines, trapezes, foot bridges and rock climbing walls are connected with a heady maze of cables and platforms for playing Tarzan and Jane above the verdant tree canopy. A separate challenge course is designed just a few feet off the ground for children as young as four years old. Groups can also climb aboard ex-military 4x4 vehicles for half- and full day “Jungafari” tours into the island’s spectacular mountain rainforests home to over 350 rivers, verdant botanical gardens, the towering Trafalgar Falls, Ti Tou Gorge and idyllic Emerald Pool for swimming. Something similar is a big hit in Aruba where participants drive their own heavy-duty convertible Land Cruisers for self-guided trips or as part of guided caravans into the rugged seaside desert.

Got teenagers? Nothing can drain the fun out of a vacation when the 15 year old spends all day playing Nintendo in the guestroom. For them, head west of San Juan, Puerto Rico to Camuy Caverns—the third largest cave system in the world and the largest with a subterranean river. A prehistoric horror movie set if there ever was one, Camuy is dark, dank and laced with a maze of tributary corridors leading to bat-filled echo chambers with no end in sight. For teens and their adventurous parents, it’s the coolest thing going in Puerto Rico, bar none. Getting in is the best part. Some local adventure outfitters escort visitors on a hike up into the jungle towards a gaping 100-foot hole carved in the side of the mountain. One by one, participants walk backwards into the hole and rappel 250 feet down a sheer cliff face to the floor of a dimly lit sub-cavern, while guides hold the belay line and supervise the entire process. Anyone in half decent shape can do this, and bring a complete change of clothes. You’re gonna get messy.

Waterworld

Punta Cana and La Romana in the Dominican Republic get all the attention, but the north coast and central mountain range is where the action is. The coastal town of Cabarete is red-lining the in-vogue meter for action seekers. Host to world championship windsurfing competitions, the bay is filled with 100 surfers and as many kiteboarders on any given day. It’s a perfect “bozo beach,” so named for the shallow surf and soft sandy bottom preferred when wiping out. Down in the mountain town of Jarabacoa, the summit of Pico Duarte is the highest peak in the Caribbean. It’s also the only place for whitewater rafting in the Antilles.

For those who want something more advanced than snorkeling, but are not ready for scuba diving, the USVI and Aruba offer two new and exciting underwater offerings. Sea Trekking is fun for kids and adults alike, where participants don space age helmets connected by long air hoses to breather tanks on the water’s surface. The face stays completely dry while trekkers walk along the sea floor about 15-20 feet down. Meanwhile, friendly staff divers are on hand to point out all the various marine life.

Along the same vein, a new hybrid of watersports is SNUBA—part snorkel, part scuba. Again, 20-foot long air hoses are connected to dive tanks placed on the water’s surface. At the other end of the hose is the same type of dive regulator mouthpiece used in traditional scuba diving. The benefits of SNUBA are being able to breathe underwater and see all the reef life without the encumbrance of diving paraphernalia.

Diver Envy

Snorkeling is sometimes considered the lonely stepchild of scuba diving, especially by scuba divers. But if you know where to look, the good old snorkel and mask is all you need.

During WWII, German subs were picking off Allied freighters loaded with Venezuelan crude. That’s why there’s a 400-foot German supply ship named Antilla sitting in less than 60 feet of water just off Malmok Reef in Aruba. Antilla’s chimney and mast are still visible above the water’s surface after 64 years, and snorkelers can swim right along the ghost ship’s eerie gunwales. Plus, the sunlight easily penetrates Aruba’s shallow cerulean waters to provide snorkelers a clear view into the depths of Antilla’s hulking carcass.

In nearby Bonaire, savvy snorkelers are keenly aware of the island’s militant marine preservation policies and shallow reefs easily accessible from shore. Of Bonaire’s 84 total dive sites, 45 are recommended for snorkeling. One called “Something Special” is a drift snorkel where it’s possible to identify as many as 80 species of fish in one trip.

Wending through the shallow waters off picturesque Trunk Bay in St. John, an underwater trail set up by the National Park Service is marked with permanent plaques describing the myriad marine life. The 225-foot long trail is inundated with angelfish, parrotfish, damselfish, sea turtles, small octopus and elkhorn coral as large as eight feet tall. Check out the cruise ship schedule in St. Thomas because Trunk Bay is a popular day excursion for passengers.

In the middle Bahamas, The Exuma Cays encompass 365 islands lined up like a delicate string of sandy pearls. The multitude of atolls is why the sea water is often mirror flat for miles, resulting in astonishing visibility for snorkeling. Check out The Exuma Land & Sea Park, a 176-mile protected marine preserve running from Shroud Cay south to Little Bell Cay. Friendly schools of grouper, snapper and itinerant lobsters will literally come directly to snorkelers. Much more fun than swimming around old Russian war ships.

Contributed by Greg Oates, See more in the Caribbean Escapes Luxury Travel Coffee Table Publication