Negril Off The Beaten Path

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The most uncommon experience in Jamaica was the climbing of a waterfall in Ocho Rios. Almost 200 meters long, this escorted and well protected adventure is a base to several deals, many of them using pictures or film to collect a few more dollars. It's cool and fun, however.

My friend Tony Vassel takes visitors to all sorts of day trips from Negril, and my son and I went to Y's Falls with him for about $50 for the trip. You enter a kind of a park-like area and walk through the jungle until you get to the small river that flows from the falls. You walk up the path marvelling at the birds, the trees and the sparkling water next to you, jumping in if you want at certain places for a cooling off, until you get to the many falls coming down the mountain. Our guide, Rasta Tom, showed us all kinds of local flora and fauna, including something I had never seen a soap tree, where you can pull off a couple of leaves and with a little water and a little rubbing, a lather emerges which you can wash with! He picked fresh mangoes for us off the trees and pointed out other Jamaican bushes and trees by name. Please give these guides a tip, as they depend on tourists for their livelhood, and are very knowledgeable and friendly.
The drive to the falls takes about an hour from Negril.

On the way to Mayfield Falls, there is a little store run by a wonderful family who will sell you shoes and other purchases. Danette makes a wonderful Coconut cookie and will sell you a cool coconut milk drink. They have a cute bamboo house on the hill. Wonderful family, Tony and Danette are really nice and will make you feel you have been touched by the real Jamaican spirit.

Located in the mountains of Westmoreland, about an hour from Negril is Mayfield Falls. A short, scenic hike takes you to the falls where you find the river of mineral water, known for its healing properties. Mayfield Falls has 21 pools of jacuzzi-like water, underwater caves and cliff diving. There's a bar on the property if you need some rum punch to quench your thirst. Lunch is available, but call first to make sure the restaurant is open during the off-season. The trip is about 3-4 hours including your drive from Negril. Mayfield costs $15 in addition to your taxi drive, which can be expensive.

Bring water shoes if you have them. If not, you can rent some shoes for about $3 US. Also bring a towel, camera, sunscreen and sunglasses.

From what I hear is that most people who come to visit Jamaica miss Bluefields which makes this a wonderful place to visit. The beaches are beautiful here without all the hasseling we might encounter on the beaches of Negril. There is also the Peter Tosh Museum. If you are into Reggae and you love Bob Marley and the Wailers you might want to visit this place.
For more info visit my Bluefields page where I have put up more pictures and info.

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Our personal driver (OZ) has small fee compared to others and took us on tours and told us a lot of history. He has a nice clean van and has always lived in Ja. You must see the veiws fm the mountains. See a waterfall or the coffee feilds! You can uderstand his langage if you know what I mean.Just have the hotel to call him and talk to him he will come pick you up .(876-359-4184) The negril pirate on this site is who hooked us up with OZ so you can e-mail him to get a message to OZ.

Bamboo grows wild all over Jamaica, though not with the proliferation it once did. Near the Black River, between Middle Quarters and Lacovia, is a 2.5 mile stretch of the main A2 road known as Bamboo Avenue. This was planted by the owners of Holland Estate in the early 20th century to shade its sugarcane workers as they travelled between the plantation and home. Here the bamboo grows uninterrupted for several miles on both sides of the road, and for most of its length forms a pretty arch above your head as you drive through.

Previously the arch was unbroken, but the devastation caused by Hurricane Gilbert uprooted some of the bamboo and it is yet to grow back fully – although at the speed this plant grows, that shouldn’t take too long! There are a number of places along the road where you can pull over to buy a cold drink and take photos. I had to stand in the middle of the road to get this shot, so make sure you have someone with you who can watch out for traffic if you want to do the same!

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En route to the Black River we drove past some colourfully painted gates and asked Errol our driver what they were. He replied that this was the entrance to Peter Tosh’s Mausoleum. He wasn’t sure if it was open to the public but proposed that we check it out on our way back, which we duly did. This was a great call, as I really liked this peaceful spot which seems to epitomise what Jamaica is all about.

We were the only visitors. We paid our fee of US$5.00 (not sure if this is an official charge or the guy just made up a number!) and were shown into the stone mausoleum with Tosh’s tomb at its centre. This was similar to Bob Marley’s mausoleum which we had visited at Nine Mile, though unlike Marley’s, here we were allowed to take photos.

Our guide then took us for a short walk in the surrounding garden, where he indicated the various plants growing there – herbs such as basil and mint, pimento, and yes, cannabis. He pointed out the house where Tosh had been born and his mother still lives, but explained that although she sometimes welcomed guests, at that time of day (late afternoon) she would be resting.

The overall atmosphere here was very laid-back and peaceful, with the twin Jamaican influences of reggae and ganja very strong. Several local rastas were gathered outside the tomb watching a video of a concert given by one of Tosh’s sons, Andrew, and they were happy to tell us a bit about the music (as well as, inevitably, attempting to sell us a “smoke”).

Directions: The Mausoleum is in the small community of Belmont in the south west of the island – look for the white gates on the opposite side of the main road to the sea.

Peter Tosh is perhaps not as famous as Bob Marley, so for those who’ve not come across him, here’s some background info:

He was the guitarist in the original Wailers, a reggae musician and a trailblazer for the Rastafari movement. Like Marley he grew up in the infamous Trenchtown area of Kingston. After an illustrious career with the Wailers and as a solo musician, he was murdered at his home. Though robbery was officially said to be the motivation behind Tosh's death, many believe that there were ulterior motives to the killing, perhaps linked to his passionate crusade for the legalisation of cannabis. He was also a strong campaigner against South African apartheid. Check out The Talking Drum website to hear some of his music.