Now I don’t want to be pinickety but I am going to be. Roaring river is hardly roaring. And that’s even after a few months of rain. I’d say it’s gushing laudably. The fast-paced flow spins through small bridges and mangroves, along fields and eventually down into the small colourfully-wooden-housed-village below. There was a deep green-blue hue to the water when I visited and this cooling sight along with the occasional spray were a refreshing treat as we walked up the hot forrest steps towards the caves. It was hard to resist the temptation to throw myself back down into the beckoning stream – especially as a few people were already sploshing around in the current. Nature lovers get ready – this is an idilic setting.

A garlic leaf. Identical in aroma to clove garlic:

OK, so the river didn’t roar – but the caves are definitely cavenous. Our friendly guide had spent the past decade or so taking people deep into the mouth of these rocks and he was well versed in explaining how boiling volcanic lava had met with the icy water to produce such intricate and windy passageways into the earth below. Our luck was in as on the day we arrived an almost omnipotent ray of sun streaked through the opening of the caves and onto the cave floor. I’ll say no more and let you see for yourselves:

I don’t know what it is about caves that bring out people’s imaginations, but in each of the caves I have been in I have always baffled to learn that “this 4000 year old stalactite in India looks like Ghandi” or that “These ancient granite formations in Nottingham resemble Robin Hood” and so on and so forth. It’s as if the natural beauty of geology and ‘the science bit’ that explains the uncanny creation of rocks and air pockets under the ground, from molten liquid at a temperature of 1000 degrees centigrade, isn’t enough. So I wasn’t surprised to see Bob Marley and The Lion of Judah appear like a mirage on almost every wall. Let me share the excitement with you:

I even started to get good at the apparition thing myself – and proudly pointed out this mangrove.

After a good half an hour under the earth I was kind-of missing the beating rays of the sun and the tropical heat above. On our way back we rushed up and down and even had to crouch limbo style (well, it is a national dance of Jamaica after all!) to get back through the passages we had blindly followed our guide along…and as we surfaced once more into the light we were welcomed with this rather apt shrine to the sun from the caged exit:

Enquiries and directions, call:(+1) 876-979-7987 OR 876-979-7988 for more information.
Please take note: There are lots of tour touts at the entrance. Make sure you get an official guide from the office.

The journey there:

Make sure you get your tickets & tour guide from the official complex…or bargain extremely hard! The official grounds look like this:

Waterproof camera? Check. Life-jacket? Check. Sunglasses (for looking like Miami Vice)? Check. Safety procedure. Check? Ignition key? Check. Snorkle mask, flippers and breathing tube? WHAT?! Yes, yet again, Chukka puts the icing on the cake and adds under-water excavation to what would already be a fun-and-fuel-packed half day out. Our safari team zooped and swashplooshed (soon to be in the dictionary, or on Wikipedia if nothing else) up and down it’s own white-watery-wake, burning past tropical forrest and then way out towards the horizon.

My waterproof camera (these are great – get one by clicking here) is still a little fuzzy from the aftermath of the watery foam from the swashploosh – so please forgive the slightly blurry photo-report below while you enjoy the sights and smiles – and the Miami Vice style showing-off!

After whizzing along the coast and getting the hang of the speedboats, you are taken way out to sea for the snorkling. There is a multitude of fish, shell fish and marine vegetables to be viewed during the underwater tour but unfortunately we had to miss this part of the adventure – so we could squeeze in some all terrain vehicling and horsing around! I’d love to go back to do the whole sea safari one day – and I hope to see y’all there. On a practical note, you should aim to do a maximum of two of Chukka’s tours in one day – and make it a long one so you can enjoy their Jerk burger, chicken and pork feasts for lunch and supper.

For full information on each of the Chukka Tours please visit their official website by clicking here
All local hotels, as well as Sandals, have a Chukka rep – so rest assured you won’t be able to miss-out.
Contact info:
Phone: (876) 953-5619
Fax: (876) 953-5740
Email: montegobay@chukkacaribbean.com

Make sure you come back to www.go-jamaica.com/roundjamaica to catch Jermaine’s amazing video reviews!

Text and Photography by Oliver Wright.

Now, I am allergic to horses. It might have something to do with having been kicked-across a field by a stallion at the age of four. And subsequently breaking my right arm. Or perhaps it has something to do with falling off an old nag, only to have it temporarily paralyze my left arm by standing on my funny bone when it stood up (NOT funny, I assure you). Or maybe it’s from the 14 hour trek on a wooden saddle through the mounds of Mongolia with only salted yak butter tea to drink. Which paralyzed my butt and my gut. BUT – these horses were so adorable that I forgave them for making me sneeze and itchy-scratchy and got up close to bring you their friendly faces:

After horsing around with the camera and gee-gees I sped off in an All Terrain Vehicle (see link to blog entry on the right of this page) Jermaine however, pictured below with video camera in hand, took up the challenge and went horse-riding for the first time (I spared him my off-putting tales, instead saving them for you, lucky reader!)

After he cantered up the rocky and muddy hills and galloped along the grass the horses lept refreshingly through the sea up to their waste in water. With all riders still on their backs. Jermaine will be posting video footage some-time soon. It’s crazy crazy, so make sure you keep checking back at this site to catch it. Or better still – come to Chukka yourself. I’m sure it won’t be the first and last time that Jermaine does this trek. And it looks good enough that I think one day I might just put my sneezing behind me and go too…

Price: Around $US 75
In case you were wondering: Suitable for all ages and riding skills
Visit the Chukka website to make an advanced booking: www.chukkacaribbean.com
Or call their hotline: Mobay/Negril area Tel: (876) 953-5619 Ocho Rios area Tel: (876) 972-2506

Text by Oliver Wright. Photography by Oliver Wright. Horseriding by Jermaine Evans.

‘All terrain’ doesn’t just describe the type of four wheel drive quad bikes and ‘moon-buggies’ that this trip has on offer. A 2-3 hour adventure takes you and up to a dozen friends through the mud flats, field and jungle and way up into the hills, to terrain 2000 feet above sea level (other than the blue-mountains, this is pretty high for the island). Proving spectacular views down to the coast, you see it and ride it all. On the afternoon that we went a farmer was making a huge fire in the fields – and smoke billowed and blew, forming a blue-grey belt around the horizon of jungle.

The quad bikes are pretty easy to drive and have a suitably forgiving suspension as you bounce across rocks and down surprisingly steep hillocks. They are fast too – reaching speeds of around 60km per hour – so for petrol heads and adrenaline junkies alike, this is a trip that you will like. This wasn’t the first time that I heard the words “man, just wait until we tell the people that chose to go ‘horse riding’ instead!!! (Having said that – horse riding was to come, and like most things at Chukka, is full of surpassing surprises).

Visit the official Chukka Jamaica website, where you can also make advance bookings: Click here

Chukka resorts are all over the Carribean (Belize, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos Islands). Checkout their global website

Oh, and in case you were wondering…you won’t ever go hungry at Chukka…

Text and photography by Oliver Wright

As you can see, the light flooding through the jungle, above the flooding river, is an atmospheric delight. It’s so delightful that every mosquito in Jamaica seems to have taken up root there… and it feels like they’ve been at the ‘root juice’ too (click here for blog post on ‘root juice’). Not to worry – a good mozzy repellent should do the trick and at Chukka Blue the guides were at the ready with spray if you forgot yours.

This has probably been the best of Chukka’s tours, if not the best tourist attraction, that I have experienced in Jamaica. Continuous wooping breaks the tranquil rustle of the trees and every Honeymooning American can be heard to exclaim AWESOME!!! as they fly up down through past into out-of above and below the rivers and trees. I would have to agree with them.

Safety rope smiles

Sailing through the air!

Welcome aboard the flying machine…

For more information and pricing, visit Chukka’s official website by clicking this link, RIGHT HERE FOR OCHO RIOS. Or RIGHT HERE FOR MOBAY/NEGRIL.

Text and photography and video by Oliver Wright

http://www.chukkacaribbean.com/MontegoBay/canopy.php

Today we had a whole raft of fun down The White River. OK, in truth we neither rafted nor saw a white river. Instead we ‘tubed’ down a crisp and fresh green river, running 27 miles from the dizzy heights of the mountains and into Ocho Rios. Our tubing trip took us through 3 miles of tranquil forrest and fields – organised by the ever so welcoming and friendly Chukka Cove White River experience team. It was so picturesque, words fail me – or perhaps that’s the 4 hour drive through potholes potholes potholes (hint: hire a 4WD when touring Jamaica!) from Goblin Hill taking it’s toll (note: it’s not a toll road yet but probably will be in 2008) – so I will leave the description up to my pictures to convey God’s light and do this place justice.

Spanish Bridge, where it all began and begins…

YouTube? WeTube!…

A whole raft of beauty…

Note – the river is usually white – the water is cleansed by the limestone that flanks the banks so that it’s crystal clarity provides a view straight through to the white limetsone. The recent rain has transformed it’s usual colour. It may sit at odds with the rivers name, but in my opinion this strange, voluminous, almost pre-historic colour found during November actually makes it the best time to visit. Chukka Cove is open rain and shine – so don’t let the odd shower put you off either.

I hope that you agree with me – that if this isn’t Jamaica’s most beautiful spot – it is certainly up in the rankings. Life jackets are provided and (if in case you are wondering) you really needn’t worry about a white-nuckle style white water rafting experience…. this is a joyous journey through Jamaica for all ages. And there’s a jolly jerk burger and beer bar at the end of the ride to kick your tastebuds back into the real world, after your whole body has been lulled into bliss traveling along in mother nature’s lap.

Chukka Cove is also the only resort in Jamaica to have received the green-seal of approval – for their eco-friendly kindness to the environment.

For more of Chukka’s great adventures: See the Chukka links in the category links on the right of this web page.
For further details, visit their official website: Click here for Ocho Rios. Click here for Montego Bay.
Or call their hotline: Mobay/Negril area Tel: (876) 953-5619 Ocho Rios area Tel: (876) 972-2506

Text and photography by Oliver Wright / www.digitoli.com