I finally climbed Mount Scenery!

So working at a hotel, I naturally encounter lotssss of tourists. They ask me all sorts of questions about the trails and diving around here, and of course they expect me to be reasonably knowledgeable. Well, until now I’ve been very vague whenever people asked me questions about the Mt. Scenery trail…. But I finally did it! One morning I was supposed to go hiking with Nora but then she was called in to work early so she couldn’t come. I was awake, and was already in hiking clothes, so I decided to embark on my journey haha.

Mt. Scenery is a lava dome that forms the summit of Saba's stratovolcano. It's pretty cool, it is a dormant volcano, not extinct. They know this because there are still spots underwater near the island that are hot. I dove one of these sites the other day. The sulphur turns the sand a mustardy-yellow color, and when you bury your hangs in it it is actually a few degrees warmer than the rest of the water! It's really cool. I tried to take a picture of the color difference...

The Ecolodge is the closest establishment to the peak of Mt. Scenery, but it still isn’t that close. The Ecolodge sits at about 1,500ft, and the peak of Mt. Scenery is 2,855 ft – it’s the highest point in the Kingdom of the Netherlands! From the bottom of the trail in Windwardside, it is 1,064 steps. It’s supposed to take 90 minutes one way, but it only took me 45 minutes to get up, and 20 minutes to get down! I’m pretty proud of myself. But I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I hike 1/3 of the trail almost every day to check my email ;)

It’s a beautiful hike through the rain forest, dry forest, and cloud forest. Tons of really cool vegetation!

There are two peaks that you can get to. When I got up to the top, first I went to the left which is the less-traveled path. It’s not rock steps like the rest of the trail, but more like soggy logs that have been placed in the mud for people to climb on. I felt very outdoorsy while doing this, which isn’t really me haha. I had BEAUTIFUL views from this peak, no clouds blocking the sight. I took some pics and then decided to head over to the other peak.

This is the one that has a huge communication tower on it. There are two scenic views, but unfortunately just as I got to the top the clouds came over :( I sat up there listening to my ipod for about an hour waiting for the clouds to clear but they never did. One of the two scenic views on the communication tower side takes you to the highest possible point that you can get to. You have to pull yourself up this rope to get to the top, and it’s quite slippery.

Well this was my mountain climbing expedition! I don't think I'll do it again until the family gets here, just because it takes quite a toll on the legs!

Pretty sunset over the mountains :)