Onboard the Celebrity Summit: Day 3 of Our Cruise

Have I ever mentioned that I wake up at 5:30 am every morning?  I usher my husband out the door by 6 am, then my son is out the door for school, and my own day begins.  So despite the fact that we are not observing Daylight Savings Time, my natural time clock is waking me every morning as if I were back home.  This morning I was up at 6:45 am, which would be 5:45 am back home, so technically I got to sleep in an extra 15 minutes. The view from our huge balcony in our Royal Suite onboard the Celebrity Summit was one of the most breathtaking sites I have ever seen.  Clearly this image is the volcano with lush green landscape set below beautiful low lying clouds.  Although slightly cloudy, the sky and water are so blue today that I will just ignore the clouds or thank them for whatever cover they bring me today from the sun.

Breakfast in our cabin

Once again this morning we are having our room service breakfast delivered to us and having it set up by our amazing butler, Santoso.  From the linen napkins to the floral centerpiece, this is a great step up from the tray that is usually left on the coffee table in our room. 

Beulah from Welcome Tours

After the ship cleared customs and passengers were allowed off the ship.  We made our way into the port area in St. Kitts were we easily spotted the beautiful Beulah from Welcome Tours waiting for us.  When paying cash for a tour, try to have exact change as it we found it impossible to get change so early in the morning.  Our tour today is the historical trail and rainforest hike in Nevis.  We made our payment to Beulah and she arranged every facet of our trip to make it nothing short of effortless.

We said goodbye to Beulah and we were whisked off by our cab driver to the ferry.  The line was long and wasn’t moving and after a few minutes we discovered why: No one was at the window!  The strange thing was that people were completely accepting of no one working the window and yet, no one was complaining.  Life in the Caribbean is so oddly different than my own life, but I love it.

Our cab driver gave us the money we needed to board the ferry in Eastern Caribbean dollars.  The fare was $25ECD or $21 USD one way per person.  You buy one-way tickets each time you board so don’t worry if you ask for a return ticket and can’t get one.  You’ll also need to pay a “foot tax,” which was $1ECD and you’ll receive two separate tickets.  The smaller ticket you provide before you board the ferry and the larger you hand over when you board the ferry. 

The ferry was a typical ferry boat and we decided to go upstairs to have the best view possible.  It was an amazing 45-minute ride over to Nevis with beautiful views and great weather that absolutely requires sunscreen.  I videotaped the entire ride and hope to be able to have it up soon, but as a time lapse short video. 

Alexander Hamilton’s birthplace

Upon arrival in Nevis, we were met by Al Forbes who then drove us through Charlestown.  He drove us past the birthplace of Alexander Hamilton, as seen here in this picture.  Did you know that this first United States Secretary of the Treasury was born in Nevis?  Neither did I.

Our ride took us up to our final destination, Peak Heaven.  We were greeted by the manager, Kathleen Herbert, and her mother and then Evanston took us off into the rainforest to begin our historical hike. The historic village of Rawlins is elevated 1200 ft above sea-level. The 4.9 acres, affectionately called Herbert Heights, were used by two families for agriculture for hundreds of years.  From the Peak Heaven website:

We are located on a gentle slope that descends from a cloud-clapped Nevis Peak in the historical village of Rawlins. A leisurely drive of just 25 minutes from our island’s capital of Charlestown leads you up a winding village road. And just as if you have stepped back in time, you will find yourself on Butt-Butt Road named for the grandmother of the founder of Herbert Heights. Here you will see the first evidence of what is to come. A ruins of a 17 century sugar mill points the way and the vegetation suddenly changes to a tropical jungle. Lush tress such as the Bamboo, Mango, and Palm Tress grace the well traveled dirt road.

Our guide, Evanston, at Peak Heaven

Pay close attention to your guide as you wander through the same area that was once a sugar plantation and where slaves were kept to do massive amounts of work on this mountainside.  Perched up high on the mountain, they would be able to see when pirates were approaching and they could easily grab their things and ascend up the mountain where they wouldn’t be found.  We saw the foundation of a home, where they would have brought the sugar cane up the hillside and processed it into sugar and molasses, and climbed, climbed, and climbed some more until we saw where the slaves themselves would have lived high above the plantation area.

The historical significance of this hike cannot be ignored and the people of the plantation, the Maroons, were brave people.  When they spotted pirates, would they have thought about escaping their slave owners?  No matter what, they were always looking over their shoulder trying to see who was after them.  The one thing they probably wanted most, freedom, was never within reach for them. 

There are several different paths along the mountain and your guide will take you up at your pace, be it as slow or as fast as you like.  Part of our hike was on unmarked, steep, and extremely narrow soil so I would highly recommend that you are aware of this before you start.  Evanston showed us a spot where they had wanted to put in a zipline, but the government opposed it and so they couldn’t do it.  It would have been an amazing zipline through the lush, green forest.  I do hope the government reconsiders it as it would bring more people to this area where they could come for the thrill of the zipline, but stay to learn more about the history of this island.

Now that’s a view!

We made our way back down to the center and looked out over the beautiful water and view.  In the distance was Antigua and Montserrat with St. Kitts to our right.  This view is easily one of the most beautiful I have ever witnessed in my life and I’m not just saying that.  The island of Nevis is small and has an untouched, non-commercialized feel to it that makes it one of my new favorite islands of the Caribbean. 

Near the lookout point is the Coal Pot Restaurant, where you can dine on freshly prepared food in an open air setting.  There were plenty of seats available for lunch and before our hike we had placed our lunch order so we didn’t need to wait too long to eat. 

Delicious fresh salad

My son ordered a “local organic beef burger” and my husband and I each ordered a salad.  The dressings available included a fresh made mango dressing and it was delicious.  

Homemade local ice cream

For dessert, we had our choice of mango or guava ice cream and it was so good and fresh and absolutely refreshing!  With ice cold water, a cool breeze, and stunning views from all around us, I could have stayed here indefinitely.

The manager, Kathleen Herbert, is from Leeds, England.  Her parents are both from Nevis and left in the 1960’s when there was a huge need for workers in England.  Her mother was only 18 years old and her father was 26 years old when they boarded a boat for England.  Her mother had no idea what was in store for them and the three week boat ride where they continued to pick up more and more passengers from neighboring islands was an experience.  When they arrived in England, it was cold and so different than in Nevis, but they eventually stayed 40 years.  A few years ago, Kathleen decided to move back to Nevis with her family to work at Peak Heaven.  If you want to feel like you are being welcomed into a home where you are made to feel like family after a great hike in the woods, then make your way over to Nevis.  You can contact Peak Heaven directly by using the following information: