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lready blessed with lush flora and fauna, a great climate and beautiful beaches, Trinidad takes the paradise dynamic further, with the many waterfalls hidden across the island. From massive and powerful cliff-side giants with torrential falls, to quiet bathing pools at the mouth of a cascading stream, the attraction is not just in the falls, the journey, often hikes of varying degrees of difficulty, is part of the escape from reality. Paria remains the most popular waterfall on the island, with good reason. Starting in Blanchisseuse Village, the eight-mile hike takes you along the north coast, with spectacular views of the Caribbean Sea. As you go past Paria Bay, the undulating trail ramps up towards the falls, where the natural freshwater pool welcomes you. Finished off with a tunnel of lilies and heliconias that guide the water’s flow, this is nature’s magic at its very best. Along the same mountain range, Rincon is the giant of Trinidad’s waterfalls. Its 250-foot vertical drop creates a powerful run of water, perfect for a massage courtesy of Mother Nature after the two-hour hike. The track is easy to follow, along the river that takes the falls as its source. It’s a testing journey from Las Cuevas for inexperienced hikers but the grandeur of Rincon is worth the trek. The Jewel of Brasso signifies the best of a number of falls in the Brasso Seco area. Its crowning glory is the 70 foot drop that turns into a wide spray that’s the perfect shower for bathers in the small pool below. Getting there entails an easy journey off the E1 Brasso Road, past some of the Jewel’s lesser relations - the smaller waterfalls where you can warm up, or rather cool down, before the main event! The aptly named Angel Falls entails a hike that takes one to the heavens; an hour of uphill hiking that requires safety ropes on some sections. These falls are fed by one of Trinidad’s highest mountains, El Tucuche, and arrival at its pool, with the natural amphitheatre derived from the surrounding rocks, is ample reward for the expedition through the beautiful rainforest. If El Tucuche’s journey seems arduous, then Matura falls may make some balk at first. It’s more the journey time than the difficulty, but three hours later is a waterfall unlike any other. The shallow pool has a wide stream of clear water cascading over various colours of limestone, with the effect of a natural infinity pool. The falls are the meeting point of the Manuelot and Matura rivers in north-eastern Trinidad, and ‘enchantment’ is the best description of the feeling conjured up by such a matchless axis of a place. We conclude with an easy one: Edith Falls in Chaguaramas. The trip goes along the wide open spaces of an old cocoa estate on Trinidad’s north-western peninsula, with nary a difficult portion in sight. But bear in mind that the journey is through a rainforest and the other sights are a beauty to behold, including Howler monkeys and the local parrot pageantry. Edith is a 250foot fall, broken up into three levels, with the best bathing at the first plateau, where the waterfall meets the river bed. In the rainy season the top of the falls can be seen from miles away, gushing down to the tree line below.
Avocat Waterfall Photo: Edison Boodoosingh
Maracas Waterfall Photo: Joshua Joseph
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