Hike Fest, hosted by the Dominica Hotel and Tourism Association (DHTA), is one of the biggest events on the Tourism Awareness Month calendar. Hiking enthusiasts from across Dominica and the region set foot on some of the nature isle’s most iconic trails every Saturday in May for a unique moment surrounded by nature while enveloped in camaraderie. This year’s theme was Experience Dominica.
The first trail, dubbed Cabrits Historical Night Hike, was led by local historian Dr Lennox Honychurch. Sometime after sunset, a crowd of over 70 hikers gathered off the road at Bell Hall Estate on May 4 for what would be the first ever night hike in Dominica. The path took them from Bell Hall, to Cabrits National Park and then, finally, to Purple Turtle Beach.
“Not only did we have hikers from Dominica, but we had a large group from Martinique participating as well. The excitement was palpable; I was happy to have been part of the planning and execution of such an
extraordinary moment,” DHTA Executive Vice President, Kevin A. Francis revealed.
On May 11, nearly two dozen children and their parents, along with certified tour guides, navigated through the rain forest in Laudat to one of the most popular tourist sites – Titou Gorge. The next Saturday, more experienced hikers walked from Bellevue Chopin to Wotten Waven for the wellness hike.
And finally, on May 25, over 30 others trekked from Castle Bruce to the Kalinago Territory for the aptly named – heritage hike.
“We’re certainly happy about the turn out for this year’s hike fest. And we are excited about the buzz it created not only in Dominica but in other sister islands. We had one group from St. Kitts – Go Ventures SKN who visited nearly a week before Hike Fest because they could not wait to experience Dominica. That’s a great sign that we’re on the right path,” Francis noted.
On the last day of his stay, Vaughn Browne, head of Go Ventures SKN described Dominica as ‘a gem’ and promised his groups’ attendance at all future Dominica Hike Fests. “It might be one [or] it might be 10 of us but we will support hike fest,” he stressed.
Planning has already started for Hike Fest 2020 and the DHTA promises it will be one of the most memorable.
As an avid hiker and patronizer of hike fest, let me say that I do not believe that hike fest 2019 was successful. The caliber of hike fest has deteriorated in the past few years. This is a sentiment that has been expressed by other patrons to me as well.
The value that we used to get before is way better than what we have receive now. Even in terms of the organization, there were hikes where the trail was unclear. The hike this year that traversed through Morne Prosper is a prime example where there was a time where hikers were lost and had to be redirected. There was no coordination with the forestry division which hikers were able to identify as patrons.
Even the turnout in numbers are poor. Look at the picture for the kids hike – a kids hike should attract at least 50 persons.
DHTA needs to re-evaluate the planning of hike fest to revamp this amazing festival.