Nevis culture is warm, friendly and welcoming.  I found it to be very refreshing.  We moored on the leeward side of the island and had a fantastic view in our front yard.

The library was easily accessible with free wifi so the kids got to spend a day doing research and school work.

We took a peaceful day trip to the Botanical gardens on the north end of the island.  We were lucky enough to meet a local who lives part time in Nevis and the US.  Skip was extremely accommodating and gave us a lift to the gardens. He also gave us some insight to the history and sites of Nevis.  The amount of work that went into the private botanical garden is amazing.  The Tai influence was apparent while the plants and fixtures represented the broader perspective.

Exotic plants from all over the world were meticulously labeled and maintained.  I had no idea there were so many different types of palm trees and orchids, or combinations of orchids growing on palms.

Hot Springs?  Of course all active volcanic areas have hot springs!  Nevis has a famous one that has been a resort area since the 1800’s with its famous hot spring baths.  Water was about 42C (108F) so you could get in but not for long 😉

While at the hot springs, we had a local who comes down to the springs every day to dip.  He even sang for us….. A little bit of Bob Marley 😉  He was pretty good too!

Of course with a view like this in our front yard, a trek up the mountain was right in line with our objectives.

After repeated warnings about hiring a local guide for the trek, we decided to trust our back country mountaineering experience to get us safely to the top and back of a single mountain.  After all, the island is only 93 square kilometers and down will always end at the sea.  If we aimed west, we would end up pretty close to Saphira Blue.

The trek to the peak is intentionally exaggerated to warn off the less physically fit trekkers.  This is good since it is truly not a hike, but rather a good solid scramble.  Tourist showing up in flip-flops will be heading home disappointed and quite possibly scratched up and humbled.  Much of the trek was 30-45° scrambles up roots and rocks in the slippery mud of the rain forest to ascend the 985 meters to the top.  There were strategically placed ropes to assist, however they looked quite aged and I certainly wasn’t going to trust my weight to them.  Mother earth provided plenty of hand and foot holds.

Of course the view at the top was spectacular!  Unfortunately Nikolas hurt his knee playing beach volleyball the day before and he and Fanny didn’t quite make the top of the challenging climb.  Christopher was the first to the top. (I remember those early teen years and the strength to weight ratio).  Katerina made it on sheer determination – She was not going to be left behind!.  It was a good solid climb for the old fart.  For anyone looking to make this trek, it is very doable if you are physically fit.  We had no problem following the trail without a local guide however if you can afford one, you may be able to get additional detail along the route and support the local economy along the way.

We did see one of the famous Nevis monkeys.  Monkeys were brought to Nevis as pets in the 1800s and some of them escaped from their owners and set up on their own.  The population of monkeys in Nevis is actually quite large.  Unfortunately we did not get the camera our fast enough!

All in, Nevis was a wonderful island although for those of us on boats, the anchorage wasn’t the greatest.  We had ferries blasting past us all hours of the day and night, making it a bit of a rolly time.  Minor price to pay for a trip to paradise.