3 hrs, 4 kms

After a long stretch in the hot sun, I'm starting to wish there were more villages where I could take a pause here on the east side . Finally I do reach the cheerful village of Belleplaine, where I join the locals in for lunch at the local diner. That's the nice thing about the Caribbean--even in the small villages you can usually find some place that serves a cheap lunch.

I continue on the the Atlantic coast where I'll begin my hike south. Here there are some steep hills--even cliffs, contradicting the idea that "all Barbados is flat". There are sand dunes leading to the sea--but these sand dunes are completely covered with plant growth. Glad they've been left this way. I'm sure with the wind and storm these dunes would be eroded very quickly otherwise.

Then the beach. Yes! it's an actual sandy beach. I look north, I look south. I can see for miles--and there's not a person in sight! Could it be? On the most overcrowded, overtouristed country in the Americas... I get this whole beach to myself?!

Granted, it doesn't have the beautiful, calm turquoise waters, and hasn't been cleaned for a while... but it's MINE! I immediately dive in for a swim.

The Atlantic shore is known for it's dangerous rip tides, so I've got to be careful. But luckily the water doesn't get deep right away, so you can actually go out a bit far and even swim a little. I try swimming behind a large coral rock, figuring it'll protect me, but figure out that that's not a good idea--these coral rocks tend to have hidden caves under them you can get sucked into.

I head up to a palm tree and strum a couple of songs... take a nap... go for another swim. Imagining myself all alone on an uninhabited island...

A beautiful moment--especially after 2 days of wandering through urban sprawl.