Boiling Lake — Attraction in Saint Patrick Parish

YOU DO NOT NEED A GUIDE FOR THIS HIKE - and here’s why (with caveats).

You may be told you need a guide for the hike to Boiling Lake: to find and follow the trail, or for reasons of safety, or because it’s compulsory. None of these is valid - and with the price running at c. $75 per person even in a group, it’s worth making an informed decision.

The trail is very easy to follow. It is a single track through forest for the majority of the way, with literally no opportunity to turn off the route at all. There is a short section through the Valley of Desolation that requires you to use your eyes to follow the trail but as long as at least one of them works, you cannot get lost. That’s not to say it’s an easy trail to walk, as there are a fair few ups and downs and perhaps 60m total of potential scrambling, but it’s certainly dead easy to follow. You do not need a guide to find and follow the trail.

It is also a safe trail. There are some scare stores about distinguishing between scalding or cool streams or pools - but the hot ones have giveaways such as steaming or indeed feeling warm. If you use your common sense, and wear stout boots, you’ll be absolutely fine. It is also worth considering whether the guides could do much for your safety anyway - given none of them carry rucksacks, they clearly don’t carry medical kits, and I seriously doubt any of them are trained first aiders. You do not need a guide to be safe on this trail as long as you take your own common-sense precautions: wear boots, take wet weather gear, carry water and snacks, perhaps take a hiking pole, take a med kit, download the AllTrails map beforehand and have a look at it to plan segments and timings, let people know where you are going. If you are used to hiking in the much bigger, much more dangerous, and much more serious mountainous conditions of Europe or North America, you’ll be absolutely fine.

At the time of writing, it is absolutely not compulsory or ‘the law’ to take a guide. Nor are there plans to make it so. The guides will tell you this, but ask yourself: if it’s the law, how come the guides are unlicensed? How come the officials who check your site permits at the entrance don’t ask whether you have a guide? How come the official websites and tourist office don’t agree with them? And why would it be compulsory for this one hike but not for any others on the whole island (including the much more challenging Waitukubuli Trail)? It is not compulsory to take a guide.

All that said, you may still want to take a guide, to show you interesting things, answer questions, and explain the geology and nature to you. There is absolutely merit in this. But it should be an informed choice made for your own reasons.

That said - great hike and well-worth doing. Stunning scenery and fascinating geological points...

Here is a few things everyone should know before heading boiling lake.

Above of all you must know that it's a 10km hike and you will climb up to 800m (maybe a bit more). Though I hiked for weeks in the Manaslu National Park in Nepal and Tongariro in New Zealand, among other places in France, boiling lake is by far (for now) the hardest hike I did in my life.

A guide is recommended but not really useful as many hikers will be there when you arrive. So excepted if you're alone, I'd much recommend to be accompanied otherwise it's not necessary (and you will save some bucks).

If a guide picks you up from Roseau it should not be higher than between 75 and 80$US by person, if you're alone they might charge double (150$US). If they are charging you more, pass your way and find someone else or negotiate. 80$US can still be negotiated if you're more than 2 people. (Always negotiate prices in Dominica).

About the difficulty: beware as it's a VERY VERY difficult hike! Not made for kids at all (do not even try or think about), neither it's made for people in bad or fragile health conditions. This hike requires a lot of techniques and a lot of efforts : it's almost only climbing and stairs in the mud for 3hours on the way to go, and over 1 hour climbing on the way back still in the mud. Most people can make it in 6 hours but it can take up to 8 hours according to your pace.

Once you're aware about that, charge the battery of your camera, take a waterproof backpack (much recommended, it may rain), bring a nice picnic, wear your swimsuit, buy a juice to the ladies at the entry of the Mornes Trois Piton National Park, and be ready to be amazed by the landscape you will meet while hiking! Don't forget to take a hot bath on your way back, you will really appreciate it before climbing back !

And of course don't forget to jump into Titou gorge as a reward once you reached the parking you came from in the morning !

Last advice, you should absolutely NOT leave after 9:30am at the LATEST otherwise you may comeback by night which is very dangerous as the path is damaged and difficult. 7:00am would definitely be my best recommendation if you want to take your time and be sure to back on time or early.

Enjoy your trip, be ready to have harmful muscles the...

A friend and I were visiting Dominica for a week and as it's dubbed 'The Nature Isle' we just knew that a hike to the Boiling Lake was on the agenda. Sadly my friend got food poisoning so I had to go it alone... Upon finding Chadi's details online (@chadi.767treks on Instagram, Chadi Symes on Trip Advisor) he seemed like a good guide and I decided to book with him. BEST DECISION EVER. I arrived alone and straight away Chadi came over to me with the biggest smile on his face 'Hello! You must be Christina!' What followed was the best 6/7 hours of my whole trip. Chadi is incredibly knowledgeable and has a real passion for what he does. I remember him telling me that growing up as a teenager his peers would ridicule him over his passion for nature, but now he gets to see the smiles on peoples faces after every single one of his many treks and that this fills him with a great sense of pride.

I've travelled extensively over the years and met many different guides but none have stood out to me as much as Chadi. I actually took this particular tour some time ago now and we still keep in touch since I arrived home. Chadi's personality is so infectious and his love for what he does is so apparent. The hike was no easy feat, with steep inclines, rocky streams to cross and different terrains to navigate but Chadi made sure everyone was doing ok and kept us safe at all times. We painted our faces with berries and natural mud, boiled eggs in one of the springs en-route and took in some incredible views/stunning scenery. The whole time Chadi was relaying information about the biodiversity within the area, his knowledge was staggering.

At the end of the hike we had the chance to cool off with a dip in Titou Gorge - it was freezing at first but once in, swimming through the middle of the high cliffs felt incredible. I truly hope to be able to visit Dominica again and the first thing I'll be doing is booking another of Chadi's tours. I simply cannot...