Everyone loves St. Maarten for its beaches, restaurants and nightlife, but we might take the chains of green mountains for granted – we know we at the Health & Beauty do! That is why we have decided to take advantage of the over 20 miles of hiking trails that our island has to offer – and we’re taking our fellow adventurers along for the hike.
There are so many hiking trails on The Friendly Island, from coastal strolls to hikes in the hills, some leading to untouched beaches, others to glorious views of our and neighbouring islands. So, let’s go explore. Happy hiking!
This week’s heavenly hike takes us all the way to the northernmost reaches of the island. The Petite Cayes hike, otherwise known as Wilderness, starts at Anse Marcel and ends at the dump on the French side – or the other way around, of course, offering happy hikers gorgeous ocean views, fascinating flora and fauna and a satisfying stroll along the unspoiled Petite Cayes beach.
The hike itself is not too strenuous, though clumsy people should beware of the loose rocks. Most of the trail is fairly flat, yet there are some stretches of steep incline. Along the trail, hikers will find informative signs explaining some of the present flora.
We opted for the easier option and parked on the gravel roadway near Anse Marcel around 7:30am. The first bit took us past the chained-off gravel road to the small entrance to the trail. From here, the incline increased, and we were taken straight over the reasonable rocky terrain, passing cacti, birch trees and wildflowers, until we reached the secluded crescent-shaped beach with perfectly powdery white sand.
It took our little hiking group some two hours to get to the other car, which was parked near the dump. However, it is safe to say we took our precious time – we took plenty of pictures of the stunning views, read all the signs, picked up some trash, doubled back to help an injured hiker and even sat down on some big rocks for coffee and cookies.
According to a fellow hiker’s Apple Watch, we walked a total distance of 3 miles (5 kilometres) and climbed a total of 390 feet (119 metres). Of course, we only did the hike one-way and more avid hikers could probably walk double the distance in less than two hours. Either way, the heavenly Petite Cayes (a.k.a. Wilderness) hike is not to be missed!
