Canyon Aqua Rando – Guadeloupe

Joyce Belfort

8 years ago

Canyoning is basically a adrenaline junkie hike where you swim, jump and slide on waterfalls+++ I’d like to share that I’m a ‘chicken’ and scared of height. However, my mother in law advised that even 60+ can do it. Okay, I’m in!

We got pretty lucky, we’re the only ones for the tour for that day. So it was like we paid for a group tour but got a private one 😀 Met up with our guide by la Maison du Cacao parking lot and tailed him up into the hills. That’s where we all got suited up 😉

Helmet, life jacket, butt cover and wet suit were all provided by the tour guide.

Butt cover. That’s a new thing for me *LOL* It protect your wet suit & your butt from being scratched / ripped.

The tour started in the bush LOL literately. Our guide, Pascal, showed us the forest a bit and shared some funny/scary local stories, plus some eco info. It was a bonus that I did not expect. Thumbs up on the extra. Did I mention that Pascal spoke English? Trust me, this was a RARE commodity in Guadeloupe.

I am one clumsy person. I hiked in snail speed? This was not a tar road hike like White Cloud Mountain. This was a full on stone, mud, whatever have you hike. We hiked downhill toward the water.

Will like to highlight that according to our Pascal, GARDENING SHOES lasted longer (like more than 2 years) than professional canyoning shoes. Apparently, the expensive professional shoes broke within 6 months. Fab info 😀 Thumbs up to garden shoes!Okay, once I heard the water, it was the point of no return… all that leaping / swimming action was about to begin.

Tumbling over was part of the deal, statistically highly probable. Those rocks were slippery and that was why they made fab slides 😉

Contact lens wearer BEWARE of losing your lens. Close your EYES when you’re about to hit the water.

Here was how I looked. Er… or how I slipped.

Now the moment that everyone was waiting for… the jump. Just watch how my brave heart of a mother in law slayed it.

And then watch me, the scardy cat screaming my head off…

After quite a bit of in/out of water action, it was time to ascend back up. My legs trembled while climbing up. It was hard to notice fatigue with all that screaming that I was doing. The hike back up was more steep than going down? I had to use my hands to “pull up” now and then, if you know what I mean.

Bonus of this Canyoning tour?

1.Skin Care… Discover mother nature’s clay mask