MAURITIUS

Charles Darwin was among the first naturalists to document the astonishing bounty of this Indian Ocean idyll. Exploring in his footsteps reveals an island every bit as ‘eminently curious' as it was to him in 1836 — home not only to an array of endemic species but also to a growing army of modern-day conservationists, all working to preserve the sanctity of Mauritius's tropical beaches and waterfall-laced mountains

- RICHARD JAMES TAYLOR

Darwin documented his visit to the island of Mauritius in his 1839 publication The Voyage of the Beagle, which later formed part of his revolutionary theory about the origin of life.

He’s alleged to have been the first person to climb Le Pouce mountain, near the capital, Port Louis, and possibly also the first to observe the Seven Coloured Earths, in Chamarel.

This extraordinary geological formation comprises sand dunes made up of multicoloured layers of volcanic rock. In Bel Ombre, in the southwest corner of the island, guide Nitish Dassagne works within the Heritage Nature Reserve.

It aims to preserve species found only on Mauritius, including the black ebony tree, as well as others endemic to this corner of the Indian Ocean, such as the Mauritian fruit bat and the Aldabra tortoise. The latter was introduced to Mauritius on the personal recommendation of Darwin and can grow to over a metre in length.

Set in the tropical forests of Black River Gorges National Park and fed by two rivers, the St-Denis and the Viande Salee, the Chamarel Waterfall is the highest in Mauritius.