Stay the Course

A major marine trail in the Caribbean offers travelers a chance to swap hiking boots for water shoes.

- Elspeth Velten

DOMINICA'S 115-MILE national hiking trail, which opened just over a decade ago, traverses the island's mountains, passing sulfurous hot springs and dramatic waterfalls.

Now a sea-kayaking trail has been created to mirror its inland sibling. In fact, the two trails share the same word: Waitukubuli, the name given to the island by its first inhabitants, the Kalinago.

"We wanted to honor the original paddlers when we created the trail," said Wes Moses, the owner of watersports tour agency Soufrière Outdoor Centre and the founder of the Waitukubuli Sea Trail, which officially launched in January 2023. The marine trail's 14 segments stretch 32 nautical miles from Scott's Head, in the southwest, to Capuchin, in the north. The route, which can be paddled in six days from south to north, takes in some of the island's most famous attractions, including the frothy Champagne Beach, where small bubbles rise from the volcanic seafloor. But even a two-day paddle promises spectacular scenery. Last spring, I joined Moses on an overnight journey to tackle the trail's final two sections.

BATALIE BEACH TO PORTSMOUTH