Dunn’s River Falls in Ocho Rios, Jamaica
If you have the opportunity to vacation in Ocho Rios in Jamaica, you must visit Dunn’s River Falls.
The only way I can describe Dunn’s River Falls is amazing! You start your tour at sea level from a sandy beach and then your guide will instruct you to make a human daisy chain by holding hands with the person in front and behind you. Your guide will then start you on your journey as you climb 600 feet to the top of the falls.
Now I didn’t know what to expect before I arrived, but I was imagining a leisurely walk across a river where I would eventually see the falls, but it was so much more than that. These falls consist of a series of mini falls that cascade down a river that sometimes moves quite quickly. You start by making your way through the river walking from rock to rock like when you were a kid, trying not to get wet… but that doesn’t last too long because you soon end up in a waist deep pool of water. water trying to maintain balance. Holding hands turned out to be a very good idea!
On our day there were hundreds of people climbing the river and from below it looked like this was going to stop us, but it turned out it wasn’t. Maneuvering through the river requires careful concentration, though your guide will give you explicit instructions on where to place your feet. Sometimes we would walk along the edge of a mini waterfall that would have been 6-8 feet high with a strong current going through our legs, but I never felt threatened to fall because we were holding on to each other and our knowledgeable guide knew exactly where. . in step
One interesting thing we noticed was that the rocks were not slippery. At home, these rocks would have been covered in a greenish-black slime that would have made footing almost impossible, but these rocks were clean, allowing for a good foothold.
Speaking of jogging, aqua shoes are the best to wear on your feet. Sandals won’t give you the stability you’ll need and could cause your foot to fall off one of the steeper rocks.
There were several children in our group ranging in age from 6 to 12 years old and although some of the adults found it a challenge to maneuver across the river, the children had to be held on tight to help them get over the steeper rocks and faster moving sections. While the adults did their best not to get too wet, the kids who were kids didn’t give a damn and some just went completely submerged in the pools. It didn’t matter much in the end though because we all got soaked from head to toe when we stopped at the largest falls to take a photo with each family leaning over
back against a huge rock with the hot and refreshing water falling on us.
What started out looking like a river ride ended up being something much more exciting and challenging.
Would we do it again… te betchya!
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