Belvedere, rarefied air, crystal clear river
EASTERN JAMAICA, including the Blue and John Crow mountains region of St Andrew, Portland and St Thomas, has some of Jamaica’s most breathtaking and mesmerising mountain vistas. And that is where the community of Belvedere, Portland is situated.
To get there you have to travel along a long, narrow, rough and winding road of which certain short sections are asphalted. Marble-like stones and rocks, some of which are layered, dominate the geology. The space is a geography of hills with steep inclines, some of which are parts of interlocking spurs on which verdant flora thrive and flourish. From the ravines, super-tall trees rise to compete for the sunlight.
At points, yawning spaces separate ranges from one another, thus, the hill-and-gully look. The fainted-hearted might not want to look down, for, at points, the sheer drops, though covered with vegetation, seem endless. When The Gleaner visited there was much moisture in the air, on the ground and on leaves. The misty hills in the distance are alluring, but unreachable. All along you can hear and/or see the crystal-clear White River.
LOCATED IN A VALLEY
You are always going up on a comfortable gradient until houses, scattered among the greenery, can be seen in a valley, above which high ranges run. This is Belvedere, which can be described as being located in a valley on top of a series of mountain ranges. The air is so clean you can feel the difference immediately. You cannot help but inhale, over, and over again.
The river that bubbles, runs and meanders around bends is now at your feet, inviting you into its crystal-clear sphere. The murmur and rumbling get louder as bluishgreen water foams and bubbles in Nanny’s cauldrons made of huge stones. A cascade of white water cuts a picturesque dash, worthy of a camera’s snap. Beyond that point no domiciles can be seen, only trees, trees, trees.
Yet, Belvedere, about six miles from Buff Bay, in the said parish, and once a thriving agricultural hub, has a forever-dwindling population, not too many people to enjoy and benefit from the salubrious air and effervescent pools. The primary school has been closed for a while, but the buildings are still intact; the screams and shouts of yesteryear have long wafted away on the cool mountain breezes.
The concrete base of the post office is still among the vegetation. The shell of a former shop and that of an Anglican church with widows smashed out are emblematic of the drift away from the bliss. Even the White River seems to be leaving, but it has nowhere going, but to the seas, and the place from which it is running. For, it shall return, to Belvedere where the air is rarefied, and the madding crowd is no more.