Here are a few photos taken on a walk around the lower part of Pic Paradis and nearby St. Louis. Although it is the dry season and many of the smaller plants have dried up, there is still a fair amount of insect life on the plants that remain, particularly those in bloom. A small puddle of water remaining in a dry stream bed has the makings of a tragedy for the hundreds of guppies sharing the space while it lasts.
Across the main road in St. Louis the crest of the hill is quite dry, but the valleys are green and covered in Mexican creeper. A gigantic tree dwarfs a makeshift bar area near its trunk. Across the street at George’s snack shop, he shared some stories with me about the old days. Apparently, when they were building the first vacation houses near Baie Longue, the road was made of sand and was often entirely covered with red crabs. George said it was a beautiful sight in the sun. He also said that visitors from Guadeloupe were amazed that people on St. Martin didn’t eat that type of crab. I left a copy of the book there so people could look at it while waiting for their lunch.
