Today the Caledonian Star anchored in the crater of an extinct volcano. We visited the mountainous West Indian island of St. Lucia and its active fumaroles and hot springs, which attest to its volcanic origins. The picturesque town of SoufriŠre lies protected from the trade winds on the west coast of this 650-square-kilometer island.
With the 2,437-foot Petit Piton looming over the ship, we set out in Zodiacs to explore an enormous bat cave and to snorkel in the cobalt blue waters at the base of the famous spire. St. Lucia is also famous for having produced two Nobel Prize winners (literature and economics) and for its efforts to save the endemic parrot. A small group of us was rewarded with a sighting of this beautiful bird on a morning rain forest hike.
