There’s no better place to find yourself sitting by a waterfall and listening to its music.
Roland R Kemler
My trip to Stewart Mountain in St. Mary was nothing short of amazing.
I’ve seen this place on Instagram for the longest while but there were no clues on how to get there. Until I saw a post on Instagram where someone stated it was located in Richard Pen St Mary.
However, I decided to take the Junction route because I wanted to arrive at my destination before 9:00 AM. Based on my experience, buses from Kingston to Ocho Rios leaves Kingston after 8:00 AM and I did not want travel to Spanish Town to get a minibus to Ocho Rios. So I took I Port Maria taxi located across from Burger King in Half Way Tree that cost JMD 500.00.
When I got to Port Maria, I asked a few taxi drivers about Richard Pen but they were unaware of the community. So I decided to travel to Ocho Rios at a cost of JMD 200.00. Then I took a Gayle taxi to Richard Pen at a cost of JMD 200.00. I asked the driver to drive the Bottom Road route.
Guess what? The diver passed my final stop in Richard Pen. When he realised, he stopped another taxi heading to Ocho Rios and ask him to carry me to Richards Pen.
There was another passenger inside. He asked where in Richard Pen I was going and I said the waterfall. Unfortunatlety, he was unaware of the fall so I asked for a stop just as he entered the Richard Pen Community.
As I got out of the car, I saw a man on his property and I asked him about the fall. I made sure I showed him a picture of it as well.
He said it’s called “Falling”. This is the second community with Nonsuch in Portland being the first that I have visited where members of the community refer to the waterfall as “Falling”.
I asked if he knew anyone willing to accompany me and he said yes. He called his nephew Dejuan. He was really helpful. He was not only my tour guide but also my photographer.
He said the fall was not located in Richard Pen but in Stewart Mountain, which was a community not far away.
He had a shorter route to get to the fall through bushes and private properties. We passed Banana and Papaya trees, vegetation nearly as thick as a jungle.
I heard the sound of the waterfall in the distance. As we got closer, the sound increased. Finally, my eyes met a beautiful waterfall drizzling down a series of rocks then continued on its ways.
It was an awe-inspiring moment from where I was standing. My spirit rose when I spotted the waterfall that I've been longing to visit. I hurried towards it with overflowing joy.
Dejuan wanted to climb the fall but I imagine it would look terrifying coming down so I declined.
I planned on spending two hours in St. Mary then off to Portland. But after entering one of the many natural pools, I decided I will be spending the entire day in St Mary.
I tried my best to explore the river in its entirety but that wasn’t accomplished. I fell in love with the water and start to swim in every natural pool I spotted.
Therefore, I will be returning to Stewart Mountain. It reminds me of the Ugly River in Devon Pens.
Have you been Stewart Mountain in St.Mary? Where’s your favorite destination to visit? What was your experience like? Do tell!