Discover Trinidad & Tobago 2016 — 25th Anniversary Edition

The San Fernando
Hill
Once a sacred First
Peoples site known as
Naparima, the Hill stands
like a monument in the
midst of all the industry and
construction of south Trinidad,
offering fantastic views
of the city and both ends of
the island. The hill itself was
badly gouged by quarrying,
but has since been developed
into a recreation area.
The entry off Royal Road
takes you straight up to the
summit. Open daily, free of
charge, 9am–6pm.
The Pitch Lake. Photo courtesy TDC
The La Brea Pitch Lake
About 90 minutes from Port of Spain,
this extraordinary natural phenomenon may
look like an enormous car park after a rain
shower, but is in fact the largest of only three
natural asphalt lakes in the world (the other
two are in Venezuela and Los Angeles).
Ever-replenished by bitumen oozing from a
geological fault (a 12x12m/40x40ft hole refills
within three days), this 95-acre, 107m/350ft
deep “lake” has been mined and its fine asphalt
exported since 1859, supplying roads
and airport runways around the world. Most
of the surface is firm enough to walk on,
though some spots are too soft for traffic.
Natural springs, reputed to have healing
properties, appear at the centre during the
rainy season. You will see small bubbling
puddles and smell the gases that escape
from within.
Banwari Trace
The oldest evidence of human activity
on Caribbean soil is in Trinidad: the
archaeological site at Banwari Trace
has yielded artefacts dating back to
5,000BC, belonging to the Ortoiroid
people (named after the Ortoire
river). “Banwari Man”, the human
skeleton found lying in a crouched
burial position by the Trinidad &
Tobago Historical Society in 1969,
is preserved at UWI. Banwari Trace
was included in the 2004 World
Monuments Watch by the World
Monuments Fund. Access requires
permission through the National Trust
(which a tour guide can arrange).
Legend has it that a tribe of First Peoples was swallowed by the lake as punishment for
eating hummingbirds, which hosted the spirits of their ancestors. In fact, this slow-motion
“black hole” constantly pulls things into itself, and is said to have “feelers” stretching outward
for several miles, veins of pitch extending from the main lake. A small museum houses
artefacts recovered from the lake. La Brea Pitch Lake Tour Guides Association: 651-1232
discovertnt.com
73