Visitors to Bermuda can now explore the island's most treasured wildlife reserve -- Nonsuch Island. This unique habitat is a representation of the prehistoric "native" environment of Bermuda. For the first time in history, visitors can explore this unique living museum on weekly excursions offered by the Bermuda Biological Station for Research (BBSR) in conjunction with conservationist Dr. David Wingate.
The half-day tour, which operates on Thursday morning, is an educational experience that is restricted to 25 hikers a week. Participants will learn first-hand from Dr. Wingate about his lifetime's work recreating the island as a living example of Bermuda's "native" environment, and the reintroduction of the indigenous Cahow bird. The trails and observation sites have all been carefully planned so as to give access to all the main features without causing disturbances to island life.
The tour costs $75, which includes the guided tour of the island, onboard learning about Bermuda's marine life, and lunch. The tour leaves from the BBSR dock at 9:15am and returns by 1:30pm. There is a second collection point at 9:30am from St. George's. For further information or to reserve a space, call tel. 441/297-1880 or visit www.bbsr.edu.
A Park of Your Own--Just when you thought that everything in "Paradise" (as locals call Bermuda) had been discovered, you happen upon 15 hectare (38-acre) Hog Bay Park. In spite of its unattractive name, this is one of the beauty spots of Bermuda, and one of its least visited attractions. To reach the park from the City of Hamilton, take a ferry across Great Sound, getting off at the Somerset Bridge ferry stop. Cross the Somerset drawbridge and follow the trail of the old Bermuda Railway. Cross Middle Road into the park. Once at the park you'll pass ruins of lime kilns once used for making lime to paint the famous whitewashed roofs of island homes. As you meander, you'll come across old abandoned cottages, finally reaching Sugar Loaf Hill with its Look Out Point. From here you'll be rewarded with one of the greatest panoramic views on Bermuda. As Barbra Streisand might put it: "On a clear day you can see forever."
Tony Fernandes, founder of Rock Ramblers, an eco-heritage Bermudian group, organizes a 2-hour walking tour of the park Friday at 10am. For more information, call tel. 441/238-3438.
