Discovering Guadeloupe: the art of living and the great green in monochrome

On the flip side: blue Guadeloupe. Its idyllic climate, the transparency of its waters and the softness of its white sand have all combined to put the island at the top of the list of tropical paradises. The coconut palms stand out against the lagoon-coloured waves, the perfect shade to contrast with the scarlet of the flamboyant trees and play with the cocktail of a model lounging on a deckchair. On the reverse side: green Guadeloupe, with its hills, sulphur fumes from the volcano, lush vegetation and agricultural activity - coffee, bananas and sugar cane - and the work on the plantations and in the sugar mills, reminiscent of slave ships and human trafficking.

Less frequented, the darker, green Guadeloupe forms the backdrop to the history and culture of the island's population, originally excluded from the sea in the name of production and profitability: "The activity of the plantation draws the slave away from the sea by the necessity of work. It is a command to move inland, only there, until the day ends."writes Daniel Maragnès, philosopher and editor-in-chief of the Caribbean magazine Dérades. And it would be an understatement to say that the end of the slave system in 1848 miraculously altered the balance of power. In Things seenVictor Hugo, who lived at the time, describes its application as follows: "The proclamation of the abolition of slavery was made in Guadeloupe with solemnity (...) At the moment when the governor proclaimed the equality of the white race, the mulatto race and the black race, there were only three men on the platform, representing, so to speak, the three races: a white man, the governor; a mulatto who held the parasol for him; and a negro who wore his hat.

With a tropical forest covering almost 60 % of its surface area, part of which forms the Guadeloupe National Park, Basse-Terre, the butterfly-shaped western wing of the island, is naturally a must-see of green Guadeloupe. Dominated by La Soufrière, the island's only active volcano and the highest point in the Lesser Antilles (1,467 m), the island's mountainous terrain is criss-crossed by a host of valleys criss-crossed by rivers and streams that tumble down the hills, where possible in the form of waterfalls and torrents.

Ingenious nature

In any case, this is a paradise for canyoning. The offers from Vert Intense, an incoming agency based in Saint-Claude, at the foot of the volcano's southern slopes, are a good illustration of the kind of discoveries that can be made here. "While Basse-Terre allows you to get off the beaten track, coming all the way to Guadeloupe just to bathe in a waterfall that attracts almost 400,000 visitors a year seems a shame, given the multitude of options available", says Éric Barret, founder of this agency, which puts together programmes that offer a different vision of the island. For example, a group can cross the island from one end to the other by kayak or mountain bike and bivouac on the beach or under the canopy, which offers an opportunity to get up close and personal with the tropical forest that grows between 500 and 1,000 metres above sea level. Dense and deliciously cool when the temperature of the coast crushes visitors to torpor, this microcosm where less than 15 % of sunlight reaches the ground is governed by the race for light in which the 2,700 listed plants engage. In order to grow, most of them colonise trees almost 30 metres high, like the orchids and other epiphytes, which display a wealth of ingenuity to conquer their place in the sun.

Questioning received ideas

Initiated in 2004, this experimental partnership approach is "very constructive"This is the opinion of Joël Nelson of Domaine Vanibel, a coffee, vanilla and banana producer offering self-catering holiday accommodation in Vieux-Habitants, one of the island's first communes, founded in 1636 on the leeward coast. "We are beginning to reap the rewards by attracting a clientele that has discovered Guadeloupe through its seaside resorts and is now returning, seduced by the authenticity of Basse-Terre and by the dynamic that is taking hold there: moving from a form of tourism that has been subjected to to one that is 'integrated', which also questions preconceived ideas about Guadeloupe and the island's resistance to what has been perceived as a new colonisation", he continues.

This view is shared by Élodie Noël, head of communications at La Grivelière, a magnificent eighteenth-century coffee estate that has been listed as a historic monument. Set high up in the Grande Rivière valley, this coffee and cocoa estate still has its original buildings, including a drying room with large drawers underneath, a device that exposes the coffee beans to the sun and protects them quickly in the event of rain.

Other islands to discover

However, the territory of the national park is not limited to the centre of the island of Basse-Terre. It includes the Grand Cul-de-Sac bay, classified as a biosphere reserve by UNESCO - there is even talk of reintroducing the manatee there. This vast coastal and maritime area includes the coral reef as well as some of the largest mangrove swamps in the Lesser Antilles. While the mangroves can be explored by motorboat, the ATV of the seas - a pedal-powered catamaran made in Guadeloupe - is much more appropriate. This is what Valérie d'Agruma, manager of the incoming agency Chadek Évènements, recommends in combination with kayaking: "staying quiet is the best way to enjoy the reassuring atmosphere of the mangrove, with its amazing views over BasseTerre." Dominique Larivé, consultant to the tourist office, points out that"It is tempting, but simplistic, to identify green Guadeloupe with its tropical forest. The destination is an archipelago: La Désirade, Les Saintes and Marie-Galante are all entities with their own heritage, vegetation and history. specific. In this sense, Guadeloupe is plural. There's no point in trying to discover everything in a single holiday. We organise incentives exclusively on Marie-Galante, operations based around the cultivation of sugar cane or beekeepers who have tremendous know-how and place their hives here and there, depending on the flowering season, to produce a honey with subtle aromas".

"Désirade, with its predominantly fisherman population, can also be an event for small groups".confirms Valérie d'Agruma. Only one road crosses this narrow limestone plateau, 11 km long and dotted with wind turbines. All that remains is an eighteenth-century leper colony and a disused art deco weather station, a once-favoured observation point for cyclones, now dethroned by the use of satellites. "La Désirade is the first island discovered by Christopher Columbus on his second voyage; a little-known place, suspended in space and time, which generates a feeling of being at the end of the world and reveals another aspect of "green" Guadeloupe, very interesting to exploit to get away from the "cream pie" tourist circuits".she adds. This Guadeloupe experience is a far cry from the classic cocktail under the palm trees, and goes back to the very essence of an incentive holiday: losing your bearings and, above all, letting yourself be surprised.