Negmawah Bay
Negmawah Bay is an isolated beach situated between Saut D’eau and Cyril Bay.
It’s one of the many small coves of La Vache Bay on the North Coast of Trinidad.
Researching the actually beach history was pretty interesting as the whole area used to be one of the many sugar plantations in Trinidad.
There is a minor dispute over the meaning of “Negmawah”, a French Creole word.
Some say it means “hideout for slaves” and others say it means “runaway nigger”.
Either way, it has the same general meaning, so it is known that this trail was used by slaves who attempted to escape captivity.
The Trail
The trail starts on a no named concrete road, which is the very next road on the left after you pass Fond Pois Doux Road (We all know this as North Deck Paramin Road) on the way to maracas.
This Road is a private road so parking most times is on the layby opposite the road as there is a gate that sometimes is closed.
The road goes from concrete until you reach the junction on top then turns to a pitch road as you start to your decent.
It eventually turns into a dirt road, that leads to some houses way in the bush.
After the houses the trails narrows out and the real decent starts as you the lush forest of the hill side.
The trail exits to the hill side for a bit and takes you passed a garden with an amazing view of the La Vache Bay, then it continues back into the forest.
You will then follow the benching and at one point you will have to make a left turn off the main trail.
Parts of this trail in some places is very narrow, steep and littered with leaves, you won’t want to slip on the wrong side of the hill, so caution is advised.
On the way down just before the bottom you will see a stream with a little waterfall on your left.
After that is a decent into a little cove, nice sheltered area, with a view of a little island in the centre.
Unfortunately your journey is not yet done, from here there is a climb on the side of the hill to the right, which can be a bit scary if you are afraid of heights.
Once you pass this climb to get to the top, you will come up to a camp site and then it’s down onto Negmawah Bay.
There is also a trail to the left by the camp, which you can walk out to the point of the little peninsula to a really amazing open view.
The Beach
As you use the rope and come down onto the big rock, you are expose to another great hidden beach of the North Coast.
Due to a landside some time back, the part where you enter the beach is rocky, but still beautiful.
You can walk pass the rocks and possibly walk through the water to reach the sandy beach on the right side of the bay.
The water at the bay is very clean and filled with corals and different types of stones, a great place for fishing and snorkelling alike.
The hike down to the beach will take possibly an hour and half from the North Coast Road.
The return journey however may take you a lot longer as you have to climb all the way back up, but it is worth to sweat.
I believe the rating on this hike would be a five, due to the steepness of the hills, but the distance is short about three miles, and the views are exceptional.
As I always keep saying, please try and love your environment and keep it clean for the generations to come.