We were very lucky in February, as there were three candidates for our YOLO (You Only Live Once) Moment of the Month.
We shared meals at our home twice with good friends who we had not seen since before the COVID pandemic. Both of these were great times and served as yet another reminder of what really matters. However, these were slightly topped by the afternoon we spent at Castleton Botanical Gardens; and to be honest, the garden offered more scenic and colourful photo opportunities.
Castleton Botanical Gardens are a 30-minute drive from our home on the edge of Kingston, located about halfway between the capital city and the north coast of the island, famed for its stunning tourist beaches and resorts.
The garden straddles either side of the A3 road (otherwise known as the Junction Main Road), and Nick and I enjoyed a wonderful date in the very earliest days of our relationship.
Sadly, despite driving through it about 300 times since that early date, we have not visited the gardens in the last 11 years.
Castleton Botanical Gardens were opened in 1862 and was the second botanical garden in Jamaica. At its peak there were more than 4,000 varieties of plant life.
Even today, it contains a vast collection of trees, shrubs and flowers, and is an oasis for many types of birds. If you are lucky, as we were during our first visit, you may get a close up of the stunning red-billed streamertail, a hummingbird that is Jamaica’s national bird and known colloquially as the Doctor Bird.
Many of the plants and palm trees in the gardens are not native to Jamaica, having come from Kew Gardens in London, from where they were originally sourced from across the British Empire.
The two sides of the park are quite different. The eastern side is bordered by the Wag Water River, whose crystal-clear waters navigate their way around an eclectic array of rocks and boulders.
During weekends and on holidays it is a popular picnic and cookout spot, and can become extremely busy.
So, for the best experience of the gardens, do as we did and visit on a weekday. In our case, Nick snuck away from work early on a Friday afternoon.
The Boy Wonder, De Marley, joined us again, and we had a most wonderful picnic prepared by Nick. We ate this on the main lawn of the eastern side of the garden. We lounged indolently for at least an hour enjoying the perfect blue skies, high flying birds, shady trees, and idyllic peace, which was occasionally disturbed by the brutish sounding of a passing car horn.
A little reluctantly, we got to our feet, put the picnic hamper into the back of our car and headed across to the western part of the gardens. We spent an hour strolling through the winding paths and sunny openings.
The lily pond is somewhat faded, but remains clean and clear, despite the lack of lilies (we counted three). It offers a quiet moment to gaze up towards the different types of lofty palms. De Marley liked to use it for the reflections it provided. Maybe a type of soft focus to show his elderly aunt and her husband in their best light?
We were shadowed for much of the time by a pair of local semi-feral dogs, who we christened Patsy and Roy. They watched us cautiously before De Marley spooked them with his camera flash. They were classic examples of the mongrels common throughout Jamaica and are often jokingly referred to as JBDs, Jamaican Brown Dogs, or Royal Caribbean Terriers. We have a JBD (Oscar) at home and he has the most incredible personality!
The stand-out plant we saw was the Jade Vine, a gorgeous hanging plant that can reach 18 feet in length. It was brought to Jamaica from tropical forests of The Philippines, where it is endemic, presumably via Kew Gardens. The hooked shaped flowers are a spectacular shade. It is a member of the pea and bean family and, rather bizarrely, is very closely related to runner beans and kidney beans.
We ended our afternoon at Castleton by crossing back over to the eastern side of the gardens to enjoy the cooling waters of the Wag Water River.
De Marley took the opportunity to take some wonderful pictures and asked us to take some of him for a school project, which we think turned out nicely.
We shared the river with just one other small group, plus several birds, including a red-tailed hawk, Jamaica’s largest year-round resident bird of prey.
Castleton Botanical Gardens closes at 6pm, so about 15 minutes before this time, we packed up and made the half an hour’s drive, winding through the hills back to Kingston, after a fabulous afternoon.
Thinking of visiting Castleton Gardens? Need some tips? Feel free to reach out to us and we’d be happy to help!
Author
Monique Abbott
Hi, I ’m Monique, founder and editor-in-chief of Yes2Yolo, travel addict and lover of home makeover projects.
I’ve explored over 60 countries with my husband Nick. Together we’ve partnered on some truly exciting projects such as creating and running a successful Airbnb business, chairing condo boards, purchasing fixer-uppers and renovating them from scratch on our own while balancing all of this with full-time jobs and family.
While my personal passions are travel and home décor, I am, by profession, a lawyer with over 17 years experience.
Absolutely wonderful read Monique! Felt like I was there exploring the gardens with you both! Photos are amazing! Keep it up 🙂
Thank you so much Kash! Really appreciate you taking the time to read our article. Have a wonderful day!
Makes me want to go to Castleton !!
Beautiful and amazing pics.
I know, right! Just take half a day off work tomorrow like we did and go relax in the river waters. So invigorating!!
Loved this post Monique, definitely makes me want to visit the Garden now.
You should Andrew! What are you waiting for!
This was an absolutely good read, Monique! Makes me desirous of visiting soon so I capture my memories here.
Thank you very much Glenda! You will have a wonderful time when you visit!