Turtling at 'Anse Major'

Today breakfast on the stormy terrace, there are even a few rain showers so early in the morning - our wishes for better weather seem to have not been heard for the time being.

But since you can never trust the weather report on an island like Mahé, as we have learned from our landlord Annalise, we will just leave it be. At least the strong wind dispels the thick clouds and the sun occasionally shows itself.

So we start the day a little more relaxed and take care of a few organizational things at home first, because only 2 more nights, then we will continue to the next island: Praslin (the second largest island in the Seychelles).
After the organization is done, the weather has improved a bit - perfect for further island exploration. So, off in the car, first heading north to Victoria. After a few kilometers, we make our first stop: At the "Craft Village," the obligatory driving past should not be missed due to the lack of signs, but thanks to the illustration in the travel guide, the passenger and official navigator at least knows what our destination should look like and what we should be looking for. So we finally find it. It is a traditionally Creole village from the colonial period and an important cultural heritage of the Seychelles. An old plantation house from the 1870s forms the centerpiece of the village (see photo) Despite extensive renovations, traditional elements have been preserved, such as the dormer windows and the large veranda. Today, the "village" has been converted into a small artist town, selling traditional homemade crafts, including paintings, jewelry, coconut shell souvenirs, and much more, in a total of 12 colorful bungalows. The village definitely has charm and we also buy a handmade trinket.

We continue towards the north, making a stop at a small patisserie and buying delicious pastries.

Those who know me know that at this point on the way through the capital, a visit to the swimming pool cannot be missed, this time there are even two more people there - almost crowded for Seychellois standards :P

Since the weather has stabilized so far, we still want to visit a renowned hiking trail at the northern tip of the islands. According to the travel guide, you should park the car in a small village called Bel Ombre and hike about 1.5 hours from there to 'Anse Major'. The starting point of the hike is not easy to find, but that would be boring anyway. In the end, with the kind help of the locals, we find the 'start', pack our backpacks, and off we go. After a good 5 minutes, it starts pouring rain again. At first, we take cover, but then we quickly decide to just keep walking in the rain, after all, we want to go swimming in Anse Major anyway - so why stay dry :)

The trail is truly breathtaking in terms of scenery, almost the whole time you can enjoy sea views and the path is quite well paved. I think the pictures give a good impression. Showers from above happen regularly, but at least the temperatures are very pleasant.

Once we arrive at the bay, we are once again thrilled. It is simply idyllic and pure nature - like a postcard from the Caribbean. A local person on a boat in the bay welcomes us and offers us a taxi boat for the return journey to the car, we had already read about that in the travel guide and gratefully accept the offer. But before that, we go snorkeling in the dream bay 'Anse Major,' of course, we have brought the snorkeling gear with us on the hike. The taxi boat guide tells us where to find the best snorkeling spots and we jump into the water. We are already amazed after a few seconds, the abundance of fish is great and it feels even better when you have earned it all with a hike. Since yesterday, snorkeling has been going really well, I told you so, we are infected with the Seychelles virus.

Back on the beach, the 'Taxi-Boat Guide' asks us if we have also been snorkeling in a small bay further out, where there are still many living corals and sometimes you can even see turtles with luck. Since we haven't been there yet, we set off again, this time there is quite a swim ahead of us, and in the middle of the way, I actually see a large underwater creature below me. We are actually graced by a sea turtle - incredible, such encounters are one of the absolute snorkeling highlights for us. After a difficult farewell, we continue to the recommended bay and it was definitely worth it. The underwater world here is even more impressive and we even come across another sea turtle. This time a smaller specimen - compensation for the bumpy snorkel start in the past few days. We are simply overjoyed and could stay here forever.

Of course, we tell the guide about our experiences back on the beach, and he is naturally happy with us. Satisfied, we board the taxi boat, which takes us back to our car. It's really cool to see the trail again from the water and get some insider information from our water chauffeur.

Full of new impressions, we begin the journey home and dream of our two sea turtles :)

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