Fog to Frogs in Parc La Visite

By Deanna Del Vecchio

A dense fog settled on the mountains of La Visite national park, but we had come to realize that it wouldn’t last long. All day, the fog rolled in and out, a mist that seemed eerie at times – one minute, the mid-day sun would be beating down strong, and the next, the fog would move in, creeping closer until our visibility was reduced to a mere few feet in front of us.

For most of us – Frame of Mind and Panos Caribbean instructors, chaperones, and youth participants – this was our first visit La Visite national park, and the transient fog enhanced the magic of this place, perched high in the mountains of southern Haiti.

Our first attempt at bringing workshop participants to photograph in the park, last August, had been thwarted by the heavy rains of Tropical Storm Emily, but we were now in the dry season and determined to make it there – in part, to redeem ourselves to the participants, one of whom had told us “it is my dream to go to Parc La Visite.”

Leaving the coastal city of Jacmel, the road became steeper and bumpier than I thought a road could be, until, hours later, we reached the park. And it did not disappoint. Hiking for hours, we passed through pine forest, farmed land, and grassland; and encountered people who lived and worked there. We were guided by Anderson Jean, a Haitian biologist who has been studying the endangered wildlife of of La Visite national park for years, and by staff from Fondation Seguin, who work on conservation and reforestation efforts.

The participants soaked in their new surroundings – running ahead to explore waterfalls and streams, identifying medicinal plants, interviewing people to find out about their lives in the park. On our last night there, we had an evening snack of rich hot chocolate that tasted like a melted chocolate bar in a mug, before heading out on a “frog walk” through the forest. Outfitted with headlamps, the participants peered under leaves and rocks in search of “krapo” (frogs), no small feat considering that when we met them six months earlier, they were afraid of frogs and unaware that Haiti is home to several endangered, endemic species.

Afterwards, back in Jacmel, there was a palpable sense of pride as the youth trickled into the city’s main library for the launch of their photo exhibit. Leading their family and friends around the room from photo essay to photo essay, they brought their experience full-circle by sharing it with their community.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 17th, 2012 at 2:56 pm. It is filed under Blog, In Action and tagged with Blog, Haiti, Hispaniola, La Visite. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.