Caroni Swamp Tour Guide: Scarlet Ibis and Flamingos
“Oooh look the scarlet ibis!” “Where?” “Ah so many wow!” “Whereeeee?”
We were cruising down one of the tributaries of the Caroni Swamp in the afternoon tour boat. My godson’s July August Vacation (JAVA) creative writing homework had brought us to the swamp as he needed to write reports and make a PowerPoint presentation featuring natural, historical and heritage sites. I happily said yes when asked to take him, as not only was his mom going to be away, but also, this is right up my alley. The swamp was location number four and the last visit he needed to finish his homework.
We arrived at the swamp really early. I wasn’t sure what the traffic would be like, so I heavily padded the time to collect my godson and his friend from their respective locations, so we ended up there at about 3pm for our 4pm tour. When we arrived, the two boys were comfortably snoozing in the backseat. I had made a reservation the night before with Nanan’s tour company online and so while the boys slumbered, I paid, used the bathroom and waited for further instruction from the attentive staff.
At quarter to 4, I woke up the boys, and we headed onto the boat for the 2-and-a-half-hour tour. The boat has rows of seating, and it was filled with families who, like us, were soaking up all the beautiful spots before the end of the JAVA break. The tour guide pointed out elements and gave information along the way as we cruised between thick mangrove forests. Taking this from my godson’s notes (hahaha): we saw caimans, crabs, termites, blue herons, many Scarlet Ibis, catfish, snakes, night herons, oysters, many flamingos and egrets.
Two boys and boat passengers on the Boat tour cruising through mangrove forest, Caroni Swamp Boat tour cruising through mangrove forest, Caroni Swamp Boat tour cruising through open lake, Caroni Swamp
We eventually got to an open lake area and watched the Scarlet Ibis, and the flamingos fly in to roost. The water was filled with catfish and even when not being fed by the people on the boat, they were swimming close to the surface in large numbers. At this point the guide gave out snacks for the children and some yummy apple and pineapple chow for the adults. We devoured our snacks as we were hungry. My mom had made the boys two sandwiches each, and I thought we would only need one for the boat ride and we could eat the other one when we were back. Big mistake. The boys were so hungry. They ate the one sandwich I brought for each of them as soon as we got on the boat and I left mine in the car. I was thankful for the snacks we got to get us through.
This entire trip to the swamp was lovely for me, as I hadn’t seen this many animals in past trips and I loved spotting the Scarlet Ibis in the canopies of the trees as we cruised down the river. The highlight for me was seeing the flamingos in the lake, especially getting to see them fly. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a flamingo fly before, and it was just so beautiful and cool to witness. I also enjoyed the time the boat spent at the lake. Even with two wriggly boys next to me, it was peaceful.
We got back to the jetty at 6:30pm and made sure to take some photos in front of a Caroni Swamp sign to include in my godson’s PowerPoint presentation. It was a lovely tour, and I am glad my godson was assigned this as homework, so it forced us to visit these special places now and not put them off for later. I love our country and really want him to see and experience many locations on both islands!
My Tips
Bring some food and extra water! One sandwich was not enough for hungry kids. We all had our water bottles full, but they finished their water quickly and were looking at me to share mine. When we got back to shore, there was water on sale in the office, so we had water for the ride home.
Bring hats! I knew that but forgot to tell the boys’ moms. So, my one hat was taken and shared between the boys, and I was left to face the full brunt of the sun.
Fast Facts: Caroni Swamp
Location: West coast of Trinidad, south of Port of Spain, off the Uriah Butler Highway
Size: ~5,611 hectares (about 22 sq. miles) — the largest mangrove forest in Trinidad & Tobago
Wildlife: Home to the Scarlet Ibis (T&T's national bird), plus 180+ bird species, caimans, and more
History: Declared a protected wildlife sanctuary in the 1930s; later designated a Wetland of International Importance (Ramsar site)
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