Art, VE3FC will be active from Dominica Island (IOTA NA-101) until 2 December 2014 as J79CR.
He is operating on 40-10m CW.
QSL via home call, LOTW.
Dominica Island
Dominica island – Caribbean’s charm
Dominica Island is part of the Lesser Antilles set in Caribbean Sea. The South east part of Guadalope has a land of 290 sq mi with its highest peak at Morne Diablotins. Dominica has a population of 72,000 people in 2014 cencus with the capital city at Roseau.
History of Dominica Island
The Spanish explorer first sighted Dominica. But it was the French who ruled it before the British finally obtained its independence. The Nature Isle of Caribbean has a virgin beauty with geothermal volcanic activity giving natural hot spring at Boling Lake. There are lush of greeneries of rain forests with plants and animal species rarely found anywhere else in the world. Dominical also own more than 360 rivers with its Sisserou Parrot as the national bird.
The island was named Dominica by Christopher Colombus. In 1493, Dominica was an isolated island and inhabited by the Caribs. There were more settlers came as the European invasion began to expand in Caribbean region. The fierce Caribs had fight with the Spains and causing the Spains to leave the island. Then the Frenchmen came bringing slaves from African to work for its agricultural development – which now becomes major source of Dominica’s economy. The language used in Dominica is Antillean Creole.
The early European colony was in 1632 where somewhere in between, the French missionaries began the quest to spread the message of God. Then visitations from Europe became a regular activity. The Dominica was discussed by the French and British as a settled island but then the Caribs became neutral territory. Hence, later on, the area is a neutral for the next 100 year until the expeditions from English and French became investing in timber.
It was the French who managed to make a permanent settlement. There were carpenters from Guadeloupe and Martinique that camped up too supply woods. They were the people who became the settlers in the island.
The revolution in the island caused the exodus to move to South Dominica. On the other hand, the Frenchmen settled in Guadeloupe. Dominica was becoming the France colony after the commander took over the island. they cultivated sugar cane and other agricultural plants like coffee. They also imported labours from the Africa continent to supply slaves.
In 1834, the Britain abolished slavery and Dominica became the first colony of British with legislature government controlled by the Africans. It was in 1896 that the Dominica became part of United Kingdom and became Crown Colony. After the France was defeated by the British colony, the island was returned to English and ever since become part of the British Kingdom before finally given the freedom. Dominica became a republic in 1978.
The language of Dominica Island
Dominica was a Latin word translated as Sunday. The day that colombus sighted Dominica was Sunday. Due to the immigrants and colonization, Dominica is a multi ethnic place with numbers of Africans in the area. As French has a long period of colonization, the people can speak fluent French. And some even are fluent in Carib and African languages. Many elder people are still speaking Carib language and today there is Carib territory performed as a reserved land with an official language is English.
Geographical information of Dominica Island
The Dominica island has a vast area of 289.5 square miles. The country’s capital city is in Leeward’s Roseau. With rainforest and hot spring, the area has loads of rivers, and waterfalls. The country also owns some of rare plants and sandy golden beaches. The volcanic area makes it fertile for plants to grow wild in the forest. The island also owns several natural conservation with some protected areas like Cabrits National Park.
With sheer mountains and no flat land, Dominica has tropical forests that visitors can witness. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage with hundreds of coral reefs and coastal areas. The national bird of Dominica is featured in their national flag and some other species to be found is Red Necked Parrot.
The sea of Caribbean is home to many marine life like sperm whales, cetaceans, and bottlenose dolphins. There are some wild animals like the killer whales and Risso dolphins but they are not commonly seen. This is one of the tourism attraction often found fascinating because you can’t see it anywhere else.
Dominica is prone to Hurricanes. The island’s location is among the hurricane region with the serious damage happened in 1979. The category 5 hurricane hit the island and causing the rain and landslide. Many were injured and deceased due to the natural disaster.
Things to do in Dominica
Biking
If you love natural rain forest, then it’s time to bike up to the tropical hill with wonderful weather during the day. The cycling experience often found exciting by the tourists. The heart pumping track ensures you have a great time working your legs up there. You can stop by in lodges with traditional scent of Dominica.
Champagne Reef
For divers and snorkelers, this is a must-visit place. The area is one of the best diving sites in the world. The water temperature is hot up to 90 degrees and the floor is warm enough for you to step in. It’s the bubbling gasses that makes a wonderful view at the bottom of the sea as you witness the marine life closer.
Water adventure
Besides diving, you can also do canyoning and watch how the water rush to the reefs as you swim into the pool of blue water. The riverbeds and the cascading water is just a few hours from the capital city. This could be your best natural environment to experience.
Botanical garden
If you love green space, you can visit botanical garden, a home to hundreds of plants and rare trees species. The Botanical Garden is also a home to the Dominica national Bird, Sisserou the Parrot. The 40 acre of area is a green and cool place that often holds parades and celebrations.
Video Dominica Island