Cinchona Botanical Gardens

Cinchona was established in 1868 to grow the South American tree whose bark yields quinine, an attempt to break the Andean monopoly that did not pay off commercially. What remains at fifteen hundred metres is a Victorian garden gone half wild: Japanese cedar, eucalyptus, tree ferns, camellias and rhododendrons on terraces, with the original cottage and views down over the Yallahs valley when the cloud lifts. It is one of the highest botanical gardens in the Caribbean and one of the least visited.

What you actually see

• The terraced planting - Victorian beds and specimen trees on the mountainside.
• The exotic conifers - Japanese cedar and eucalyptus planted in the nineteenth century.
• The cottage - the original garden building on the terrace.
• The valley view - the Yallahs and the ridges below when the cloud clears.

When to go

December to April is the drier season and gives the best chance of a clear view. Cloud sits on the garden most afternoons in any season. Rain makes the access track impassable.

Honest expectations

The track up is severe and needs a proper four-wheel drive with a driver who knows it; ordinary cars do not get there. Maintenance is intermittent and much of the garden is overgrown. Cloud frequently blocks the view entirely.

Nearby

Mavis Bank is below, and Blue Mountain Peak is east along the ridge.