A trip to Cockpit Country: an ecological gem in Jamaica

If you love lush tropical forests, natural sites, fauna and flora, Afroculture.net invites you to discover Cockpit Country.

Located in the west central corner of Jamaica, Cockpit Country is an incredible area that features a 1295 km² limestone plateau, with abundant wildlife, rocky trails, boulders, rainforests and incredible caves.

How was the cockpit formed?

When Jamaica emerged from the water, about 15 million years ago. The erosion of this limestone highland formed a series of basins and conical hills. Some people say that it was the heavy tropical rains that created the Cockpit Karst and others say that the collapse of the caves formed it. It is a geological curiosity to go and visit.

A unique natural site

This magical place is also home to Jamaica’s largest remaining natural forest. It provides 40% of western Jamaica’s water needs with its 40 rivers, streams and springs.

The Maroon Sanctuary

Indeed, Cockpit Country is also a cultural and historical site where the “Maroons” lived. A place of symbol of resistance where there was one of the most triumphant and victorious slave revolts. They brilliantly resisted the English colonizers and forced them to sign a peace treaty in 1738.

It is also good to know that this is a region that is still sparsely inhabited, with around 5,000 inhabitants, who are descendants of the “maroons”.