Sentier de Beautiran

11 points of interest

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  Flora

  Trumpet Tree

  The pink trumpet tree (Tabebuya heterophylla) is identifiable by its beautiful pink flowers with a yellow heart, which lie scattered over the ground. It is very resistant to the wind. Its wood is valued for carpentry, and is used for building. It is also often used in the composition of 'saintoise' canoes.

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  Cultural and architectural heritage

  Moulin de Sainte-Amélie

  Remains of the mill at Sainte-Amélie; the tower is encircled by a fig tree. Windmills were used to crush the stems of the sugarcanes to extract the juice (vésou), used to manufacture of sugar and then rhum agricole (cane juice rum).

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  Pond

  Mare de Castex

  A damp area in the middle of the cane fields, the Mare is an attractive place for water birds (herons, water hens, etc.) who come there to feed.

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  Agricultural landscape

  Sugar cane fields

  Sugar cane has marked the history and landscape of Guadeloupe since the fifteenth century, the period where it would have begun to be planted in the Caribbean. Cane is a grass, whose stem is used in the manufacture of sugar and rum; the foliage serves as cattle feed.

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  Flora

  Castor Oil Tree

  The castor oil tree (Carapatier) is a pioneer plant, which means it is one which colonises open spaces. Carapate oil is manufactured from the seeds of the shrub. It has a cosmetic use, being recommended for the care of the hair.

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  Flora

  Fiddlewood tree

  Characteristic of the dry rainforest in Guadeloupe, the fiddlewood (Citharexylum spinosum) can reach 15 metres in height. It is recognisable by its orange leaf-stems and its clusters of small round fruit, ranging from orange to black. Its flowers are white, perfumed and nectar-laden. Its twigs are square in section, giving the tree its common name.
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  Flora

  Dragonsblood tree

  The Dragonsblood (Pterocarpus officinalis) is a characteristic tree of the swampy forest, located behind the mangroves. It often has often imposing buttress roots, and its bark produces a red resin.

  AttachmentOpen

  • document textefiche-mangle-medaille

    Credit: fiche "Mangle médaille" - PNG

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  Flora

  Mangrove

  On either side of the trail you will see the mangrove. Between the sea and the swampy forest, this vegetation consists of red, black, white and grey mangrove trees. The attached PDF describes the features which allow you to distinguish between these species.

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  • document textemangrove_-_poster

    Credit: fiche "Palétuviers" - PNG

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  History

  Industrial ruins

  All along the trail, ruins of the industrial past of the site of Beautiran are still visible: rails, wagons, ancient storage buildings, etc.
  It was the Clugny sugar farm which, in the late nineteenth century, invested in building a railway to connect it to the landing at Beautiran. In that way, its production could be routed to the port, and then shipped to Pointe-à-Pitre.

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  Viewpoint

  Sea view

  Coming out of the mangroves, there is a beautiful viewpoint over the bay of Grand Cul-de-Sac Marin as well as the contours of Sainte-Rose, in the distance.

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  History

  Old Port of Beautiran

  In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Beautiran was the landing stage used by the neighbouring sugar farms (Beauport). There could be seen the wagons and dug-out canoes used to transport the sugar and rum to Pointe-à-Pitre. The Beautiran site was therefore a centre of activities for the trading fleets and their slaves. It was finally closed in the1960s.
  Its equipment can still be seen, including the loading gantry (1865).