Le Morne Brabant
A UNESCO-listed mountain where escaped slaves took refuge, above the lagoon.
Duration
4 hrs – 6 hrs
Difficulty
●●○○○
Best time
Early morning
Open
Every day
Entry price
To confirm
Le Morne is a five-hundred-and-fifty-six-metre mountain at Mauritius's south-western tip, UNESCO listed in 2008. The listing is not for the landscape but for what happened there: escaped slaves, the maroons, took refuge in inaccessible caves on it for decades.
Tradition holds that in 1835 an expedition climbed up to tell them slavery had been abolished; believing they had come to take them back, several are said to have thrown themselves from the summit. Historians dispute the account, but it has become the founding story of the place, and the commemoration is held on 1 February.
Getting there
The island's south-west tip, an hour and a half by road from Port Louis. The trail starts at the car park below the mountain.
What the price covers
the trail is free to halfway; the summit section requires a paid guide
What to bring
- Walking shoes
- Headlamp
- Swimsuit
- Helmet
Rules on site
The second half of the climb is a scramble on exposed rock: a guide is compulsory beyond the intermediate viewpoint, and access closes in the early afternoon. The first section, up to the lookout, is open to all.