Black River Gorges National Park

The Black River Gorges National Park ranks as one of the most popular tourist attractions in Mauritius. This national park in Mauritius promotes and preserves wildlife and plant species. The park, covering an area of 6,574 hectares was built with the sole aim of preserving the natural vegetation of the island. This national park in Mauritius is situated in the hilly southwestern region of Mauritius. The park is mostly famous for being home to a number of wildlife and bird species. The park is also famous for its unique collection of rare endemic plants.

The Black River Peak, the highest spot of the park is one of the mostly visited places by the tourists. While on a visit at this park, you can opt for long walks along the 60-kilometer trail of the park. You can also plan for a picnic in the park area. The park also organizes a range of educational and ecotourism activities for the promotion of public awareness towards the eco-life of earth. The park is best visited during the flowering season of September to January. A tour of this national park is likely to cover a day’s trip of your tour itinerary.

Attractions in Black River Gorges National Park

The major attraction of the national park is its extensive variety of wildlife species along with bird species and plant life. This park is internationally famous for housing around 300 species of flowering plants and 9 species of birds that can be found only in Mauritius. The Pink Pigeon is the most popular attraction of the bird species that is slowly witnessing a presence from the brink of extinction. Other popular wildlife and bird species of the park includes the name of Mauritius bulbul, Mauritius grey white-eye, Mauritius parakeet, Mauritius fody, Mauritius cuckoo-shrike, Mauritian flying fox, Mauritius olive white-eye, and Mauritius kestrel.

Getting to the National Park in Mauritius

You can easily reach the park from various destinations in Mauritius. The main entrances to the park are as follows -

From Curepipe/Vacoas or Grand Bassin through Petrin
From Black River Royal Road (Trois Bras) through Visitors’ Centre in the Gorges
From Case Noyale through Chamarel
From Chemin Grenier via Bassin Blanc through Les Mares

The park is best visited or explored on foot. You can also opt for a drive or a bus ride along the park with stops at spectacular views.

Touring the Black River Gorges National Park

The park is famous for its crisscrossing trails are sure to introduce you to wonderful sights of nature. Nine of its trails are most popular with the tourists. All these trailheads are distinctly marked and can be reached from any of the two roads running through the park. The major roads cover the north to south route across the eastern boundary along the Petrin Information Center. The Alexandra Falls, the newest viewing point of the park, offers spectacular views over the south coast. The falls can not be viewed though from this point. The Gorges viewpoint is located about 2 km further west. You can also get to see amazing views of nature and the park from this point. This particular trail route ends at the coast at Grande Case Noyale. Another trail route of the national park emerges from the Les Mares junction. The route stretches across the Bassin Blanc, a crater lake bordered by the forest, to down the valley to Chamouny and Chemin Grenier.

Reaching these trailheads without your own transportation is quite difficult. The best choice is to opt for a taxi drop-off and then opt for a bus pick up at the lower end. You can also opt for a guided tour of the Black River Gorges National Park. Number of buses traveling the main towns run through the coast road. You can hire a guide for your tour through the visitors’ centre of the park. It is always advisable to check the route and the status of the trails from the information center before planning a tour to the national park in Mauritius.

Visitors Center of the National Park

The major visitors center of the park is located on the western entrance of the park is about 5 km from the Grande Rivière Noire. The visitors centre remains open from 9 am to 3 pm from Monday to Friday and from 9 am to 4 pm on Saturdays and Sundays. Another information center of the national park is the Petrin Information Center. This center, situated at the eastern entrance of the park remains open for the visitors from 8 am to 3 pm on weekdays and from 8 am to 11 pm on Saturdays. The staffs of these two information centers provide useful information regarding the park and even at times acts as guide to the park. Arrangements of guided tours should be made in a day or two in advance. Rates for a guided tour start at Rupees 1200 per day.

While on a visit to the Black River Gorges National Park, it is advisable that you bring your own food and drink. The park and even the visitors’ center do not provide any availability of food and drinks. Insect repellents, wet-weather gear, binoculars for bird watching, and good shoes with fine grip is a must carry on your Black River Gorges National Park trip.

Contact Details:

For any further queries regarding the park and other useful information, you can contact –

Director
National Parks and Conservation Service
Ministry of Agro Industry, Food Production and Security
Tel: 464 4016, 464 4053, 464 2993

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