Isle du Salut, French Guiana
17 July 2016
Apparently so called (Islands of Salvation) because the missionaries went there to escape from the plague on the mainland. They are tiny volcanic islands off the coast of French Guiana.
Ile du Diable, or Devil’s Island, is famous for its imprisonment of Captain Dreyfus when the islands were a penal colony of France. Isle Royale had the general prisoners who were free to roam around the island, Isle St Joseph provided accommodation for those criminals in solitary confinement and Isle du Diable for political prisoners, including Dreyfus after his conviction for treason. But perhaps the islands are best known through the novel Papillon, by Henri Charriere who was imprisoned there for 9 years.
The islands now are a tourist destination and hoards arrive by day charter catamarans to wander and wonder at the islands. Agoutis, guinea pig like coconut eating rodents, scamper under the forest canopy creating a litter of cored coconuts while monkeys shake palms, loading the air with coconut bombs that explode on impact a little too close for comfort.
The occasional sign indicates, in a general sort of way, what may be on the island. There are however many signs to highlight safety concerns - falling rocks, slippery slopes….nothing mentions the dangerous coconuts.