We are a couple living in Guadeloupe for two and a half years. We both grew up in the Alps, immersed in a mountain culture from our youngest age. We have significant hiking experience, but we are nonetheless not mountain professionals. On February 10, driven by the spirit of adventure, we decided to embark on the Trace des Alizés, a journey that, as we quickly realized, was sorely lacking in online information. Despite many telling us it would be impossible, our decision was made: we were going to attempt the adventure.
To our great surprise, the beginning of the trail was well-marked and of higher quality than we had been led to believe, which made us confident. However, each stage proved to be slightly more challenging than the last, cultivating in us a fear of the unknown due to the uncertainty of our progress. Turning back would have been long and arduous, particularly on the southern portion of the Trace des Alizés. Despite an extremely challenging fifth stage both physically and mentally, we managed to move forward, only to give up just fifteen minutes walk from the refuge, the road having collapsed, and we were at the end of our strength.
From this adventure, we draw several conclusions. First, it is a hike both beautiful and disconnected from the world, but which proves difficult both mentally and physically. Next, the lack of information adds an additional difficulty and deters hikers; indeed, the refuge registers reveal that very few groups venture on this GR, with an average of one passage every two weeks. Finally, stages 4 and 5 have not been maintained since the Fiona storm of October 2022, with no signs indicating that the path is closed or inaccessible. This neglect poses a real risk to hikers and contributes to the gradual but unofficial abandonment of this GR.
The dual objective of this site is therefore to inform anyone interested in this GR, or a part of it, and thereby increase the number of hikers on these paths to bring them back to life. This site relates our experience from February 2024, but we intend to keep it up to date for future hikers. If you have any information concerning the GR, do not hesitate to contact us to enrich the site.