Visiting Dark View Falls in St. Vincent was one of the first things we did on our trip here. The drive to get here wasn’t a walk in the park. The roads get really narrow at times and it’s all on mountainside roads. Sometimes we would pass through little villages where the residents would park their vehicles on the road, making it basically a single lane street. Despite these little challenges, Dark View Falls was a fun little road trip experience.
We drove here from the Kingstown side of St Vincent, and honestly, getting to Dark View Falls was almost as much of an adventure as visiting the waterfalls themselves. The drive took us around an hour and a half, with narrow mountain roads, small villages and plenty of sections where the road felt barely wide enough for two cars.
We also made the mistake of arriving very late in the afternoon. Dark View Falls closes at 5 pm, and we were literally the final visitors there that day. The woman working at the entrance even asked us to close the gate behind us when we left.
Despite the long drive, I think Dark View Falls is worth visiting at least once if you’re exploring the western side of St Vincent. The first waterfall is extremely easy to reach, while the upper waterfall gives you a slightly more adventurous climb.
Dark View Falls is actually a double waterfall. There are 2 streams of water at different heights. The first one is more accessible and have man made structures there to make it better for people to experience. The 2nd waterfall is up a long flight of stairs. My legs almost gave out climbing those stairs to the top.
It’s important to note that access to Dark View Falls closes at 5 pm. We were the absolute last people to visit and the last group to leave as well. The security lady even asked us if we could lock the access gate for her. So, if you want to get to visit this waterfall make sure to come well before 5 pm as the drive can take 2 hours depending where you’re coming from.
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How to get to Dark View Falls
Dark View Falls is located in the western central area of Saint Vincent. The nearest village to the falls is called Richmond. There are also many other tiny pockets of houses where people are just hanging out outside on the way to Dark View. For tis entire drive you’ll be driving on the “Leeward Highway”. This is one of the 2 main highways in Saint Vincent.
I found it particularly difficult to tell the difference between highway and a side street. One of the images below is the actual highway.
The area is very mountainous and the road can get really narrow at times. Especially when you drive through a tiny village. Most of the people that live here have to park their cars on the street. This causes one entire lane to be blocked and it can be difficult to navigate at times.
You can make the journey here using any type of vehicle. You don’t need a 4×4 SUV or a truck because there is no off-roading or muddy tracks.
It took us 1 hour and 30 minutes to get from Kingstown to Dark View Falls and it took only 50 minutes for the drive back home to Buccament.
The most challenging part of the journey to Dark View Falls is the final entrance road to arrive here. You will come upon a small intersection where you can go left or right and you’ll see a sign guiding you to Dark View Falls. When you make this right, as you see in the image below, only one vehicle can pass at a time. So, if you’re ever coming out or in and someone is doing the opposite, you’ll be basically blocking each other until someone drives on the grass to make room.
Do you need a 4×4 to visit Dark View Falls?
No.
We drove there without needing to do any off-roading. You don’t have to cross muddy tracks, rivers or rough trails to reach the entrance.
A normal car should be completely fine.
The bigger challenge is simply dealing with the narrow roads.
The final access road into Dark View Falls was probably the tightest section we encountered. There is a point where the road becomes narrow enough that only one vehicle can comfortably pass at a time. If someone is coming in the opposite direction, one of you may have to pull onto the side and make room.
This is an extremely short and easy hike to get to the first fall. It isn’t really a hike, it’s more like a walk. The 2nd of the waterfalls is harder to get to and a bit longer.
To begin the trail to the waterfall there is a bamboo bridge that crosses over a river. This is a really cool and wild looking setting for pictures. The bamboo is circular and curved so it’s weird to step on and walk properly. But, the bridge is really strong and sturdy. It wasn’t wobbly or shaky at all.
Eventually, you’ll come across the first waterfall and a lookout where you can take nice pictures looking up at the falls. It feels like there’s a gust of wind constantly blowing heavily all around the area because of the force of the water falling down from high up.
For the second waterfall at Dark View Falls, you need to walk up really high steps. It’s a lot of steps and they are about 2 feet high. So it’s like you’re doing an intense workout on your way up. You might have to stop a couple times and rest before reaching the top.
Can you swim at Dark View Falls?
Yes, swimming and bathing are allowed at Dark View Falls, and the National Parks Authority lists bathing pools among the facilities at the site. Children under 12 are required to have an adult with them in the pool.
But, don’t automatically expect a huge, deep swimming hole, especially when it’s not raining a lot in the past few weeks.
Then you need to climb on top of some tall rocks. I think this part can be dangerous if you’re not wearing the right kind of shies with proper grip. But, you can also use someone to hold onto.
In all honesty I think these falls were really great to visit once, especially because there are 2 of them. But, I wish the pools at the base of the waterfalls were larger and deeper so people could swim in it. It was probably 1 foot of water at it’s deepest part.
How long to spend at Dark View Falls
I would say literally just one or 2 hours of actual time there is needed. The hikes are really short and unless you’re here picnicking, you’ll most likely be chilling by the waterfalls for a few minutes while taking pictures.
Final Thoughts
I was glad I decided to visit Dark View Falls because I see it as a simple stop. Most other waterfalls I’ve been to there is a really long yet fun hike and there’s just more to interact with. I probably wouldn’t drive across the country to visit here if there isn’t significant water at the falls.
