Roselle Falls healing minds and bodies - St Thomas treasure still attracting nature lovers

The sound of rushing water greets travellers before they even see it.

On the roadside between Morant Bay and Bath in St Thomas, Roselle Falls tumbles from the hills, splashing across the asphalt before finding its way to the sea. Here, under a curtain of cool, clear water, men and women bathe, rinse off, catch drinking water, or simply stand still as the mountain breeze mixes with spray. It's not a tourist attraction - there's no ticket booth or guide - just a gift from nature that's been flowing for generations.

Fifty-year-old Steven makes the nearly 100-kilometre trip from Spanish Town, St Catherine, to Roselle Falls three to four times each week, and he said the journey is worth every mile.

"The water and the rock itself, if yuh go underneath that, yuh don't want to come from under that," he told THE STAR, wringing out his shirt. "To avoid any pain inna my body, once me feel any likkle pain, me come here."

For him, Roselle Falls' spring water is medicine.

"You're getting the natural water from this spring, you don't have any chlorine, any back problem. The water is very nice," he said. "When you get the natural water, your body feel more relaxed, it's more leisure for me."

Between the splash of passing cars and the hum of cicadas, Steven leant against the rock and smiled.

"When mi step inna dis water, it cool mi heart, not just mi skin," he said. "Mi stress lef mi body same time."

He said the trips aren't only about easing physical pain - the spring helps to clear his head.

"Sometimes I come here just to breathe and reset," Steven explained. "When life gets heavy, I stand under the waterfall and it feels like my mind is being washed clean."

"With how the world is these days, a lot of men need a place like this," Steven said thoughtfully. "The three-hour drive is worth it, sometimes, you just need somewhere quiet to find yourself again."

Roselle Falls has been a landmark in St Thomas for decades, a roadside oasis known to truckers, farmers, and travellers long before the era of modern highways. Its waters flow from the same mountain springs that feed the Bath Fountain, where enslaved Africans and later colonial visitors once sought healing from mineral-rich streams. Today, that same water still rushes freely to the sea, carrying a sense of timeless renewal.

Steven often brings his elderly cousin, Winston, who travels from the Turks and Caicos Islands just to experience the same simple joy.

"I told myself when I get back here, I will definitely come here; It's beautiful," Winston said. "This is a national treasure." But as he pointed to the slippery stones underfoot, he frowned slightly.

"They should be treating it as such. A few signs, a handrail, a little care; it could be something truly special for Jamaica."

For generations, places like Roselle Falls have been quiet shrines, spaces where Jamaicans go to wash off not just dust, but stress, grief, and the strain of city life.

"It's the kind of everyday therapy Jamaica gives for free," Winston said. "Healing doesn't always come from medicine or money; sometimes it comes straight from the land."

Just minutes away lies Bath Fountain, the centuries-old mineral spa that drew nobles and commoners alike. Yet Roselle Falls' charm is its freedom. No gate separates it from the people.

As the afternoon light caught the water's shimmer, Steven watched the rush across the road and toward the sea.

"Every time, I come here" he said softly, "I feel like Jamaica is still good. Some things are still pure."