Driving Through Mt Rosser, Jamaica

I’ve always said that if you can drive in Jamaica you can drive anywhere.  But if you can drive a Mack truck through Mt Rosser in St Catherine, Jamaica you’re a special kind of brave!  NUFF respect for the men behind those wheels.

I’ve done the drive from Ocho Rios to Spanish Town many a time through these hills and winding roads and I’ll never, ever get tired of the little adrenaline rush I get from it.  Hugging the curves while trying not to hit cars on one side of the narrow road or the rock walls on the other side exhilarates me!  Not to mention the scenery on the cliff side is breathtaking.

One thing that has fascinated me from the very first time I came through here is how artfully the big trucks weave through these hills with inches to spare on either side.  In the video below I was fortunate enough to be stuck behind a truck for a good part of my drive, and I happened to have my dash camera ready to roll.  These trucks are rarely passable on the narrow roads so if you end up behind one you’re there for good….until you hit a stretch of straight road….which doesn’t come along very often up there.

Enjoy a few minutes of video below.  There are a couple of fun happenings in there, which I’ve noted with words on the screen.  Make sure to watch until the end!

Having watched that I’ll tell you now that in August of 2014 the Mt Rosser bypass officially opened.  It’s a beautiful piece of road and it’s a MUCH faster way to get from the north coast to Kingston and Spanish Town.  It was much needed because the old road in the video was slow, treacherous and just not feasible for efficient commuting.  BUT I will say that even with the toll highway I’ll probably take a jaunt through the slow way from time to time.

The beautiful new bypass highway.