Blue Mountain Peak, Mountain summit in eastern Jamaica.

Blue Mountain Peak is Jamaica's highest summit at 2,256 meters, making it one of the tallest mountains in the Caribbean region. The trail to the top winds through dense forests and past coffee plantations before reaching open ridges near the peak.

The peak lies within the Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park, which UNESCO inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 2015. The park's recognition rests on its endemic plants and the refuge the range gave to Maroon communities who resisted colonial plantation rule.

Local farming families have grown coffee using traditional methods for generations, and this practice shapes how the mountain communities live and work throughout the year.

The traditional route to the summit is a 7-mile (11 km) hike with a 3,000-foot (910 m) elevation gain, usually started at night to arrive at sunrise. A park fee is required to hike on the peak. Sturdy shoes and layers are needed, as it is colder near the top.

The peak lies on the border of Portland and Saint Thomas parishes, and the 7-mile (11 km) trail to it climbs about 3,000 feet (910 m). Hikers usually set off in darkness to arrive at sunrise, when the sky is clearest and Cuba can be seen in the distance.