There's a relatively unknown, old tourist hiking path going up the Mount of Seven Sisters. It's hidden between the dense trees and sharp cliffs on the far side. In the heyday of the Seven Sisters, it was considered the most challenging but also the most rewarding path to the summit.
The Mount was called Seven Sisters purely due to this path. Here, there were seven plateaus, each rising above the other like giant steps on the mountainside. Each plateau offered more than just a spectacular view of the land below. One had unique plants, every part of which was edible; another was completely devoid of fauna. Another had a wide waterfall gently feeding a shallow pool, while there were hot springs and sulphur springs on the other. A field of flowers decorated one; the fifth was named Bird's Paradise. The fourth plateau was home to many coconut trees, with a winding stream trickling between the trees.
This fourth plateau is significant. Not only is it the first point of the hike to get fresh water, but there are legends about a wandering rasta. Hikers claimed to have spotted him in the trees. The locals called him 'Double Ras'. No one knew how old Double Ras was. As far as anyone could remember, he was always middle-aged and greying.
The legends painted Double Ras as both good and bad. He either helped hikers or led them to their deaths. The most popular legend about Double Ras goes like this:
Whenever Double Ras wants money, he'll nail a sign to the first coconut tree, 'Three for one' (whether that meant three coconuts for the price of one or one dollar for three, the versions of the story aren't clear). Double Ras never picked the coconuts himself. Instead, he only allowed one hiker to climb a tree to pick them.
No one questioned this particular rule. He was just a kind man in the wild, helping them quench their thirst. However, when the first three hikers disappeared, people became concerned. The police and volunteers searched the mountain for weeks but never found them.
The investigation found Double Ras was innocent, as the missing people had left him before disappearing. This calmed the people somewhat, and things returned to normal.
But after several more occurrences, a pattern emerged. Groups of four or more hikers were the ones from which people disappeared. So hikers travelled in smaller groups. This did not stop the disappearances. From every group that went up the mountain, there would be only one survivor.
Soon, people realised the disappearances occurred when the sign was up. Naturally, those who picked coconuts when the sign wasn't up were all fine. A simple solution, then, isn't it? Just don't buy coconuts from Double Ras when the sign is up. Only everyone did. There were survivors who recounted that they weren't going to buy, but after reading the sign, they needed to buy the coconuts.
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