Jenn Manes, Author at ExploreSTJ.com

Remember When: The Texaco at the Roundabout

Jenn Manes February 27, 2023 2 Comments

If you are lucky enough to have visited St. John previously, you’re probably aware of the fact that we do not have a single stoplight on island. The only time a stoplight appears is when we have road construction happening, and it forces a regular two-lane road down to one.

Rather than traffic lights, we have one roundabout in Cruz Bay. It’s located right near Dolphin Market at the intersection of Route 10 and Route 104. The roundabout is only about 15 years old, and prior to that, there was a Texaco gas station somewhat in its place. That business was forced to close in 2007 when the government took the land it was leasing through eminent domain.

I don’t know about you, but I really enjoy learning about island life from years past. And for some reason, I find the fact that there was a gas station right at the roundabout rather fascinating.

The Texaco gas station was owned by the late Robert O’Connor, Sr., a former Senator who operated it for 40 years. (Mr. O’Connor also operated his car rental company out of it at the time. That company remains open today.) He didn’t want to close the gas station, per old news reports, but was forced to, as the land was leased from the Territory, and local leaders said it was needed for the roundabout’s construction.

The Texaco in Cruz Bay. Image credit: Frank Barnako

That’s Dolphin Market on the left behind the red vehicle.

At that time, it was one of three gas stations. E-C was open over near the basketball courts and remains open today. There was also a gas station open in Coral Bay at the time, which closed years ago.

The roundabout was built to alleviate congestion in the area. It was constructed in advance of the opening of the current car barge dock, which they anticipated would increase traffic in the area. It was also built so larger trucks could take a left onto Route 104 (Southside Road) when traveling down Route 10 (Centerline Road) more easily. Prior to the roundabout, they’d have to “back and fill” to make the sharp turn.

Beginning stages of construction at the roundabout

I was perusing the internet looking for additional pics of the area when I came across a video taken by Frank Barnako. Frank was the original owner of News of St. John. I purchased the business from him in 2013. I then sold it to a part-time resident in 2020. The video is pretty cool in my opinion. Check it out for yourself:

And there you have it, folks. I hope you enjoyed reading this super random post today.

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Something New to Do: Walk a Dog or Cuddle a Cat

Jenn Manes February 24, 2023 1 Comment

Are you looking for something new to do during your next St. John vacation? If you’re an animal lover like me, you should add a visit to the Animal Care Center to your must-do list.

For those of you who are lucky enough to have visited St. John previously, you probably noticed that there aren’t any stray dogs that roam the streets like on many other Caribbean islands. Well that’s thanks to the Animal Care Center, St. John’s nonprofit, no-kill shelter.

The shelter currently has six dogs and eight cats that are looking for homes. The dogs get walked twice a day, and the shelter relies on volunteers to help.

Volunteers are needed Monday through Friday for 8:30 a.m and 3 p.m. walks. The walks are typically around a block, which takes about 20 minutes or so. Volunteers are needed to walk the dogs on the weekend too, but weekend times may vary. Dog walkers must be 18 years or older to handle the leash. Younger children are more than welcome to accompany an adult on a walk.

The cats also need some care, and more importantly, socialization and cuddles. Volunteers are needed for general cleaning Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. You can stop in at any time during business hours to cuddle the cats.

You can call the Animal Care Center at 340-774-1625 or email them at info@stjacc.org to sign up.

Not visit St. John anytime soon, but want to help? The Animal Care Center just updated its Amazon Wish List. The list includes leashes, cat and dog food, cat carriers and more. Click here to view their Wish List on Amazon.

And before I end this, I just want to let you all know that I’m a gal who practices what she preaches. I adopted Charlie, an amazing little pitbull/corgi mix back in 2014, and I adopted Lucy, a crazy little kitten last summer. I even convinced my sister in Connecticut to adopt a puppy two years ago, and I personally delivered him to her. 🙂

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A Flamboyance of Flamingos Visits St. John

Jenn Manes February 22, 2023 7 Comments

A flamboyance of flamingos has been visiting St. John in recent weeks, and while a flamingo sighting is relatively rare these days, I recently learned that hasn’t always been the case.

I was aimlessly scrolling through Facebook earlier this week when I came across a post on the Virgin Islands Audubon Society’s page. The post, written by Gail Karlsson – a St. John resident who is an environmental lawyer, author, photographer and bird watcher – announced that a flamboyance of flamingos has been spending time over at a salt pond near Salt Pond Bay. How exciting & interesting is that?!

A flamingo sighting on St. John is very rare. We had one spend the day at Trunk Bay back in 2016, which sent many of us into a frenzy. (It’s a small island and not a ton happens here – which is a good thing – so a flamingo sighting is a BIG deal in my world!) I needed to know more, so I reached out to Gail for details.

Gail informed me that flamingos were native to the Virgin Islands, but all were eaten or lost to development until the reintroduction on Anegada in 1992 and then another flock later on Necker Island. Anegada and Necker Island (a private island owned by Sir Richard Branson) are located over in the British Virgin Islands. According to Gail, there is currently a “smallish” flock on Beef Island (near the airport on Tortola), the Necker Island flock and about 300 on Anegada, according to the last bird count.

Gail told me that she spotted a single flamingo at the pond near Miss Lucy’s in September and that Laurel Brannick, a retired NPS park ranger, spotted seven near Grootpan last September. As of this morning, there are 13 hanging around the salt pond.

A mature flamingo visits St. John in February 2023. Image credit: Gail Karlsson

Spending time at the salt pond. Image credit: Gail Karlsson

You may be wondering why all of the flamingos aren’t bright pink in color. “It takes the young ones several years to get their full color,” Gail wrote in a recent St. Thomas Source article, “and, in the meantime, they have black and white feathers, and pale pink legs and throats.”

She continued, “They also have to have a proper diet. Their pink coloration as adults comes from carotenoids in microscopic algae, which flamingos are able to metabolize to create pigments in their feathers. They can eat the algae directly, or get the carotenoids from eating brine shrimp or other tiny creatures that also feed on the algae growing in shallow, salty ponds.”

Click here to read Gail’s article in its entirety and to see additional pics.

No one is certain how long the flamingos will stay on St. John, but if you are lucky enough to see one during your next visit, please love them from afar. And if you are able to get some pics or video, feel free to share them on our Facebook page.

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Meet Elin Hilderbrand at Lovango Resort

Jenn Manes February 21, 2023 0 Comments

If you are a fan of author Elin Hilderbrand, you are going to love this!

Elin Hilderbrand is scheduled to spend the day at Lovango Resort & Beach Club next month, and you’re all invited to meet her! Elin is a best selling author, and her 27th novel is set to debut later this year. Three of Elin’s books – the Paradise series – are set right here in the US Virgin Islands. Several familiar faces & places are mentioned in the books, including Lovango Resort, La Tapa, and Bridgett and Jimmy Key, owners of Palm Tree Charters, among others.

Elin Hilderbrand’s Paradise series was set in the US Virgin Islands.

Elin will spend the day at Lovango’s Beach Club on Friday, March 31st where she will be on-hand to chat with fans. There will also be a short interview with Elin and her sister during the daytime event.

Later that evening, Elin will attend the Sand & Stars beach party. The Sand & Stars party happens every Friday night from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. It features live Caribbean music, dancing, signature cocktails and a Caribbean-style buffet.

Elin Hilderbrand on the Lovango ferry. Image credit: lovangovi.com

Day passes for the Beach Club start at $135 a person, which includes roundtrip ferry transportation from Cruz Bay or St. Thomas. Anyone who books the Beach Club for the day has the option to stay for the Sand & Stars party at night. Ferry tickets for just the Sand & Stars party are $25 roundtrip. (Discounts are available for USVI residents.)

The Resort is offering a 20 percent discount for all overnight stays that weekend with a two-night minimum.

I absolutely love spending the day at the Beach Club at Lovango. Click here to read a story I posted about my last visit.

Learn more about Lovango Resort & Beach Club

Click here for more information on Lovango Resort & Beach Club and to book your Beach Club passes or an overnight stay.

New Webcam Offers Great New Island Views!

Jenn Manes February 19, 2023 4 Comments

A brand new webcam just popped up on island, and I think you’re all going to love it!

Villa Circe is a beautiful six-bedroom villa located high atop a ridge in Coral Bay. This vacation rental has an incredible panoramic view, and the owners want to share that view with all of you! The webcam faces north, and shows views of Jost Van Dyke, Tortola, the Sir Francis Drake Channel and other smaller islands.

What I really love about this webcam is that you can watch the boats in real time travel over to the British Virgin Islands. Check it out:

The Villa Circe webcam was also added to the Explore STJ webcams page. You can see more than 20 webcams at www.ExploreSTJ.com/webcams. Click here to check them out.

Want to learn more about Villa Circe? Please click here for more information, rental rates and to see additional pics.

Note from Jenn: All content from IslandTidbits.com has been moved here to ExploreSTJ.com. Rather than maintain two entities, I have decided to merge the two. Please follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ExploreSTJ and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/ExploreSTJ.

STJ Restaurant Owner Heads to Turkey to Help with Earthquake Efforts

Jenn Manes February 17, 2023 7 Comments

Andy is an owner of The Windmill Bar & also The Upstairs.

Hello everyone, and happy Friday! I have an incredible story to share with you all today.

Andy Peter has lived here on St. John since 2013. He moved to the island straight from Iraq where he worked as a private contractor with the State Department. He was a paramedic for years, but opted for a different career once he moved to the island. For those of you who’ve been visiting us for quite some time, you may recognize him from his early days when he bartended over at The Beach Bar.

Enter September 6th, 2017 – the day Hurricane Irma ravaged the island.

The storm hit us on a Wednesday. For the first couple of days, no relief workers arrived on island. We saw helicopters swirling above, but it wasn’t until Sunday, to my recollection, that the relief workers actually arrived on the ground.

I remember walking in Cruz Bay right near Connections when I first saw a couple of men with D.I.R.T emblazoned across their backs. The Dirt team, as we came to know them, was part of Help.NGO, an international team that specializes in emergency response among other things. They became a crucial part of our early relief efforts, helping with search and rescue, and telecommunications. They were the reason, according to Andy, why we were able to get those all important text messages out during the early days post-storm.

Recognizing the importance of this team coupled with his background, Andy decided to join Dirt. He worked with them on St. John for the next year-and-a-half.

Since then, Help.NGO has called on Andy to assist with efforts in other countries that need needed help. He’s gone to Ethiopia, Madagascar, Bolivia, Mozambique, Haiti, El Salvador, Guatemala and Colombia over the years. He deployed to the Bahamas in 2019 to help with the Hurricane Dorian relief efforts.

Andy received a pretty casual text message last week asking him what he’s up to. He’s a pretty busy guy being an owner of both The Windmill Bar and The Upstairs in Cruz Bay. However, Help.NGO needed his assistance in Turkey, and Andy immediately said yes.

Andy started his 30-hour journey this past Wednesday and has since arrived safely in Adana, Turkey. He is currently assisting with high-resolution drone mapping, which will be used in the earthquake search and recovery operations. Andy plans to return to St. John in early March.

I met Andy at The Upstairs earlier this week to chat about his upcoming trip. A few hours later, he sent me this text:

“Been thinking about our talk,” Andy wrote. “I’m not lost on the fact of the places I’ve gone and the things I’ve done. It comes down to a very simple thing for me. It’s just what I do. This stuff is normal. It’s not for many, and it shouldn’t be. But it is for me.”

I’m not sure how to end this post other than to say thank you. And kudos to you Andy for being a good human being who thrives off of helping others. We appreciate you.

Author: Jenn Manes