Well folks, it pays to have friends over at The Beach Bar. Kenny Chesney just did a quick pop-up performance at The Beach Bar in Cruz Bay! A big thanks to my other half, The Mike Hedy, for filming this video for all of you. Enjoy!
Looking to take a St. John island tour?
Get to know St. John. Visit beautiful beaches & centuries-old plantations. Perhaps stop at a tiki bar or two. Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor. 2023 & 2022 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Winner. Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour
Boat days are the best days. We know there are a lot of options out there when booking a day on the sea, so today I’d like to introduce you to a family-owned company that’s truly rooted in the sea – Island Roots Boat Charters.
Island Roots is owned by Jason and Jill Siska, and their adorable four-year-old son Finn. Captain Jason knows the Virgin Islands and its waters well, as he was born and raised on St. John through his early childhood. He returned to the island after college and soon met Jill, a 20+ year island resident.
Jill, Finn & Jason Siska
Jason and Jill purchased Island Roots from the late Captain John Stewart in 2012. Together they built Island Roots into one of the island’s top charter companies. Island Roots is consistently ranked one of the top ten outdoor activities in the US Virgin Islands.
“We are truly a family-owned business,” Jill told me recently. “It’s just me and Jason doing this. Island Roots was built over years and years of hard work. Over that time, we’ve been educators, firefighters, first responders, and involved community members. We are choosing to raise our family here, and we care about St. John.”
The Island Roots fleet consists of three 32′ World Cat power catamarans. Each is built for maximum comfort, and a smooth, stable ride. Island Roots offers full-day trips in both the US Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands, as well as local sunset trips. Extended trips are offered to those who want a little extra time over in the BVI.
Island Roots’ New Offerings
As you all likely know, numerous restaurants close for the off-season, including many of our water-based spots like Lime Out and Pizza Pi. As a result, Island Roots will focus exclusively on snorkeling and exploring the island’s outlying cays, bays, and beaches that are only accessible by boat. In doing so, they are now offering two four-hour, USVI boat charters. Whether you opt for the morning (8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.) or the afternoon (1 p.m. to 5 p.m.) session, you’ll have time to make three to five distinct stops during your trip. Despite the shorter trip, you will still have plenty of time to swim, snorkel, sightsee, cocktail, cruise, and explore!
Explore lesser-known spots with Island Roots Boat Charters.Island Roots’ fleet is spacious & comfortable.Island Roots can accommodate up to 24 guests on tandem trips.
Discounted Rates through October 15th
Island Roots will continue offering its full-day USVI and BVI trips, as well as its extended BVI trips and USVI sunset sails throughout the off-season. All trips will be discounted 10 percent from August 27th through October 15th.
All of Island Roots’ private boat charters are unique and customized to the interests of their guests – from birdwatchers to sunbathers, snorkelers, photographers, free-divers, cocktail connoisseurs, food enthusiasts, and folks seeking the ‘best of’ the islands to casual-fun-boaters looking to just enjoy the breeze and some time on the water.
Snorkel St. John’s beautiful mangroves on a US trip.Explore the Baths on Virgin Gorda on a BVI trip.Grab some friends & jump off the Willy T in Norman Island.Visit the Caribbean’s only floating taco bar in Coral Bay.
Island Roots provides its guests with professional-grade snorkeling equipment, as well as snorkel belts, pool noodles, mask defogger, fish identification books, and other water toys. Each boat has a freshwater rinse and comes with a cooler stocked with ice and water.
Hello everyone, and happy Monday! I apologize for being somewhat absent over the past week or so. I have been busy BUYING A HOUSE on St. John! How amazing is that??! I was convinced that I would be a lifelong renter, so to say I’m excited is an understatement. I’ll have more on this later this week. 🙂
I was perusing TripAdvisor yesterday when I saw a question regarding National Park passport stamps. In case you are unaware, the National Park Service sells a passport book for all of its National Parks. It’s similar to a regular passport, but rather than getting it stamped when you visit a new country, you get it stamped when you visit a new National Park. It’s pretty cool.
You can purchase a National Park passport book on Amazon. Just click the link below.
The stamp for the Virgin Islands National Park is located at the Visitor Center in Cruz Bay. The Visitor Center is currently getting a little makeover and its hours are limited to 8:15 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The good news is that the stamp is located outside of the main entrance, so it is available 24/7.
The stamp is located at the top of this ramp.The stamp is located outside, so it is available 24/7.
There are actually two stamps for the US Virgin Islands. One is for the Virgin Islands National Park and the second is for the Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument. So do not forget to stamp both.
Clearly I took this pic awhile ago 🙂
So there you have it. Some news you can actually use today!
Image credit: Soggy Dollar Bar, home of the original Painkiller
I think it’s pretty safe to say that the Painkiller is one of the most popular, if not the most popular, drinks on the island. It’s a sweet concoction of orange juice, pineapple juice, a coconut mixer, and, of course, a lot of rum. Fresh nutmeg is typically grated on top, and voila! You have yourself the perfect island drink.
I get asked quite often how to make a Painkiller. I am by no means a bartender, so I typically defer to my other half, The Mike Hedy, who bartends over at The Beach Bar in Cruz Bay. (Feel free to click this link to check out The Beach Bar’s bar webcam. You can watch him work tonight if you’re bored! haha) The Beach Bar keeps their recipe under wraps, but the bar that invented this famous island drink has just released the original recipe.
Soggy Dollar Bar, a great little spot located over in Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands, shared its recipe with Forbes magazine in an article published last week. This is a pretty big deal in my opinion, considering that Soggy Dollar invented the Painkiller drink back in the 1970s. So here it is, folks. The moment you’ve all been waiting for… Drum roll, please!
How to Make a Painkiller, according to Soggy Dollar Bar
Ingredients:
2 oz dark rum
1 oz Coco Lopez
1 oz pineapple juice
2 oz orange juice
Freshly grated Grenadian nutmeg
Optional: Pineapple wedge or orange wheel for garnish
Directions:
Directions:
Fill a 12-ounce glass with ice
Combine rum, Coco Lopez, pineapple, and orange juice.
Pour over ice
Garnish with freshly grated Grenadian nutmeg
Optional Direction #5:
If it’s winter, crank the heat. If it’s summer, sit out in the sun. Perhaps put Soggy Dollar’s webcam on your TV, and enjoy.
Always drink responsibly. Cheers!
Want to check out The Beach Bar and Soggy Dollar’s webcams? Visit www.explorestj.com/webcams to view these and more than 20 other live-streaming webcams from the Virgin Islands.
Looking to take a St. John island tour?
Get to know St. John. Visit beautiful beaches & centuries-old plantations. Perhaps stop at a tiki bar or two. Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor. 2023 & 2022 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Winner. Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour
Let’s help these students get much-needed school supplies! (Image from the 2022-2023 school year)
For those of you on social media, you may have seen the recent Clear the List movement. Clear the List is an initiative created to help teachers receive much-needed school supplies throughout the country. Today I’d like to help the teachers at Julius E. Sprauve School (JESS) clear their lists.
JESS is the only public elementary school in St. John. (Children attending public high school take the ferry over to St. Thomas each day.) JESS educates children from pre-k through 8th grade, and there are currently 218 children attending. Most teachers purchase their own classroom supplies, which can be quite pricey, so I am hoping some of you can pitch in and help. The school is planting a garden again this year, so Ms. Munnelly is looking for assistance purchasing items for that.
Julie King, a former JESS parent and community organizer, is spearheading the Clear the List movement once again. You can help for as little as $3.99 if you’d like to purchase a mouse pad. The priciest items on the list are much-needed ink cartridges, which cost $449 for a four-pack. Items also needed are pencils, bulletin board paper, a carpet for the kindergarteners, and more.
When you check out after adding something from the Amazon Wish List to your cart, you will see an option for Julie King’s Gift Registry under your addresses. Click that option, please. You can also send it directly to Julie King at PO Box 1469, St. John, VI 00831.
Thank you everyone for helping our community with this. It is so appreciated. The teachers received a ton of support last year. Let’s do it again!
Some of the supplies donated for the 2022-2023 school year.
Looking to take a St. John island tour?
Get to know St. John. Visit beautiful beaches & centuries-old plantations. Perhaps stop at a tiki bar or two. Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor. 2023 & 2022 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Winner. Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour
Hello everyone, and happy Monday. I apologize for posting super late today, but I am in the States recovering from a weekend-long family reunion. There are a few things going on that I wanted to share with all of you, so here we go!
Slow season has officially arrived! The beaches are quiet, and several restaurants have begun to close. The Tap Room, one of my favorite spots over at Mongoose Junction, just announced that its summer hours are officially in effect. They will now open at noon and will serve food until 8:30 p.m. The bar will stay open until 9:30 p.m.
Cool down with my Papa ExploreSTJ’s favorite beer at The Tap Room!
Our friends at North Shore Deli, another one of my favorite spots over in Mongoose Junction, have also decided to close this year, but just for a week. They will be closed between September 23rd and October 1st.
It is H-O-T on island from what I hear! The Virgin Islands National Park has been posting online that the Virgin Islands continues to be under an excessive heat warning. Luckily, we have two new air-conditioned spots on island to help beat the heat.
Cap’s Place, the bar that’s located across from the Post Office and Uncle Joe’s BBQ in Cruz Bay, is now air-conditioned. Another random fact: Cap’s Place has some of the coldest beers on island. So do yourself a favor and swing by to cool down. Don’t forget to grab a lotto ticket while you’re there.
Speaking of cold beer, another great spot is Tony’s Kitchen food truck on Centerline Road. It’s located at the Route 104 (Gifft Hill Road) intersection. Ms. Angie literally keeps her beer in an ice cooler. It doesn’t get much colder than that!
And lastly, our friends over at The Upstairs just opened The Downstairs, which is located downstairs from The Upstairs (appropriately named, right??!). The Downstairs is fully-air conditioned and looks quite cozy from the pics my friends have shared with me. Check out a couple of pics:
There’s your news for today, folks. Is it earth-shattering? Nope. But is it important to know where to cool down and where to grab a cold beer? Absolutely!
