Hello everyone, and happy Wednesday. There are a few things happening this week that you maybe interested in.
Good Friday
Just a reminder that there are no distilled alcohol sales from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, April 7th. Beer, wine and seltzer sales are not affected by this restriction.
Saturday, April 8th
Cruz Bay Clean Up: Get Trashed is holding a clean up in and around Cruz Bay on Saturday, April 8th from 10 a.m. until noon. Please meet at High Tide at 10 a.m. All participants will receive a free drink courtesy of High Tide.
Maho Crossroads is having an Easter egg hunt on Sunday, April 8th at 12:30 p.m. This is a free event.
Easter Sunday
The Caneel Bay Beach Club in partnership with Society 340 is having an Easter egg hunt at Honeymoon Beach on Sunday, April 8th from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. There is a free shuttle for parents that leaves the entrance of Caneel Bay at 1 p.m. The egg hunt starts at 2 p.m. This is a free event.
Well folks, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that is looks like the island is about to receive some much-needed rain. The bad news is that some of you may have a few soggy vacation days later this week if the current forecast holds true.
This week’s forecast per Wunderground.com
For those of you who have visited St. John in recent weeks, you have seen how dry the island is. What should be beautiful green rolling hills is actually brown and quite crunchy looking in numerous spots across the island. Driving has been a tad trickier than normal too, as the water trucks have been quite busy keeping up with the demand.
So you may be wondering, “what the heck do I do in a place where nearly everything is outdoors?” Well here are my suggestions. 🙂
The Cruz Bay 500Â
This one is for all of the adults out there. Act like a resident and try your luck with the infamous Cruz Bay 500. Start at one bar and restaurant, and see how far you make it during the day… drinking responsibly along the way, of course. The Beach Bar and High Tide are two great spots to spend a rainy day at if you’re looking for a waterfront spot in Cruz Bay, and The Tap Room is another great spot over in Mongoose Junction. A bonus is that it is mostly indoors, so you can stay nice and dry over there. Remember, most of our restaurants are open air, so you will definitely want to bring a rain jacket, an umbrella and perhaps even a hat. It can get a tad chilly too on rainy days (the dreaded 70s… ha!), so you may want to pack a hoodie too.
The Upstairs, Cruz Bay’s newest bar, is bringing back “Rain Shots” made popular during that location’s Crazy Crackers days. They’re offering $3 shots of Jamo, Jager, Milagro and Bombs whenever it’s raining out.
Not feeling the Cruz Bay 500? Then check out our fantastic shops that are located around Cruz Bay. Mongoose Junction is always a beautiful spot in the rain, and if it rains hard enough, a small river will form in the gut that flows underneath it.
Coral Bay
Skinny Legs will definitely be a great spot to spend a few hours on a rainy day. It has a large covered dining area and Mumbo Jumbo, the retail shop beside Skinny’s is one of my favorites. You can also check out my friend Leah’s new shop, The Pirate’s Cove, which is right across the street. Jolly Dog, which is located beside Salty Mongoose, is another great place to visit for some rainy day retail therapy.
Hike to a Waterfall
If it really does rain as forecasted, a waterfall will form at Reef Bay. This is definitely a sneaker or sandals with straps kind of hike, as it will definitely be slippery. The trailhead for the Reef Bay trail is about five miles outside of Cruz Bay and about three miles outside of Coral Bay on Route 10, also known as Centerline Road. The trail is 2.1 miles in each direction if you are going from the road to the ocean, and it is quite steep. There is a spur trail on the right that will lead you to the petroglyphs where the waterfall will form. Pack a bag, bring snacks and plenty of water for this hike.
This is a pretty old pic, but how beautiful is this??! Image credit: Steve Simonsen Photography
Explore St. John’s History
There are so many interesting historical sites to check out around the island. Spend some time over at Catherineberg, the site of a very interesting and unusual windmill. Catherineberg is located three miles outside of Cruz Bay, just off of Centerline Road. Click here to read a recent article I wrote about Catherineberg.
The windmill at Catherineberg
You can also check out the Cinnamon Bay Sugar Factory on Route 20 or North Shore Road. There is even a little nature trail behind the sugar factory that is a pretty cool thing to check out. You will definitely want to bring a rain jacket, hat and umbrella for this excursion.
The boiling house at Cinnamon Bay.
And if none of these activities sound fun to you, curl up at home with a good book. There is a bookstore at The Marketplace in Cruz Bay, just outside of Starfish Market.
Not on St. John, but you want to see what’s happening this week or at anytime? Check out my webcam page at www.explorestj.com/webcams. I have more than 20 live streaming webcams to watch.
That’s all for today, folks. Have a great one!
Looking to take a St. John island tour?
Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.
I don’t know about you, but nothing sounds more amazing than waking up in White Bay. Not familiar with this little slice of heaven? White Bay is a picturesque bay with the most turquoise blue waters and gleaming white sand over on Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands. It’s home of the wildly popular Soggy Dollar Bar and other fun watering holes.
I am excited to tell you today that reservations are now available at Soggy Dollar’s new hotel – the Sandcastle.
There are four cottages – two beachfront and two garden view – as well as two garden view rooms available for rent. All rooms have a two-person maximum, and there is a minimum three-night stay for all reservations. On the flip side, there is a 10-night maximum, so I guess we can’t try to leave at the Soggy Dollar forever. Darn!
I did a quick check for you, and it looks like the garden view rooms start at $390, the garden view cottages are $425 and the beachfront cottages are $455 a night. Check out a few pics:
A beachfront cottage at Soggy Dollar BarInside a beachfront cottage at Soggy Dollar BarA second view inside a beachfront cottage at Soggy Dollar BarA garden view room at Soggy Dollar BarInside a garden view room at Soggy Dollar Bar
I truly think the place looks great! The hotel officially opens on Monday, May 15th. Visit www.soggydollar.com/hotel to make reservations.
(All images are credited to Soggy Dollar Bar.)
Looking to take a St. John island tour?
Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.
Island Green Living is holding a raffle to coincide with Earth Month, and for just $50, you can enter to win a prize package valued at more than $11,000.
Island Green Living is a St. John nonprofit dedicated to sustainability throughout the US Virgin Islands and beyond. It has been a trailblazer for green initiatives in the territory since its inception in 2004. In 2014, the organization expanded in order to address the plethora of environmental challenges in the region such as overflowing landfills, accelerated coral damage due to toxic sunscreen, lack of recycling, food security, clean energy, and other aspects of sustainable living. This raffle will help fund those initiatives.
For just $50, you can enter to win the following prize package:
A seven-night stay for two at Gallows Point Resort in a spacious one-bedroom ocean view villa
An airfare voucher up to $1,000
One week jeep rental courtesy of Seashell Vacations
A Beach Hideaway for two at Lovango Resort + Beach Club. The winners will enjoy a day at the Beach Club including access to the beach, pool, island hiking trails, snorkeling, a dedicated server. The package also includes roundtrip transportation, a welcome cocktail and a bottle of Prosecco.
A two-hour private taco run on Salt Deck to the legendary Lime Out floating taco bar
A $250 gift certificate to be used toward any available sail on Kekoa
A private two-hour sunset sail for up to six people on Sailing Asante including drinks and snacks
A $100 gift certificate to Caravan Gallery in Mongoose Junction
A $250 gift certificate to La Tapa Plage
A $200 gift certificate to Lime Out (to be combined with the Salt Deck boat trip listed above)
A $50 gift certificate to the new Dazey Drive In, serving handcrafted Caribbean Shave Ice, smoothies, Irie Pops and superfood drinks in Coral Bay.
A supply of Caribbean Sol, a coral-safe mineral sunscreen that is compliant with the USVI’s ban on sunscreen
Voluntourism opportunity & private tour at Island Green Living’s ReSource Depot.
What an amazing raffle!
Again, entries are just $50 per ticket. You can buy six tickets for a discounted rate of $250. There is no limit on entries because Island Green is trying to raise as much money as possible to fund its programs. The raffle period will end at midnight on April 30th. The winner will be announced live on Island Green’s Facebook page on May 5th at 2 p.m. local time.
Today is Transfer Day here in the US Virgin Islands. This event is recognized each year in March 31st, which is the date that the Danish West Indies formally ceded to the United States by Denmark in 1917. The exchange cost the United States $25 million in gold.
The following information is courtesy of the Royal Danish Consulate, which has a location on St. Thomas:Â
The United States’ interest in the Virgin Islands was primarily for their strategic location, while any economic benefits were secondary. The islands represented a much needed foothold in the Caribbean for the American Navy, and later were looked toward as a base to guard the Panama Canal. American negotiations with the Danish government can be characterized as ones of strategic diplomacy. All offers of proposed purchase came on the heels of American military conflicts.
American interest in the Virgin Islands dates back to as early as the mid-1860s. At the eve of the Civil War, budding American imperialism and the need for a Caribbean naval base, prompted Secretary of State William H. Seward to begin to investigate the islands as a possible coaling station for U.S. naval and merchant vessels. On October 24, 1867, after nearly two years of extensive negotiation and a visit to the islands by Seward himself, the Danish government ratified a treaty in which Denmark would cede the islands of St. Thomas and St. John to the United States. The price was to be seven and a half million dollars in gold, provided the treaty received the consent of the islands’ population. Unfortunately, within a year, the islands were visited by a hurricane, an earthquake, a tsunami and a fire.
The tsunami was so severe that it left the steamer, the USS Monongahela, Commodore Bissel, and its crew, stranded on the Frederiksted wharf. However, for more than two years, the treaty failed to receive the ratification of the United States Congress in response to the wave of natural disasters, the imperialistic overtones of the treaty, and concerns over the possible impeachment of President Andrew Johnson.
By the end of the Spanish American War, Secretary of State John Hay expressed renewed interest in the Virgin Islands to the Danish government. Beginning on January 29, 1900, and over another two years, a new treaty was negotiated, in which the Danish government would cede the islands of St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix to the United States for the sum of five million dollars. The treaty was ratified by the U.S. Congress. However, the Danes returned the thirty year-old diplomatic insult, and neither house of the Danish legislature ratified the treaty.
Subtle efforts to negotiate the purchase of the Virgin Islands by the United States continued after the failure of the Treaty of 1902. However, by 1915 American interest had become heightened by fears of the impending crisis in Europe. The General Board, headed by Admiral Dewey informed Secretary of State Robert Lansing, that the purchase of the islands would not be advantageous as the site of an American naval base in light of the recent acquisition of Puerto Rico, but that the purchase would be wise in order to deter any other power from gaining bases in the Caribbean. Dewey, felt that this tactical defense of the Panama Canal was just politically by the Monroe Doctrine and by increased German efforts to consolidate the islands through commercial, diplomatic or perhaps even military means.
In March of 1916, Secretary Lansing sent a drafted treaty to the Danish Ambassador in Copenhagen, Dr. Maurice Egan, offering twenty-five million dollars in gold coins for the islands with instructions to deliver the proposal to the Danish government. On August 14, 1916, at the Biltmore Hotel in New York City, a revised treaty was signed by Danish Minister Constantin Brun and Secretary of State Lansing. The US Senate approved the treaty on September 7, 1916 and by December 21, 1916 the Danish Rigsdag had approved the treaty as well. Finally, on January 17, 1917 the treaty ratifications were exchanged and the treaty finalized.
The official transfer of the Danish West Indies to the United States did not occur until 4:00 PM on March 31st, 1917, when a formal ceremony was held in the islands. At the State Department, a U.S. Treasury Warrant for twenty-five million dollars was given to Danish Minister Brun.
A copy of the treasury warrant was recently on display at Annaberg.
If you have ever spent time at Maho Bay, you may have noticed the remains of a reddish building perched high atop the hill on the lefthand side of the bay. That building is the America Hill Great House. Today I am going to tell you about its storied past, and I will also provide directions for those of you who’d like to visit it.
It is believed that the buildings at America Hill date back to the early 1800s when Denmark ruled St. John. (The Danes controlled St. John from 1718 through 1917.) In the early 1900s, the great house was used as a small guest house for people visiting the island. It is believed that one of the last visitors at the guest house was Rafael Trujillo, the Dominican Republic dictator. It is also believed that the site was used as a headquarters for rum runners during the prohibition era. Pretty interesting stuff.
How to Get to America HillÂ
The trailhead for the trail to America Hill is located beside the Cinnamon Bay Sugar Factory site on North Shore Road or Route 20 on the map. You can park in the Cinnamon Bay parking lot, or there is one parking space beside the sugar factory. The trail to America Hill is a spur trail off of the Cinnamon Bay trail, which at one point was an old Danish road that connected what is now North Shore and Centerline roads.
The trail to America Hill is only .6 miles or 1.2 miles roundtrip. You will start by talking the Cinnamon Bay trail. The trail is rather steep at the beginning, but the recent addition of stairs makes the initial climb a bit easier. After a roughly five-minute climb, you will eventually cross a gut. The spur trail to America Hill is on your lefthand side about 50 yards after the gut crossing.
After you take a left onto the America Hill spur trail, you will encounter five switchbacks before getting to the Great House. You are climbing uphill and it’s pretty hot here, so be sure to take breaks if needed and also bring plenty of water. This is definitely a sneaker or a sandal with straps hike. This is not a flip flop hike in my opinion.
When you arrive at America Hill, you will see warning signs posted by the National Park that inform visitors that the structures are dangerous. You cannot walk inside of the guest house as it is not safe. So please keep a safe distance when visiting America Hill.
It was common in the 1800s for the cookhouse, or kitchen, to be built as a separate structure. What is left of the cookhouse is located to the right of the great house. There are remnants of a cistern and a well to the left of the great house. Check out some images and video I took last week:
Looking for information on other hiking trails on St. John? Visit www.explorestj.com/hiking for details on other popular hikes.
