You might find the rocks on St. John, US Virgin Islands quite ordinary when you set out on your hiking trail for the first time yet after you adjust your eyes to the radiating sunshine of the Caribbean, you will be able to see a few carved drawings.
Some of the important hikes you can take while you are staying at your St John villa rental include the following:
Cinnamon Bay Trail
This lightly trafficked trail is almost 2 miles and is used primarily for hiking and is accessible all year. You can take your dog on this hike but must be kept on a leash. It is a self-guided tour and is wheelchair and stroller friendly. Depending on your pace the hike can range from 30 minutes to an hour. While on the trail you can see the ruins of the plantation and the above-ground tombs of the former plantation owner’s wife and children located in the shady grove of the genip and bay rum trees that continue to grow on the plantation.
Peace Hill Trail to Denis Bay Beach
The Peace Hill Trail is less than a mile and is one of the easier hikes to take. As you leave the parking lot you can see the Peace Hill ruins to the left of the fork. The Oppenheimer and Hawksnest beaches will stretch out on your left with Trunk Bay on your right. When you get to the top of the hill you will be able to see the ruin of a windmill that was built in the late 1700s for the Denis Bay Plantation.
Ram Head Trail
To get to the Ram Head Trail, park at Salt Pond Bay. You can drop your snorkeling gear and beach chairs at a shady area on the beach before you begin your hike. This is a fairly easy hike with great views along the beaches with cacti along the trail. If you go to the southern end of the beach you can take an easy hike to Drunk Bay Beach. Dogs are welcome on the trail but they must be leashed.
Petroglyphs and Reef Bay Trail
The Petroglyphs and Reef Bay Trail is an approximately 5-mile round-trip trail that is moderately strenuous with an elevation of more than 800 feet. The trailhead is well-marked. The vegetation you will see along this trail is vegetation that had never been cleared during the plantation days and gives you an idea of the island’s original subtropical forest. Along the trail, there will be a worker’s village that had been inhabited up till the 1940s.
There is a detour about a quarter of a mile from the start of the trail that will lead you to the petroglyphs, the ancient rock art carvings of mysterious faces that are located at the base of the valley’s waterfall. It has been determined that they were made around 900-1500 AD by the pre-Columbian Taino people and their ancestors.
After rejoining the trail you will come to the ruins of the last operating sugar mill on the island if you stay on the trail and go straight. There you will see the steam engine that was imported from Glasgow, the remains of a rum still, and the remains of a horse mill.
Lind Point Trail
Lind Point Trail is an easy 2-mile hike, round-trip. The trail begins just steps beyond the US Virgin Islands National Park Visitor Center and is a great way to get to Solomon Beach and Honeymoon Beach.
The trail forks to Upper and Lower Lind Point less than a quarter mile into the hike. If you take the Lower Lind Point trail you can see the blue waters and even a passing cruise ship. The Upper Lind Point will lead you to an overlook with a view of Cruz Bay.
Eventually, the two points meet and can take you to Salomon Beach. Since Salomon Beach is only accessible by hiking to it you may be one of the few people on the beach. In order to get to Honeymoon Beach, you will need to get back on the Salomon Trail and continue straight to Honeymoon Beach.
The trail is open year-round and dogs are welcomed with a leash.
