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Question about swimming in to the Baths
We took a bag (towels and camera) with us last time, which was a huge mistake. We needed all of our hands and feet to do the full tour. There are parts that are a scramble over rock slippery with sand and I was glad to be wearing water shoes.Connie wrote: I don't like doing that "crab" crawl and some of the climbing was tough, especially when we were in bare feet.
The tours in front of us were moving at a brisk pace.
There is beach bar shack at the entrance should you need refreshment!
The swim in will be over your head but it is not far.
When we went on the NH2 tour there was a lady on the boat who was 5 or 6 months pregnant. I felt so bad for her when we were doing the walking tour! There was a part where you had to get on your belly and shimmy under a rock formation. There was also a part where you had to hold on to a rope bridge, walk over planks, etc. I definitely would not bring anything except for an otterbox. It's a tight squeeze at times. The pregnant woman got scraped up from some of the tight areas.
Connie, I understand how you feel. I went once and once was enough. It takes so long to get there. Maybe if I was staying on Virgin Gorda I would feel differently.
When we went on the NH2 tour there was a lady on the boat who was 5 or 6 months pregnant. I felt so bad for her when we were doing the walking tour! There was a part where you had to get on your belly and shimmy under a rock formation. There was also a part where you had to hold on to a rope bridge, walk over planks, etc. I definitely would not bring anything except for an otterbox. It's a tight squeeze at times. The pregnant woman got scraped up from some of the tight areas.
Connie, I understand how you feel. I went once and once was enough. It takes so long to get there. Maybe if I was staying on Virgin Gorda I would feel differently.
It's like looking in your soup and finding a whole different alphabet.
We're really captivated by the boulder beaches and particularly the caves. Being in the caves alone is a very different experience than filing through them in a group. Our first trip to VG was a day trip by ferry from STJ. We were able to move about at our own pace and hung out on Devils Bay waiting for the tour groups to leave so we could have a quiet, peaceful experience in the caves. It also gave us a taste of the island rather than just hitting the Baths then moving on to the next tour stop. The ferry is the least expensive way to get to VG from STJ and also gives the most time actually on the island.
Even better was spending a week on VG. We went to the Baths a few times at different times of day, never when many people were around. The light in the caves changes throughout the day and gives different areas a different feel at different times.
The groups swimming in did seem to be guided through that space that had to be wriggled under and through and I didn't understand why. There are other entries that are more comfortable and that one didn't seem enjoyable for people. We really love the Baths but I think we'd have very different feelings if our only exposure to them had been with a charter group.
Even better was spending a week on VG. We went to the Baths a few times at different times of day, never when many people were around. The light in the caves changes throughout the day and gives different areas a different feel at different times.
The groups swimming in did seem to be guided through that space that had to be wriggled under and through and I didn't understand why. There are other entries that are more comfortable and that one didn't seem enjoyable for people. We really love the Baths but I think we'd have very different feelings if our only exposure to them had been with a charter group.