usvi-on-line
Trip Report Part III
Trip Report Part III
Part I
http://virgin-islands-on-line.com/forum ... e15fb9a9ed
Part II
http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=23494
villa review with pictures
http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=23511
Sunday June 24th
I let our son sleep a little later this morning.
Our daughter had gotten up and requested a hike this morning. We decided to do the Cinnamon Bay hike through the ruins. We didn’t leave until around 10 am, but St John Off the Beaten Path stated it was a shady hike. So we made plans to pack lunches, hike the ½ mile hike and then spend the day at Cinnamon.
Really had to chase this little fella to get a picture:
After the hike, we were waiting to cross the road when a jeep suddenly stops and rolls down the window. I don’t know what they are going to do…but all the driver says is “Roll Tide”. My son had on his Alabama hat which I guess the driver saw. So the whole trip I don’t know how many Roll Tides and War Eagles we heard, my daughter attends Auburn…so our family is covered.
After the hike, we get our gear from the jeep and proceed to walk down to Cinnamon Bay.
We just chilled on the beach…didn’t even take our snorkel gear down to the beach today…saw a shirt later someone was wearing….”just chillaxing” that was the plan for the day….
It was a little warm when the wind wasn’t blowing today…had to jump in to cool off.
About midafternoon we decide to pack up and drive down toward the East End to check beaches on this end. Our first stop was Haulover South…We were too tired to attempt a snorkel. We just stopped to make pictures.
Now we are ready to proceed down the trail to North Haulover…the book says is it across the road…well…we can’t find it…finally I see the big board with TRAIL and an arrow painted on it:
The island is really needing some rain…a lot of the bushes are really dry looking.
After a short hike you are rewarded with this view:
It was a little choppy, but we were much too tired to snorkel today. The sun had really made us tired even though we chilled on the beach today.
We drive to the end of the road at East End, and then we head back to villa to decide what to do for dinner. Several of the restaurants we have not tried are closed on Sunday…so after some discussion we decide to drive back to Cruz Bay for lobster night at Rhumblines.
I had read a lot of reviews on Tripadvisor, and one reviewer posted they did not like going through a minimart to access the restaurant. I don’t understand the problem. The atmosphere in Rhumblines was wonderful.
My husband and son splurge tonight at get the lobster which was good but not excellent.
I got the BBQ Prawns
And as assortment of food for my daughter: Lobster Bisque, Spring rolls, Shrimp, and spicy vegetable samosas
edited to add...We also shared a piece of Reese's Peanut Butter pie which was quite good!
It was a very good meal...and the most expensive we had since we had two lobster meals. But you could eat here very reasonably also. total cost for four meals and drinks $172
We can hear the music from the Festival behind the building, but by the time we finish eating it is over.
There is a big crowd in Cruz Bay tonight due to the festival. There is also a big group that came over from St Thomas on motorcycles. (According to one of the shop workers) It is a little too crowded for us. We walk around and shop a little (go to St John spice again to pick up more coffee and some refrigerate magnets for my collection) Then we head back to the villa.
Monday June 25th
Since our boat charter did not make it Waterlemon Cay, we decide to hike out there this morning to snorkel. My daughter packs sandwiches for lunch while I cook breakfast.
Leinster Bay Trail nice easy mile hike….along the water’s edge
There were several boats in the water with snorkelers.
There was a family that had just exited the water from snorkeling. We confirmed with them to go to the right and head counterclockwise around the island.
It is a little choppy on the right side. We saw a school of blue tang.
When we reach the opposite side of the island it is like entering an aquarium full of sea life. You didn’t have to look for life…it was everywhere around you. I was wishing that I had bought an underwater camera….or bought a dry pac for mine. I can’t begin to describe how many fish were there.
We also see two starfish in the sand as we come back around the island. As we exit, my husband said the snorkel was very well worth the mile hike. This was the best snorkeling we experienced while on island.
Right before we ended our hike my son “blew out his flip flop”. All I could think of was Jimmy Buffet’s Margaretville song.
So the mile back to the jeep was a little more difficult for him. The flip flop incident requires a trip to a store for replacement.
We head back to Coral Bay, and stop at Lily’s to inquire if any stores on this side of the island sell flip flops. I was expecting just to get a cheap pair to get by. He tells us to go the shops at Skinny’s. Mumbo Jumbo and The Jolly Dog both have a good assortment. My son picks out a pair of Reef’s and we are ready to hit the next beach.
We were quite pleased with the shopping on the Coral Bay side. We visited Lily’s and Love City Mini Mart multiple times to pick up supplies. We rented our snorkel gear at Crabby’s. We also bought souvenir shirts, etc at Mumbo Jumbo and The Jolly Dog. I am not a shopper on vacation, so I was perfectly happy with the selection and availability in Coral Bay.
It had turned overcast, and my daughter had wanted to do the Ram Head hike, so we decide to try it. We leave our son on the beach at Salt Pond and proceed to the trail.
Blue Cobblestone from above
Blue Cobblestone We did not snorkel….wonder what all we missed?
Since there was some effort involved I took quite a few pictures. (as you can tell) I had forgotten about my panoramic view on my new camera…so we decided to test it out. Great views from up here…worth the hike up….
We make it back to Salt Pond, eat our sandwiches and relax. When we get back to the villa, we have a brief rain shower. It only lasted about ten minutes. I was really hoping it would rain for a little while…the cisterns and island really needed some rain.
Dinner tonight:
Sylvia’s Clean Plates next to Donkey Diner
Menu for the night which she explained to us:
Breaded grouper with mango salad
Salt fish and ackee (national dish of Jamaica according to Sylvia) with red beans and rice and okra and spinach
Stewed Pork with rice and beans, and spinach and okra
Another Salt Fish and Ackee with sweet potato stuffing and rice
Our meal was very good. The menu changes depending on what is available.
total meals for four $75 and drinks were separate from the bar $9.50
Tomorrow is our last full day on island and we plan to go to Vie’s Beach and eat lunch there…really looking forward to this!
http://virgin-islands-on-line.com/forum ... e15fb9a9ed
Part II
http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=23494
villa review with pictures
http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=23511
Sunday June 24th
I let our son sleep a little later this morning.
Our daughter had gotten up and requested a hike this morning. We decided to do the Cinnamon Bay hike through the ruins. We didn’t leave until around 10 am, but St John Off the Beaten Path stated it was a shady hike. So we made plans to pack lunches, hike the ½ mile hike and then spend the day at Cinnamon.
Really had to chase this little fella to get a picture:
After the hike, we were waiting to cross the road when a jeep suddenly stops and rolls down the window. I don’t know what they are going to do…but all the driver says is “Roll Tide”. My son had on his Alabama hat which I guess the driver saw. So the whole trip I don’t know how many Roll Tides and War Eagles we heard, my daughter attends Auburn…so our family is covered.
After the hike, we get our gear from the jeep and proceed to walk down to Cinnamon Bay.
We just chilled on the beach…didn’t even take our snorkel gear down to the beach today…saw a shirt later someone was wearing….”just chillaxing” that was the plan for the day….
It was a little warm when the wind wasn’t blowing today…had to jump in to cool off.
About midafternoon we decide to pack up and drive down toward the East End to check beaches on this end. Our first stop was Haulover South…We were too tired to attempt a snorkel. We just stopped to make pictures.
Now we are ready to proceed down the trail to North Haulover…the book says is it across the road…well…we can’t find it…finally I see the big board with TRAIL and an arrow painted on it:
The island is really needing some rain…a lot of the bushes are really dry looking.
After a short hike you are rewarded with this view:
It was a little choppy, but we were much too tired to snorkel today. The sun had really made us tired even though we chilled on the beach today.
We drive to the end of the road at East End, and then we head back to villa to decide what to do for dinner. Several of the restaurants we have not tried are closed on Sunday…so after some discussion we decide to drive back to Cruz Bay for lobster night at Rhumblines.
I had read a lot of reviews on Tripadvisor, and one reviewer posted they did not like going through a minimart to access the restaurant. I don’t understand the problem. The atmosphere in Rhumblines was wonderful.
My husband and son splurge tonight at get the lobster which was good but not excellent.
I got the BBQ Prawns
And as assortment of food for my daughter: Lobster Bisque, Spring rolls, Shrimp, and spicy vegetable samosas
edited to add...We also shared a piece of Reese's Peanut Butter pie which was quite good!
It was a very good meal...and the most expensive we had since we had two lobster meals. But you could eat here very reasonably also. total cost for four meals and drinks $172
We can hear the music from the Festival behind the building, but by the time we finish eating it is over.
There is a big crowd in Cruz Bay tonight due to the festival. There is also a big group that came over from St Thomas on motorcycles. (According to one of the shop workers) It is a little too crowded for us. We walk around and shop a little (go to St John spice again to pick up more coffee and some refrigerate magnets for my collection) Then we head back to the villa.
Monday June 25th
Since our boat charter did not make it Waterlemon Cay, we decide to hike out there this morning to snorkel. My daughter packs sandwiches for lunch while I cook breakfast.
Leinster Bay Trail nice easy mile hike….along the water’s edge
There were several boats in the water with snorkelers.
There was a family that had just exited the water from snorkeling. We confirmed with them to go to the right and head counterclockwise around the island.
It is a little choppy on the right side. We saw a school of blue tang.
When we reach the opposite side of the island it is like entering an aquarium full of sea life. You didn’t have to look for life…it was everywhere around you. I was wishing that I had bought an underwater camera….or bought a dry pac for mine. I can’t begin to describe how many fish were there.
We also see two starfish in the sand as we come back around the island. As we exit, my husband said the snorkel was very well worth the mile hike. This was the best snorkeling we experienced while on island.
Right before we ended our hike my son “blew out his flip flop”. All I could think of was Jimmy Buffet’s Margaretville song.
So the mile back to the jeep was a little more difficult for him. The flip flop incident requires a trip to a store for replacement.
We head back to Coral Bay, and stop at Lily’s to inquire if any stores on this side of the island sell flip flops. I was expecting just to get a cheap pair to get by. He tells us to go the shops at Skinny’s. Mumbo Jumbo and The Jolly Dog both have a good assortment. My son picks out a pair of Reef’s and we are ready to hit the next beach.
We were quite pleased with the shopping on the Coral Bay side. We visited Lily’s and Love City Mini Mart multiple times to pick up supplies. We rented our snorkel gear at Crabby’s. We also bought souvenir shirts, etc at Mumbo Jumbo and The Jolly Dog. I am not a shopper on vacation, so I was perfectly happy with the selection and availability in Coral Bay.
It had turned overcast, and my daughter had wanted to do the Ram Head hike, so we decide to try it. We leave our son on the beach at Salt Pond and proceed to the trail.
Blue Cobblestone from above
Blue Cobblestone We did not snorkel….wonder what all we missed?
Since there was some effort involved I took quite a few pictures. (as you can tell) I had forgotten about my panoramic view on my new camera…so we decided to test it out. Great views from up here…worth the hike up….
We make it back to Salt Pond, eat our sandwiches and relax. When we get back to the villa, we have a brief rain shower. It only lasted about ten minutes. I was really hoping it would rain for a little while…the cisterns and island really needed some rain.
Dinner tonight:
Sylvia’s Clean Plates next to Donkey Diner
Menu for the night which she explained to us:
Breaded grouper with mango salad
Salt fish and ackee (national dish of Jamaica according to Sylvia) with red beans and rice and okra and spinach
Stewed Pork with rice and beans, and spinach and okra
Another Salt Fish and Ackee with sweet potato stuffing and rice
Our meal was very good. The menu changes depending on what is available.
total meals for four $75 and drinks were separate from the bar $9.50
Tomorrow is our last full day on island and we plan to go to Vie’s Beach and eat lunch there…really looking forward to this!
Last edited by CBama on Sat Jul 07, 2012 10:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
I feel like I am back on island again and with you on your adventure. I love your panorama pictures. Thanks for your food pictures and prices. We want to try Sylvia's clean plates in Jan.
It was our first time snorkeling Haulover North and it was our favorite this year. Every year we seem to get a new favorite snorkel spot.
It was our first time snorkeling Haulover North and it was our favorite this year. Every year we seem to get a new favorite snorkel spot.
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ColumbiaSCTraveler
- Posts: 528
- Joined: Mon Apr 18, 2011 9:33 pm
- Location: Columbia, SC
I still can't get over how much y'all are packing in on your first trip!! Impressive!
And yet again - y'all are still doing more stuff as newbies than we have yet to do!!!! Ram's Head Hike, Cinnamon Bay trail, Leinster, Rhumblines.
WOW!
Can't wait to add these to this year's "to-do" list!
THANKS for the amazing trip reports!
And yet again - y'all are still doing more stuff as newbies than we have yet to do!!!! Ram's Head Hike, Cinnamon Bay trail, Leinster, Rhumblines.
WOW!
Can't wait to add these to this year's "to-do" list!
THANKS for the amazing trip reports!
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EagleRayLover
- Posts: 1474
- Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2011 8:56 pm
- Location: St. John -WooHoo!!
cindygad: I always like reports that included the food and pricing so I tried to take notes. (my notes were lacking though and I had to pull out some receipts) We enjoyed Clean Plates and Jessica's Kitchen both...the food was just as good as the regular restaurants, We were the only customers at Clean Plates except for one man at the bar and then another lady came in and ate at the bar. next report will include Vie's which was very good also.
NJsurfsup...yes we did..try to work on that and travel day later this weekend....then a wrap up and comments
ColumbiaSC trav: thanks....I had read about all these places for so long we tried to pack as much in as we could..after reading Augie's part IV I really wish we had done the Annaberg Ruins hike...I still have lots of things on to do list...BUT unfortunately it will probably be at least 5 years or longer before we can make it back.
I am going to miss typing up the reports when I finish....vacation will officially be over then...but now I can actually offer advice from someone who has actually stayed on island for a week and experienced some of the amazing places to visit.
NJsurfsup...yes we did..try to work on that and travel day later this weekend....then a wrap up and comments
ColumbiaSC trav: thanks....I had read about all these places for so long we tried to pack as much in as we could..after reading Augie's part IV I really wish we had done the Annaberg Ruins hike...I still have lots of things on to do list...BUT unfortunately it will probably be at least 5 years or longer before we can make it back.
I am going to miss typing up the reports when I finish....vacation will officially be over then...but now I can actually offer advice from someone who has actually stayed on island for a week and experienced some of the amazing places to visit.
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loverotties
- Posts: 221
- Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 2:02 pm
- Location: PA
I have really enjoyed reading your reports & gazing at your pics . We will definitly be doing lots of hiking & snorkling & loved actually seeing them in pics !!! I'm so hungry this morning & your food pics has my stomach growling Clean Plates & Jessica's Kitchen looks wonderful ! Thanks for taking us along the ride .. . . .
Wrinkles Only Go Where The Smiles Have Been !