Am going camping at Cinnamon Bay in April and plan to do some hiking, etc. What exactly are mongoose and are they a problem. Also, any other animals we should watch out for???

I have been to St. John numerous times and I really don't think of mongoose as a problem. Maybe, if you left all your food outside, exposed, they might come along and eat it. But otherwise, they are harmless. They were brought to the island to eat the snakes, which are basically all gone.

I've also been camping at Cinnamon Bay. The Mongoose population was never a problem. They don't let you get real close anyway. The native Donkey's are a real pain though. They are all over the place and really believe that your tent is fair game at any time of the day or night. Have you ever been awakened by a donkey squealing at 3:00 am about 6 inches from your head? Just keep a sense of humor. The rest is paradise. Enjoy it all!

John,<BR><BR>Mongoose (mongeese? mongooses?)are not a problem at all. They are like ferrets, and you usually see them in the distance as they run away when you get close.<BR>The donkey thing is unsettling in the middle of the night, but shortlived.<BR>The one thing that almost drove me over the edge happened when my wife and I were staying at Long Bay in Tortola. Chickens run loose everywhere -- not a problem in itself, but every 10th chicken is a rooster, and each rooster is trying to be the alpha rooster. That means they crow at the slightest provocation. They crow when they wake up at 4 AM to go to the bathroom. They crow at 6 AM when they think the sun may be coming up. They crow at 6:15 AM when they are fairly certain the sun is coming up. They crow at 6:22 AM when that are convinced the sun is coming up.<BR>You get the picture. After an evening with a wonderful dinner, some (maybe more than some) wine, a few glasses of port and a cigar, when I finally hit the sack, I want to sleep until noon (or 9 AM at least). <BR>And twhen the rooster group started its debate about who was the toughest, strongest, loudest -- every single day. On the third day I jumped up, pulled on shorts, found my tennis racquet and ran out to convert a couple of roosters into that night's entree, if I could just please get close enough to strangle them.<BR>Of course I couldn't get close enough, so I started throwing rocks at them and screaming obscenities at them in my mind.<BR>My wife just looked out the window and laughed at me as I crashed around in the bushes.<BR>After 20 minutes,I retreated to the room, beaten, sweaty, and wishing the tein throbbing in my forehead would stop.<BR>I will say that I take a special pleasure everytime I eat chicken now. Although my arm twitches a little when I see the word 'chicken' on the menu.<BR>Boy, did I hate those roosters.

For future reference, the plural of mongoose, is mongoose dem, at least when you're in the islands.<BR><BR>One of the little beggers sat in my pack and ate my peanut butter and Jelly sandwich while I was snorkeling at Waterlemon Cay. Live and learn.

Mongoose are not a problem. I would watch out for the scorpions. They are not venomous but sure hurt like hell. I also had the same problem with the rooster but did not mind. It was out wake up call and thus gave us more time to enjoy the island. We would have "wasted" time sleeping if not for them critters.

Dem mongoose were brought to the island to eat rats, not snakes. Unfortunately, the rats are nocturnal and dem mongoose are not. So, I guess it was a draw in that particular situation.<BR>If you are a genuinely nice tourist, I would say that dem mongoose are not a problem. If you are picky and snooty, however, I would have to tell you that dem mongoose are large, hairy, and mean with huge fangs who like to eat first time visitors for breakfast, so watch out!<BR>

CJ - that's mongoose dem, not "dem mongoose." Now that that's out of the way, the mongoose should not be too much of a problem, but keep your food in containers anyway. I lived on St. Croix for 10 years and after Hurricane Hugo, had to apartment hop every month or so and out cats had to stay outside at our various homes. The mongoose dem found the cat food bowls and were viscious towards the cats! Wouldn't let them near the food bowls. Anyway, enjoy. Camped at Cinnamon Bay 15 years ago and had a blast!