St. John Trip Report Part II
Mar 11th, 2005, 05:41 AM
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St. John Trip Report Part II
Hi island lovers, I’m back for the second installment of my trip report. My hubby and I are both early risers, and on Sun the 20th we headed to Little Lameshur and got there about 7:30-7:45. We took advantage of having the entire beach to ourselves and just strolled back and forth on the waters edge for about an hour. As others started to arrive we settled in our beach chairs for a while, and then ventured into the water for some snorkeling. On our way to Little Lameshur we noticed Missy Lucy’s had a sign for a Jazz Brunch, so at 10:30 we packed up and headed there. When we got there, there was already a line of people waiting for tables so we skipped it and went back to our villa to rinse off and went to Woody’s for lunch. Back to the villa for music and relaxation by the pool. A friend of ours was flying in from Toronto that day to join us for our second week on the island. I made some calls to make sure she made her connection in Miami. She called when she landed and said she wouldn’t make the 5pm ferry and would take the 6pm. So we went to the Beach Bar (which had a great jazz band that I can’t remember the name of for the life of me) and waited for the ferry to get in. We brought our friend back to the villa to unpack and get settled and then to Island Blues for dinner and drinks before returning to the villa for some TV and bed.
On Monday we took our friend Lyn to both Lameshur beaches ( Little Lameshur has better snorkeling in my opinion) for her first taste of snorkeling. She had no problems and took to it right away. We saw plenty of cool fish, urchins and even some squid! If I remember correctly we went to Woody’s for lunch. Lyn had her first try of clams and shrimp (she’s breaking out of her vegetarianism) and liked it. We did our gift shopping in Cruz Bay and spent the rest of the afternoon just driving around ( we put 500 miles on the jeep in 2 weeks) taking in the scenery. For dinner, take out from Sticky Fingers with some Mac-n- cheese at the villa.
Tuesday was back to diving again. Lyn had never been scubaing before so she did a “Discover Scuba” course. We were at Tektite and her first dive she had to master some skills so hubby and I let her concentrate on that while we tried to improve our underwater photo skills. She handled the scuba just fine so we all did the second dive together. Lots of cool stuff to be seen there…..lobster, sea turtle and of course plenty of fish and coral.
Back to the villa for some lunch and naps for hubby and Lyn. I think we ended up staying in for the rest of that day. Dinner and a movie at the villa.
On Wednesday we went out for our last dives. Since Lyn had mastered “Discover Scuba”, she was allowed to dive to 40ft. We motored to Pelican Rock, which I believe is in the Hurricane Hole area, for 2 really nice dives. It’s also a good snorkel spot. We went back to Coral Bay and said our goodbyes to Jay of St. John Dive Adventures. We’ll really miss him on our future visits to STJ. Diving really seemed to tire my hubby and Lyn so naps were needed again. Went to Chloe & Bernard’s for an excellent dinner that couldn’t be beat. Great food, atmosphere and service. We took North shore back to the villa with a stop at Maho to enjoy the moonlit beach before some tv and bed.
Thursday morning was grey and rainy which concerned me because we had parasailing planned for 11am, but by that time it had cleared so no problems. Parasailing was very cool and I highly recommend it. Allison at Rejuvenation vacations set it up for us. The guys met us at the national park dock and we had a great time with them. Lyn and I went up first since we’d never done it before and my hubby had. The guys let me go up again with my husband for no extra charge. That second trip up the wind got a little rough and I was happy I didn’t hurl all over me and my husband at 600ft. I would definitely do it again (the views were amazing) just not twice in a row. I think we had lunch at Woody’s again then more random rambling about the island. We stayed in that night at the villa and had a full moon party for 3. Music, movies and drinks lasted till about 2am so we slept in the next morning.
I had left Friday open to let Lyn choose what we were to do that day since it was her last. Good thing I left it open cause I would have had to cancel what ever our plans were due to the weather. Rain, strong winds and a thick blanket of fog kept us at the villa that day except for a trip to Island Blues for lunch. Actually we all enjoyed that day despite or because of the weather. I had a great time taking scenic pictures of the extreme weather. Some of the pictures from this trip are posted at http://community.webshots.com/user/jofus109
We went to bed relatively early because we had to get Lyn to the 6 am ferry, her flight out of stt was at 9 am. After dropping her at the ferry we drove out to a high hill on the east end to photograph the sunrise. We got some great pix then went back to the villa for some breakfast. Rain, wind and fog returned for most of the remainder of the day which led us to stay in for a quiet day in the villa. We went to Island Blues that night for dinner and music then back to the villa to pack as we were leaving ourselves the next morning.
Sunday we woke around 5:30-6:00 am and drove out to east end again for more sunrise photos. The typical St. John weather had returned…nice and sunny. Back to the villa for breakfast, showers and final packing. We met Levi from L&L Jeep at the dock to return our rental and got on the 10:00 am ferry. Our driver Freddie met us at Red Hook, since our plane wasn’t till 2 pm he dropped us in town for about an hour to wander around and buy tee-shirts then picked us up again and took us to the airport. All went smoothly on our return to JFK. All in all this was a fantastic trip! Sorry it took so long to get part 2 posted but I’ve been busy booking next years’ trip! Unable to decide between “La Sirena” on Rt. 107 between Salt Pond and Lameshur, or “Drakes Lookout” way up on Bordeaux Mt. Rd. I’ve booked them both. One week at each. Hope all who read this report enjoy it and I’d be more than happy to answer any questions anyone might have.
332 days and counting till my return to STJ.
TTFN
Jofus
On Monday we took our friend Lyn to both Lameshur beaches ( Little Lameshur has better snorkeling in my opinion) for her first taste of snorkeling. She had no problems and took to it right away. We saw plenty of cool fish, urchins and even some squid! If I remember correctly we went to Woody’s for lunch. Lyn had her first try of clams and shrimp (she’s breaking out of her vegetarianism) and liked it. We did our gift shopping in Cruz Bay and spent the rest of the afternoon just driving around ( we put 500 miles on the jeep in 2 weeks) taking in the scenery. For dinner, take out from Sticky Fingers with some Mac-n- cheese at the villa.
Tuesday was back to diving again. Lyn had never been scubaing before so she did a “Discover Scuba” course. We were at Tektite and her first dive she had to master some skills so hubby and I let her concentrate on that while we tried to improve our underwater photo skills. She handled the scuba just fine so we all did the second dive together. Lots of cool stuff to be seen there…..lobster, sea turtle and of course plenty of fish and coral.
Back to the villa for some lunch and naps for hubby and Lyn. I think we ended up staying in for the rest of that day. Dinner and a movie at the villa.
On Wednesday we went out for our last dives. Since Lyn had mastered “Discover Scuba”, she was allowed to dive to 40ft. We motored to Pelican Rock, which I believe is in the Hurricane Hole area, for 2 really nice dives. It’s also a good snorkel spot. We went back to Coral Bay and said our goodbyes to Jay of St. John Dive Adventures. We’ll really miss him on our future visits to STJ. Diving really seemed to tire my hubby and Lyn so naps were needed again. Went to Chloe & Bernard’s for an excellent dinner that couldn’t be beat. Great food, atmosphere and service. We took North shore back to the villa with a stop at Maho to enjoy the moonlit beach before some tv and bed.
Thursday morning was grey and rainy which concerned me because we had parasailing planned for 11am, but by that time it had cleared so no problems. Parasailing was very cool and I highly recommend it. Allison at Rejuvenation vacations set it up for us. The guys met us at the national park dock and we had a great time with them. Lyn and I went up first since we’d never done it before and my hubby had. The guys let me go up again with my husband for no extra charge. That second trip up the wind got a little rough and I was happy I didn’t hurl all over me and my husband at 600ft. I would definitely do it again (the views were amazing) just not twice in a row. I think we had lunch at Woody’s again then more random rambling about the island. We stayed in that night at the villa and had a full moon party for 3. Music, movies and drinks lasted till about 2am so we slept in the next morning.
I had left Friday open to let Lyn choose what we were to do that day since it was her last. Good thing I left it open cause I would have had to cancel what ever our plans were due to the weather. Rain, strong winds and a thick blanket of fog kept us at the villa that day except for a trip to Island Blues for lunch. Actually we all enjoyed that day despite or because of the weather. I had a great time taking scenic pictures of the extreme weather. Some of the pictures from this trip are posted at http://community.webshots.com/user/jofus109
We went to bed relatively early because we had to get Lyn to the 6 am ferry, her flight out of stt was at 9 am. After dropping her at the ferry we drove out to a high hill on the east end to photograph the sunrise. We got some great pix then went back to the villa for some breakfast. Rain, wind and fog returned for most of the remainder of the day which led us to stay in for a quiet day in the villa. We went to Island Blues that night for dinner and music then back to the villa to pack as we were leaving ourselves the next morning.
Sunday we woke around 5:30-6:00 am and drove out to east end again for more sunrise photos. The typical St. John weather had returned…nice and sunny. Back to the villa for breakfast, showers and final packing. We met Levi from L&L Jeep at the dock to return our rental and got on the 10:00 am ferry. Our driver Freddie met us at Red Hook, since our plane wasn’t till 2 pm he dropped us in town for about an hour to wander around and buy tee-shirts then picked us up again and took us to the airport. All went smoothly on our return to JFK. All in all this was a fantastic trip! Sorry it took so long to get part 2 posted but I’ve been busy booking next years’ trip! Unable to decide between “La Sirena” on Rt. 107 between Salt Pond and Lameshur, or “Drakes Lookout” way up on Bordeaux Mt. Rd. I’ve booked them both. One week at each. Hope all who read this report enjoy it and I’d be more than happy to answer any questions anyone might have.
332 days and counting till my return to STJ.
TTFN
Jofus
Mar 11th, 2005, 11:27 AM
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Jofus
Lots of memories from your report. I think Little Lameshur is a great beach and snorkeling spot. A relatively hidden gem on St. John. Island Blues was probably? our favorite place to eat. Even used Freddie to and from Red Hook. And La Sirena is high on my list of places to stay on a return trip.
Have you ever snorkeled Pelican Rock from the shore and, if so, where do you enter the water?
Lots of memories from your report. I think Little Lameshur is a great beach and snorkeling spot. A relatively hidden gem on St. John. Island Blues was probably? our favorite place to eat. Even used Freddie to and from Red Hook. And La Sirena is high on my list of places to stay on a return trip.
Have you ever snorkeled Pelican Rock from the shore and, if so, where do you enter the water?
Mar 11th, 2005, 12:42 PM
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Hi RoberoB,
Unfortunately...probably due to these message boards...Litte Lame is no longer a hidden gem. 2 times when we drove out there we didn't even bother getting out of the car just turned and left because of too many people, so we started going 7-9 am when it's empty. I haven't snorkeled Pelican Rock but I remember when driving out to the east end I saw a place to get in the water from. I made a mental note of it in case I did want to snorkle there but the best I can tell you now is just drive out east end and you'll find it. I think it's easier to see when your west bound on the road. Good Luck , glad you enjoyed the report. Can't wait to stay at La Sirena it was booked the last 2 years when I tried which is why I booked almost a year in advance this time. I like having the "pick of the litter" instead of choosing from what's available. TTFN
Jofus
Unfortunately...probably due to these message boards...Litte Lame is no longer a hidden gem. 2 times when we drove out there we didn't even bother getting out of the car just turned and left because of too many people, so we started going 7-9 am when it's empty. I haven't snorkeled Pelican Rock but I remember when driving out to the east end I saw a place to get in the water from. I made a mental note of it in case I did want to snorkle there but the best I can tell you now is just drive out east end and you'll find it. I think it's easier to see when your west bound on the road. Good Luck , glad you enjoyed the report. Can't wait to stay at La Sirena it was booked the last 2 years when I tried which is why I booked almost a year in advance this time. I like having the "pick of the litter" instead of choosing from what's available. TTFN
Jofus
Mar 12th, 2005, 06:25 AM
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Hi Jofus,
Great trip report (part 2...I read the first part too). Glad to find more people who enjoy the Coral Bay and beyond side of STJ. We have stayed twice now in Concordia, first at the Eco tents and last May we rented a small cottage out there. Salt Pond & Little Lamesur are our favorites. It's unfortunate that it's getting well known. Didn't help that they paved the road better either!
Sometimes those inclement weather days at the villa are the most relaxing!
Enjoyed your pics too! Trish
Great trip report (part 2...I read the first part too). Glad to find more people who enjoy the Coral Bay and beyond side of STJ. We have stayed twice now in Concordia, first at the Eco tents and last May we rented a small cottage out there. Salt Pond & Little Lamesur are our favorites. It's unfortunate that it's getting well known. Didn't help that they paved the road better either!
Sometimes those inclement weather days at the villa are the most relaxing!
Enjoyed your pics too! Trish
Mar 12th, 2005, 07:26 AM
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Hi Trish,
You're right about those inclement days. I was surprised how much I enjoyed it considering that when I woke that first rainy morning I was sure that it was a ruined day. Some of my favorite pics were from those rainy days.
Jofus
You're right about those inclement days. I was surprised how much I enjoyed it considering that when I woke that first rainy morning I was sure that it was a ruined day. Some of my favorite pics were from those rainy days.
Jofus
Mar 12th, 2005, 08:00 AM
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Ours too! The 10 days we spent in STJ last May was the most relaxing vacation we've ever spent.
My pics @ www.pbase.com/tpatricco
My pics @ www.pbase.com/tpatricco
Mar 12th, 2005, 11:19 AM
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Jofus we stayed at John's Folly Cottages. Changed owners in September but is still available for rental under the new owners. We rented directly, but found the place through www.stjohnlinks.com
