Bliss at Cruz Views

03/06/2024

If anyone is able to travel between 6/18 and 6/26, I have a great deal for you at Bliss at Cruz Views (unit #1 with its own private grill and private parking space.) A savings of $385.88 for 2 guests for 7 nights, more for 8 nights or for 3-4 guests! Only $219/night! Please contact me directly at [email protected]. If you are unable to take advantage of this great deal, please let your friends and family know. Thank you so much.

20/04/2024

Great suggestions for a 5-day itinerary on St John:

15/04/2024

If you're a hiker, hike this trail for an outstanding view! Then hike back down to swim and snorkel at one of my all-time favorite beaches on St John (Cinnamon--except when it's windy and wavy, otherwise it's the absolute perfect beach!) If you stay late enough, you can have a very good, reasonably-priced dinner at their restaurant. And if it's on a Wednesday, (every other week so check their schedule) you can take a Park Ranger led hike along the beach and learn about all the constellations!

15/04/2024

Spotted Eagle Rays are one of my all-time favorite snorkeling sightings on St John. I love their graceful beauty and their precious little faces! I love these videos that I'm sharing because they share the names of everything you're seeing so if you've recently been snorkeling in St John or if you are planning a trip there soon, you'll be able to identify exactly what it is that you're seeing!

In this last episode of the season, we take one last early morning snorkel trip out to the point in South Haulover Bay. Upon entering the water, we were thri...

14/04/2024

https://youtu.be/sa7tJizLPXQ

In this episode we return to Francis Bay where we always see something interesting. Along with a wide variety of fish, we saw a Spotted Moray Eel out and abo...

01/09/2022

Latest report from the Friends of the St John Virgin Islands National Park: Highlight--Monitored 47 STJ beaches from July through November for turtle nesting activity. Found 34 nests and observed 2634 hatchlings, including the endangered Hawksbill and Leatherback turtles!! Unfortunately very few of the hatchlings actually make it to survival (if you love swimming with the sea turtles of St John, research how to safely do so without harming them and how to protect their survival!)

02/07/2022

26/04/2022

Love St John’s turtles; wish I could be on-island in June for the sea turtle nest watching training. Maybe next year…

When Leeanne and David DiGiacomo went for an early morning swim this Sunday on St. John, they were surprised to find what appeared to be tractor tracks emerging from the water.

25/04/2022

Beautiful picture someone took on Caneel’s grounds yesterday going home from Zozo’s.

24/03/2022

Join a Ranger tonight at Cinnamon Bay Beach and Campground at 8:15 p.m. for our weekly Astronomy in the Park program!

Ranger Mark will discuss the importance of preserving the darkness of the night sky not only for astronomy, but also for the plants and animals that inhabit Virgin Islands National Park. You will earn about constellations, galaxies, nebulae, celestial navigation and more as Ranger Mark takes you on a tour of the night sky!

The program takes place directly on the beach. From the campground parking lot, take the sidewalk past the front desk/restaurant. Once you arrive at the beach, take a left turn and you will find Ranger Mark with the park's telescope approximately 30 yards from the sidewalk.

This program is free, and there is no need to sign up in advance. Please bring a flashlight to illuminate the ground as you find your way. Chairs or blankets to sit on are recommended.

Photo courtesy of A. Dershem.

15/10/2021

You all know that I LOVE a spellbinding story. So, I'm very excited to be sharing all of you, piece by piece throughout the coming months, the real life

26/09/2021

I LOVE good news and I just love this picture! 🥰

Out into the world! This week 233 hatchlings headed out into the ocean from our beaches! 🐢💙🙏

Help us protect our endangered sea turtle population:
- Please do not touch the turtles and keep a distance of at least 6 feet.
- Report any signs of nesting activity.
- Use reef-safe sunscreen.
- Dispose of trash properly particularly single use plastics like bags and straws.
- Be respectful.

Adopt a sea turtle and donate to support our turtle protection program, youth programs, cultural programs, marine conservation, trail work, beach cleanups, tree replanting and other projects here: https://donate.friendsvinp.org/giving

Virgin Islands National Park

16/09/2021

Great News!! 😊

12/09/2021

"A supposed-to-be easy day of travel turned into an incredibly long day of travel home. I have to share this because it restored my faith in humanity. A woman on my flight had twin babies, probably under 6 months, not so sure of the age. It was a very packed flight so they started taking carry on luggage to store under the plane. A gate worker took this woman's car seat, meaning she would now have to hold both babies since they weren't old enough to sit up on their own in a seat. When she sat down on the plane a flight attendant immediately told her that she couldn't hold both babies, and would have to leave the flight. A mother sitting in front of me, with permission from the other mother, volunteered to hold one of her babies for the entire flight. Keep in mind this was a flight that was supposed to be a quick 45 minutes. We ended up sitting on the tarmac for 2 1/2 hours! Without a complaint this woman fed the other woman's baby, burped him. Her own daughter started crying. This mom, so calmly, went on to explain to her young daughter that "our job is to help other people. This mom is all by herself with no help, and really needs another mom to help." She then went on to hold him, sing him songs, and then he slept the entire flight without even a cry. My heart still feels fuzzy. Moral of the story is when you see people needing help, do the right thing and help them."

Source: Mackenzie Murphy
Via

11/08/2021

This just breaks my heart...

On Sunday August 8th a sea turtle in Maho Bay was reported to be in distress. A quick response from the sea turtle team assessed that a large juvenile green turtle was the victim of a boat strike.

The strike caused a fatal injury for the sea turtle who was humanly euthanized by a local vet.

Maho Bay is one of the most important feeding areas for juvenile and subadult green sea turtles. Both the bay and the beach are experiencing an unprecedented increase in human visitors.

Please help limit the stress put on these endangered creatures. Never touch or chase a sea turtle its the law! If you are operating a boat slow down. This is the fourth fatal stranding for St John, this year.

The National Park Services mission is to preserve the natural and cultural resources while allowing access and enjoyment of these resources. If you are a visitor please become a steward of Virgin Islands National Park.



Photo: Fatally injured green sea turtle being assisted by VINP Sea Turtle Team

19/04/2021

"Knowing that her grandchildren would inherit the world she left behind, she did not work for flourishing in her time only. It was through her actions of reciprocity, the give and take with the land, that the original immigrant became Indigenous. For all of us, becoming Indigenous to a place means living as if our lives, both material and spiritual depended on it." ~ Robin Wall Kimmerer

This beautiful land gives us so many opportunities to flourish materially and spiritually. How can we live as if our lives depended on it flourishing equally for all earth's inhabitants and for our future generations?

10/04/2021

07/04/2021

I always, always buy Josephine's Greens when I'm in St John. Love her mixed greens, her arugula, her micro greens, her long beans, pretty much anything she grows that I can find. And when you go to the restaurants, you'll find most of the restaurants will be offering their salads, proudly stating they are made with 'Josephine's Greens.' This lady works her tail off. It is such a shame what the government has made them go through just to rebuild their place so they can continue to provide the island, and so many of us, with the healthy food that we crave and enjoy so much. At one point, she and her family were just going to give up and move off-island; what a treasure St John would have lost. Anyway, I'm sharing this in hopes that your hearts may be moved to support a worthwhile cause or at least be made aware of her wonderful products to buy next time you are on-island.

Coral Bay Organic Farm and Garden Center, the home of Josephine's greens, has se… Josephine Roller needs your support for Revitalizing Agriculture on St. John

28/03/2021

1st day St John was open after its Covid closure. It was so naturally beautiful and peaceful and quiet and like the St John I fell in love with so many years ago. You can still capture this beauty for yourselves if you visit in the off season or if you come to one of its beautiful beaches early in the morning or late in the afternoon

28/03/2021

This St John donkey knows exactly how to meet his itchy needs at Maho Beach

07/03/2021

Just saw this and thought you might enjoy...it was a Mocko Jumby performing at Francis Bay today

23/02/2021

One of the many, many things I love about St John...

Our dear friend Eva sang such a wonderful performance on this track of ours that we had to share it. Hopefully it can help you release a bit of pandemic/elec...

24/01/2021

This rainbow was really unusual for me. I've seen tons of them (the most unique up to now was a perfect half-circle triple rainbow in Gulf Shores, AL a couple years ago--never saw that before, another triple rainbow many years ago in CO between Denver and Gunnison but not super clear.) But this one I posted showed every single color of the spectrum--I don't know if I've ever seen the blues and purples before. But I need to snorkel out to that isle and find the pot of gold so I can live here full time! 🥰

24/01/2021

The sunsets the last couple weeks have been just stunning. Probably took over 100 pictures but I'll just share a few here.