VIRGIN ISLANDS NATIONAL PARK - 2025
Park number 55 eventually happened at Virgin Islands National Park and this park is really a gem, both in how beautiful it is and how pricey the island is. I have been wanting to go to the Virgin Islands, let alone the Caribbean for a long, long time. This place is very out of the beaten path compared to the other National Parks in the system, at least over 1,100 miles to the next park (Biscayne in South Florida). The park can be described as Acadia in the Caribbean as there is some similarities between the two. I booked this trip back in late December so this was a very late plan to go with two months of planning but since I travel alone, this pretty much helps me plan my travels on a whim but if you plan on going with someone or a family. You will need at least four to six months in advance to properly plan the trip.
I flew out from the Northeast down to Atlanta to connect to fly to Charlotte Amalie which was a three and a half hour flight away from the mainland. Once you land, you either get a taxi to Red Hook or you get a rental car on the island. I opted for the rental car since the rentals on St. John Island was more expensive. I did this and paid for the water crossing across from Red Hook on St. Thomas Island to St. John and landed in Cruz Bay.
Trunk Bay
Trunk Bay is probably the most well known beach in not only the park, but probably all of the Virgin Islands. As the driving on the Virgin Islands is left side, when traveling east, you will see this if you take the North Shore road. I pulled over here as I had about 20 minutes of light left and the land was turning golden. This is a long exposure shot at the Trunk Bay Overlook pullout. Honestly this might be the most scenic point in the whole park.
Peace Hill Windmill
On my first full day, I basically took it slow for the day due to how long and stressful just flying from home to just getting to the rental house was. The first place after the Visitor Center I went to was Peace Hill which has remnants of a Colonia Danish era Windmill. This is also a great place to overlook the beaches around including Hawksnest and Caneel Bay. The hike up here took only a couple minutes and was very easy to access.
Hawksnest Beach
Not as well known as Trunk Bay, Cinnamon Bay, or Maho Beach but this beach is one of the best to go to in the park, with plenty of parking you don’t have to worry about much while you are here. This took me 20 seconds to reach this point before walking along the beach.
Oppenheimer Beach
Right next to Hawksnest Beach is Oppenheimer Beach, the waters were crystal clear and the sand at this beach were almost white. This beach was honestly the quintessential Caribbean Beach. This beach was owned at one point by J. Robert Oppenheimer, the man who developed the nuclear bomb. He owned the cottage that was right next to this beach and you can tour the place when it is open.
Francis Bay Mangroves
One of the most overlooked parts of this park was the mangroves trees. At Francis Bay Beach near Annaberg School, there is a small 0.7 mile (1.2 km) trail that circles the pond near the beach. In that trail is a boardwalk section through the mangroves. The clouds started to roll in and created the colors I needed for this shot. If you’re in the area, don’t miss this small side trail.
Cinnamon Bay Rainbow
After a day of driving along the island, I knew I had to spend the sunset on a beach this time, I just did not know which one to go to. I settled on Cinnamon Bay and it really did not disappoint. As I got there, the rain started to come down which I was a little upset about but you have to expect it in the Caribbean. Then out of nowhere, a rainbow shows up down the beach, add the sun setting with the golden glow of the land, this stunning shot was my favorite one of the park so far.
Petroglyphs
The next day I did the Reef Bay Trail which is arguably the most rewarding hike in the park. Now this isn’t my favorite shot but I did want to show you guys this. In the rainy season, there is a waterfall that cascades down the hill into the ocean however the falls were bone dry. I still wanted to see the petroglyphs next to the falls that are from the Taino people who used to live on the Island before Columbus and the Spanish landed. They did not disappoint me at all.
Maho Beach
After that hike, I felt exhausted due to how much of a hike the way back up was, so I just wanted to relax. After fighting for parking, I just sat at Maho Beach relaxing for the afternoon. Along that day, this little friend sat in the palm tree next to me and allowed me to capture him.
Princess Bay
Now this is a part of the park that is 30 minutes away from Cruz Bay so this is kind of far down a series of roads to get to this pullout. However the clouds were turning gold to red quickly and decided this was the place for sunset. I had the place to myself, no one else drove past and the waves crashing on this made the place really beautiful.
Ram Head Point
The last thing I took photos of was Ram Head Point. The last day I was there, I just took it easy again, I did Annaberg Plantation ruins and then snorkeled in Watermelon Cay and saw sea turtles (I have no photos, I am so sorry). Around 4 PM, it started to rain on the Island again which kind of put this in limbo but I still decided to go, I got to the trailhead point at 5 to give me an hour to get to the point. Parking was an issue however I soon passed about everyone who had a beach day at Salt Pond Bay, which was on the trail to Ram head Point. After that the sprinting stopped and the sky got brighter, I felt more confident in the sunset then.
Once you passed Blue Rocks Beach as seen below, there was no one left essentially until you reach the end. I got to the point around 6 and the sun was to go down in 20 minutes, it was still somewhat cloudy but then the sun came out of nowhere and started to shine on the land, resulting in the later three photos I have on here. Having that trail to myself was honestly such a treat, I don’t know how many people go that far in the island, let alone actually hiking to Ram Head Point but it was so worth it. Honestly it’s one of my favorite places to go to now in the entire park system.
Blue Rocks Beach on the hike up.
Cactus on Ram Head Point.
The way down from the point on Ram Head.
The peninsula of land at Ram Head Point with Cactus along the side of the hill.
Spending three days in Virgin Islands National park was more than enough but yet, not enough at the same time. I also went to many places I did not photograph on here like Annaberg School and Plantation ruins, the ruins down the reef bay trail, the Windmill Restaurant which has the best overlook in the island, Watermelon Cay and even swimming with turtles, baby sharks, sting rays and barracudas. This park is costly and hard to get to for the normal tourist but it is so rewarding to visit. If you have the chance to come out here, please do it.
