The Baths blew us out of the water

Trip Start Jul 04, 2009
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Trip End Jul 18, 2009


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Flag of Virgin Islands British  ,
Saturday, July 4, 2009

Through most of our stay, our decision to go to this beach or that island was made in the moment, but a trek out to Virgin Gorda required a little planning.  The ferry only sailed twice a week from Red Hook and left at 8:00 am, generally the time we were just stirring.  The nearly three hour journey was so incredibly worth it though.  It was lovely sailing past the islands of St. John, Tortola, and countless smaller cayes, some of which were incredibly steep, lush, and green.  When we arrived at the port of Spanish Town, we were amazed at how dry and flat this part of the island was.  It reminded us in part of the Namib Desert, minus the massive sand dunes.

Immigration and Customs were a formality and we quickly found ourselves on a safari taxi to The Baths.  This is the attraction that brings most of the tourists to the islands.  The Baths are a giant collection of huge boulders or batholiths, brought to the surface by volcanic eruptions, scattered about forming a beautiful grotto and tranquil pools Hiking to the Baths
Hiking to the Baths
 .  It was almost maze-like, climbing over that rock, squeezing through a narrow passageway.  There were pools that seemingly were underground caves, others that were outside, and then another path leading over to Devil's Bay Beach, definitely one of the nicest beaches and places to snorkel and swim.  Russ remembered the place as a popular Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition location shoot.  It was stunning and we could have spent days there...

There was a excellent restaurant at the top of The Baths, where we perhaps had our best meal - Caribbean fish curry.  There was also a swimming pool, which made it an excellent place to finish the day.

I do think if we headed back to this part of the Caribbean, we would stay on this island.  In general, it was less developed and just had a much more local feel to it than the USVI.
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