caribbean

I thought I had seen it all. Then I found St John Off the Beaten Track. Gerald Singer has chosen to share the hidden treasures of St John. St John is full of history, plantation ruins, nature walks. They will make your trip special.

As marine aquariasts and avid snorkelers, this book led us to the greatest snorkeling spots and some beautiful secluded beaches. Our favorite was Yawzi Point and Little Lameshur Bay. We arrived at 10:30 and were among 4 people on the beach. The waters were turquiose and the beach beautfully sandy like Trunk Bay but without the crowd. We enjoyed the right side of Yawzi Point accessible from Little Lameshur as the waters were calmer than the left hand side with similar reef to explore. Leinster Bay/Waterlemon Cay was another great find. The thing the book didn't mention was to hang your bag as Mongooses can unzip and will eat your lunch! The best, most useful book out of the three we bought. The maps are terrific as well.

Mr. Singer does a terrific job of detailing St. John's numerous hiking trails. He even gives concise, clear directions on how to get to each one. Thanks to him, we found our way to the America Hill trail with ease, and I must say the view from that vantage point was certainly worth the arduous hike up that mountain! He even gives advice on the best snorkeling spots as well as snippets of St. John history. After perusing this book, you feel as if you've been to St. John even if you never have! An absolute must for properly and thoroughly exploring the island. The only drawback is the lack of color photographs of the vegetation he describes. Also, the maps are very helpful.