Tuesday – Lets Go Exploring!

Today is officially our last day to explore this paradise called St John.  I can tell you that even a 20 month old knows this is a very special place.  Each morning I arise with anticipation of our next adventure.  My backpack was loaded and today we are going to try to make it out to Leinster Bay.  After the failed attempt yesterday due lack of fuel, I have complete confidence Poppa has our Explorer ready to go.  Instead of the North Shore route we head down Centerline Road and then down the big hill to Annaberg Plantation. 

We pulled in to the lot and were lucky enough to get the one parking space under a big shady tree – SWEET! 

Before we hiked to beach on Leinster Bay, we decided to go explore the plantation ruins.  The hike from the parking lot up the hill to historic site is very short, but oh boy is there a lot of steps.  I am proud to say that I did them all by myself.  My friend, I can tell you that is a tough workout for a little boy!   My Momma may be a runner and my YaYa a swimmer, but hundreds of steps for a little person is a major feat.



Once we reached the top of the hill, the views were amazing.  Although the Saharan Dust still obstructed the view slightly it was beautiful looking out.  Mary’s Creek to the west and the Sir Francis Drake Passage views to the east.  Everything is so brown and I sure wish the dust would go away.

The plantation had all these cool rock formations.  Daddy explained the rocks are what remained of the buildings that made up the sugar plantation 150 years ago.  Exploring each building was like a brand new adventure. 

Of course, the big people took a
 ton of pictures… snap – snap – snap. 

Peeking through holes in the walls was fun.  I never knew what I would find.  I peeked through one hole and Uncle Brandon was on the other side. 


I could have spent hours climbing, chasing lizards, and discovering new things, but the sun was getting higher and the beach was calling our names.  I gathered up the adults (it is like herding cats) and lead them back down to the Explorer to gather up our beach stuff. 

YaYa really shook it up by loading me on her back for our mile walk down the Leinster Trail.  The walk was very easy.  There is nothing better than a flat trail that is mostly shady.   We could see some type of animal running through the woods.  They could be puppies, but if they are, they are ugly puppies.  I found out later that they are mongoose, and they are some kind of sneaky critters.  The trail parallels the water.  Cool breezes and lots to see helped the time pass quickly.



Arriving at the beach, we were happy that we had gotten there early.  We were like the second or third group on the beach, so it was easy to find a nice shady place.  I was ready for a snack and some water time to cool off.  But I knew that after all the exploration at the ruins and step climbing a serious nap was in my future.  Behind our spot there were lots more of those mongoose animals running in and out of their holes.




The water at Leinster was a clear as my bathtub.  I was enjoying throwing pebbles and watching them splash.  The water was full of little tiny fish swimming back and forth.  Even a small barracuda came up to tell me good morning.  

After stomping up and down the beach, it was raft time.   Almost immediately, I was down for the count.

Momma and Daddy played in the water right in front of my resting place while everybody else went snorkeling.  Lo and behold, as I was resting, one of those mongooses snuck out of the woods.  He was foraging our beach site for food.  Daddy had to chase him away.

It is a pretty a long snorkel from the beach out to the Waterlemon Cay, but I am told it is an excellent place to see turtles and sometimes starfish along the way.  Unfortunately, today was very windy, and when you broke from the cover of the land to crossover to the Cay, it was very difficult swim.  Poppa, YaYa, Bridget, and Brandon made it out to the little island with a young girl that joined them.  She did not want to go by herself and on this day, that was a smart decision.  The currents were strong and the group thought it best to stay on the inland side of the Waterlemon.   Poppa was so excited that he saw a hawksbill turtle on the snorkel.   He said he always sees green turtles, but not hawksbills.   Upon their return, the girl that snorkel with them found that she was not as lucky with the mongooses.  One ate her power bar that she was saving for her walk back.  Lesson learned; if you are hanging out at Leinster make sure your food is safely secured.  As I said, the ugly puppies are sneaky little critters.

Momma and Daddy headed out to snorkel but opted not to swim to Cay.  They snorkeled back towards the plantation.  The saw rays and turtles in the grasses along the shore and under the moored sailboats in the bay.  I was still asleep with one of the turtles popped his head up close to shore to tell me hello.  Everyone was very hungry by the time I awoke, but we still had one more adventure.   


YaYa wanted everyone to head up the Johnny Horn trail and take in the view.  Just a very short walk up from the beach on the Johnny Horn Trail there are more ruins and another amazing scenic overlook. 

What a great place to snap some family pictures and do a little more exploring.   

After this last adventure, it was time to head back to Annaberg.  It was kinda sad on the way back because everyone knew it was going to be our last beach.  I hunkered down in my pack as  Daddy carried me back to parking lot.

We drove back to Hummingbird Hill slowly stopping at some of the overlooks to take in the beauty of the Caribbean.

Arriving back at our villa everyone took a little quiet time to relax, start packing, or just enjoying the beautiful plants and gardens of this unique villa.  While the rents were packing, I took the opportunity to grab the Kindle and catch up on a little Fireman Sam.  Hummingbird Hill has an excellent WiFi signal.  We did have to reset the modem a couple times, but that is not big deal.  Fireman Sam adventures streamed just fine and everyone was able to check their email with no problems.   Aunt Bridget said we were on vacation so the television stayed in the OFF position.   Only a couple days did we even plug in the iPod for music.  In the evenings, Uncle Brandon would play his ukulele or we just played games, so being able to grab a couple of Kindle minutes was a treat.   Down below the cottage the owners have built an extensive collection of orchids.  A nice man came and watered them because there has been no rain and some of them opened up to say hello.   If you have parents or grandparents looking to take small children to the islands, Hummingbird Hill is a great place.

With all of our chores done and a very nice wind down period, we headed into Cruz Bay for dinner.  This was our only dinner out.  All other meals we cooked in the villa.  Oh yeah, how could I forget… that yummy rehearsal dinner at the Westin.   After a little last minute shopping and one more round at the Beach Bar we headed up the steps to Vista Mare for dinner. 

Poppa usually asks whoever is at the head of the table say prayers... I was lucky he forgot tonight.

Another lovely view awaited us while the sun set.  It seemed everyone was hungry after a day of exploration, but we did not rush.  We sat for a long time talking about all the fun we had together, but we all knew it was time to go home.  Poppa’s Mom had to go to the hospital and Grandpa Sam was not getting better.  Sleep came quickly tonight because we needed to be well rested for the next day. It will be an all day travel day.