Trunk Bay, St. John USVI

Trunk Bay offers an award winning beach, one of the top 10 in the world according to some publications, and a wonderful “underwater hike”. Not knowing what to expect, I couldn’t wait to try it out! Once the conditions were right, I started out to the only National Park protected beach on the island of St. John.

I was the first of many tourists to enter the National Park beach that morning, and it was still early enough that the water was pretty cold. Realizing how long it would take for us to get hot enough to want to jump in, I sucked it up and splashed in. Once under, I tested our equipment, snorkeled around a bit, and found the beginning of the trail.

The hike is in a triangle shape, marked by practical and informative signs on the ocean floor, and buoys floating on the surface. The introductory sign gave the best advice- float and drift slowly, and let the fish get used to you. Once they are comfortable, they will all come out. How true! We saw many different types of parrotfish, as well as trumpets, squirrelfish and beautiful coral. Some of the coral had even been marked as part of an experiment to help recreate other reefs that have been destroyed.

I have asked many locals when the think the best time of day would be to see some fish, and the answers vary. I am happy I went in the morning, because I got to see some fish that usually are out at night.

After the trail, I spoke to the lifeguards that were not only friendly, but were very knowledgeable about local and federal reef laws, and types of fish that feed at that particular reef. They were even nice enough to lend me their fish identification charts and books so I could check out who the friendly fish were that followed me through the entire trail.

Unfortunately, when the tourist buses started showing up, the lifeguards had to constantly call people off of sitting or standing on the coral reef. Even though there was much information at the entrance, and the lifeguards were constantly reminding people, through a megaphone, that they were destroying the reef, people continued to sit, stand, kick, and rest on the reef. One woman even got so angry that she was called out for destroying the reef that she came onto the beach and screamed at the lifeguards and everyone surrounding them. I was highly saddened about how the reef was being treated, and highly suggest a visitor to go during a not so high tourist time.

Trunk Bay offers full facilities, snack bar, lifeguards, showers, many picnic areas, a gift shop with film, sunscreen, batteries and the usual necessities, and equipment, like beach chairs, for rent. The National Parks do ask an admission price, and the beach is open from 7:30AM to 4:30 PM.