Once an hour, well usually on the hour island time. "De Bus," pulls away from the ferry dock St John USVI and winds its way through the narrow streets of Cruz Bay. Then, shifting into low gear, the big white vehicle begins its climb up heart-pumping grades, past hairpin turns, upward to the dizzy heights of Centerline Road.
The seat-belt-less ride rapidly becomes a breath-taking exploit. Concrete mixers and construction trucks haggle for space on the narrow roads and turns. Smaller vehicles, finding themselves face to face with the large machine, cling to the edges of sheer-drop precipices. Goats scurry out of its path.
Soon after the bus negotiates the first hills, a number of riders disembark. They have paid their dollar to eliminate the steep climb to homes that hang along the mountain rim above Cruz Bay. From the conversation and acknowledgements, it is evident that this is a daily routine for many of these travelers. Obediently and patiently, the driver pulls to the side of the narrow road. Behind, a line of vehicles waits silently while the exiting passengers wrestle packages and children out of the bus and on to the narrow road edge.
Now "de Bus" releases its brake, grinds its gears, and resumes its upward journey. Reaching the highest mountain ridge, it begins a roller-coaster ride along Centerline Road entertaining its passengers with both a breath-holding ride and breath-taking views of bright blue seas, green mountains, and the sharp gorges of St John's South coast.
On request, the driver will pause at the beginning of the Reef Bay Trail for those who wish to hike down the long, steep path toward the sea. This path passes the remains of four plantations, abandoned farms, and ancient petrography.
Further along the route "De Bus" passes several small restaurants cantilevered over the edge of the mountain, each taking advantage of the spectacular view down the valley toward Coral Bay. It's the perfect place for lunch.
From this vantagepoint, the vistas are amazing. Coral Bay lies nestled in a bowl-round valley hundreds of feet below. Beyond the distant bay, the rugged rocks of Rams Head lean toward the cloud-shrouded island of St Croix, thirty miles to the south. To the east, a sprinkling of British islands, Norman, Peter, Salt, Cooper, Ginger, divide the Caribbean from the protected waters of the Francis Drake Channel.
Houses of every size and condition hang, like Christmas tree balls along the side of the valley. Below and to the right, are the mansions of the rich; on the left a handyman's special clings stubbornly to a sheer cliff. In the center of the valley, the remains of a windmill remind us of this valley's former life as a fertile sugar cane plantation.
When lunch is finished and the vista feast has satisfied the soul, it's time to flag down another bus, pay an additional dollar and continue the adventure.
At the bottom of the last breath-holding slope De Bus passes through Coral Bay. Once the hippie heaven of the Virgin Islands, Coral Bay is now the home of live-aboard sailors from all over the world. New homes dot the hills around the Bay, each with a treasured and expensive view.
If you haven't already paused for lunch, there are several restaurants in Coral Bay. If you are carrying your own refreshments, you can continue to the end of the line, descend a rough, bulldozed road to the curving white beach of Salt Pond Bay. There you can take a dip, examine the nearby salt pond, or climb along the rugged coast to Rams head.
At the end of the day, you must climb the steep path back to the road and wait for the bus. Then you will pay another dollar, and enjoy another high adventure and exciting return to Cruz Bay. Enjoy!
Copyright: Joan E. Santomenna, WindSpirit Publishing
Soon after the bus negotiates the first hills, a number of riders disembark. They have paid their dollar to eliminate the steep climb to homes that hang along the mountain rim above Cruz Bay. From the conversation and acknowledgements, it is evident that this is a daily routine for many of these travelers. Obediently and patiently, the driver pulls to the side of the narrow road. Behind, a line of vehicles waits silently while the exiting passengers wrestle packages and children out of the bus and on to the narrow road edge.
Now "de Bus" releases its brake, grinds its gears, and resumes its upward journey. Reaching the highest mountain ridge, it begins a roller-coaster ride along Centerline Road entertaining its passengers with both a breath-holding ride and breath-taking views of bright blue seas, green mountains, and the sharp gorges of St John's South coast.
On request, the driver will pause at the beginning of the Reef Bay Trail for those who wish to hike down the long, steep path toward the sea. This path passes the remains of four plantations, abandoned farms, and ancient petrography.
Further along the route "De Bus" passes several small restaurants cantilevered over the edge of the mountain, each taking advantage of the spectacular view down the valley toward Coral Bay. It's the perfect place for lunch.
From this vantagepoint, the vistas are amazing. Coral Bay lies nestled in a bowl-round valley hundreds of feet below. Beyond the distant bay, the rugged rocks of Rams Head lean toward the cloud-shrouded island of St Croix, thirty miles to the south. To the east, a sprinkling of British islands, Norman, Peter, Salt, Cooper, Ginger, divide the Caribbean from the protected waters of the Francis Drake Channel.
Houses of every size and condition hang, like Christmas tree balls along the side of the valley. Below and to the right, are the mansions of the rich; on the left a handyman's special clings stubbornly to a sheer cliff. In the center of the valley, the remains of a windmill remind us of this valley's former life as a fertile sugar cane plantation.
When lunch is finished and the vista feast has satisfied the soul, it's time to flag down another bus, pay an additional dollar and continue the adventure.
At the bottom of the last breath-holding slope De Bus passes through Coral Bay. Once the hippie heaven of the Virgin Islands, Coral Bay is now the home of live-aboard sailors from all over the world. New homes dot the hills around the Bay, each with a treasured and expensive view.
If you haven't already paused for lunch, there are several restaurants in Coral Bay. If you are carrying your own refreshments, you can continue to the end of the line, descend a rough, bulldozed road to the curving white beach of Salt Pond Bay. There you can take a dip, examine the nearby salt pond, or climb along the rugged coast to Rams head.
At the end of the day, you must climb the steep path back to the road and wait for the bus. Then you will pay another dollar, and enjoy another high adventure and exciting return to Cruz Bay. Enjoy!
Copyright: Joan E. Santomenna, WindSpirit Publishing
Coral Bay, St John
