The Picturesque Baths of Virgin Gorda, a Heavenly Place
Written: Mar 28 '02 (Updated Jan 04 '05)
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Pros: The Baths sport beautiful water, sand, beaches, and rounded boulders
Cons: Hiking in the hot weather can get to you
The Bottom Line: The Baths at Virgin Gorda was one of the major highlights of our trip- make sure it's on your itinerary if you go to the British Virgin Islands!
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| Javelina's Full Review: Virgin Gorda |
In March 2002, I flew from JFK airport in New York down to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and then finally on to Beef Island at Trellis Bay, Tortola. Puerto Rico provides one of the major connecting flights to get to the British Virgin Islands, while Beef Island is the only major airport of the British Virgin Islands.
When we flew into Beef Island in the third week of March, the airport consisted of a tiny building with roosters walking around and crowing! However, when we left the next week, we left from the newly opened Beef Island airport, which is much larger and quite beautiful.
Tortola is the main island of the British Virgin Islands. From Road Town, we set sail on our catamaran from island to island. Although we chartered our own boat, there are other ways of getting to Virgin Gorda, including daily charters from the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Virgin Gorda was high on our list of islands to visit, especially to visit The Baths. We sailed to Virgin Gorda and picked up a mooring in Spring Bay, but I believe that there were anchorages as well.
The Baths consist of giant boulders that are scattered on the shoreline as well as on the island. The boulders are enormous, visible from a distance, and are a result of volcanic properties which provided magma for the formation of granite rock. Over time, erosion and the force of the waves slowly wore away at the giant boulders until they were smooth and rounded in appearance.
From our boat, we took our dinghy up to the pristine beach, which was free of rocks or boulders. We made sure the dinghy was pulled up high enough to escape the pounding waves, and began walking. The open beach was quite short, with small kiosks near the end, offering souvenirs to tourists.
Our goal was to get to the main part of The Baths, where there is also part of the British Virgin Islands National Parks Trust. We weren’t quite sure what route to take, so heading south, we began to walk and climb the rocks. With a group of 6, working together, we managed to crawl between, walk amongst, and climb upon the rocks, until we reached the National Park. I do not recommend this route! (You can, however, do simple exploration in these areas). Fortunately, there were experienced climbers in the group, but some of the crevices and rock faces were extremely challenging, and had we not had people who knew what they were doing and were able to coach the rest of us in maneuvering the rocks, it would have been dangerous. In fact, after we spent time at the National Park, we asked the park staff what the best way to get back was, and they had expressions of shock when we told them which way we had come! In fact, they had never attempted it themselves, and recommended a simple, common route.
In any case, once we arrived at the park portion of The Baths, entrance was free, but donations are accepted. This portion of the walk was much more relaxed, with a much easier terrain! There are many places to stop and wade in the warm water that flows between the enormous boulders, and plenty of places to stop in the shade, relax for a moment, take pictures, and so on. The walk is made especially easy with the addition of stairs for steep areas, and ropes that are threaded through hooks that have been drilled into the rock faces. The ropes allow you to pull yourself up steep rocks and to guide yourself along uneven surfaces. There were people of all ages on the hike, including several older people who did not appear to be having any trouble. Just as a precaution- the rocks get sandy and wet, making for a slippery surface, so it’s important to watch where you are stepping and to be careful.
The walk is estimated at 20 minutes, depending on your pace. There were quite a few people on the “trail” (I don’t know what else to call it!), so it took a while in terms of waiting for people, especially those who were coming back from the other direction on the one-way segments of trail (staircases and so on).
The end of the path is a nice open area, with shallow water and smaller boulders. There were cute tropical fish swimming in these areas, and since it was so hot, I was ready to go in for a dip to cool me down. Afterwards, we headed back, got a chance to see some tropical lizards, and took some pictures. Of all the places that I took pictures, The Baths made for some wonderful photography. The water is very light blue/green, and makes for incredible scenery, with sand that is a fine white powder.
Taking the advice of the park staff, we headed up a trail to the “Top of the Baths”. At the trailhead were showers and bathrooms, although we did not venture inside. The path was a nice hike, with plenty of wildlife along the way, such as birds and lizards. The vegetation became increasingly beautiful, with cacti and exotic plants. As we approached the top, landscaped areas boasted brilliant flowers and plants.
At the peak, which makes up the Top of the Baths, is an area with restaurant and gift shops. This was one of the highlights of our stops on the various islands. We sat down at the restaurant, appropriately named “Top of the Baths”. There were plenty of places to sit, with tables under a covered area to seek shelter from the sun. The view from the Top of the Baths is gorgeous, and looks out over the island, with other islands visible in the distance. The best part about this restaurant (and probably its claim to fame), is the freshwater pool that you can swim in. After days and days of snorkeling in the ocean and feeling the salty ocean wind on the catamaran, I was ready for some cool, fresh water. It felt so wonderful to be able to take a dip in the pool, to get rid of the salty feeling but also to cool down after so much hiking and walking, as well as to prepare myself for the next leg of the hike.
In addition, we browsed at the few small gift shops located near the restaurant. The shops had an additional incentive- air conditioning! There were plenty of t-shirts and other apparel, etc., for sale. But what I enjoyed the most was being able to stock up on some postcards, as well as stamps, which were sometimes a challenge for us to find.
Top of the Baths Restaurant:
http://www.thebathsbvi.com/restaurant.htm
After having some cold smoothies and drinks at the Top of the Baths, we headed down the road back to the bay where we had pulled up the dinghy. The houses along the road were gorgeous, again with interesting flora and fauna.
While walking on roads anywhere in the British Virgin Islands, remember that the cars are on the opposite side of the road from in the United States! And in my perception, the people drive insanely, so be careful, stay off the road, keep your eyes and ears open. (Especially if you have kids!)
The road was an easy downward incline, and we soon reached a road sign marking the way to the beach, and passed through a nice area that had a playground and areas to sit (probably very nice as a picnic area). Back on the beach, we retrieved the dinghy and headed back to the boat.
I’m not sure if there is night mooring in this harbor, but I probably wouldn’t recommend it because of how crowded it gets, unless you don’t mind being amongst so many boats.
I loved going to The Baths, although we were somewhat rushed to get to our next destination for night mooring. I recommend planning ahead and making sure you get there early if you can, so that you can spend the day there without feeling rushed.
The temperature in March had a high of about 85 degrees Fahrenheit every day, with lows only reaching a few degrees lower, and slight humidity. Insects were not an issue at The Baths, although they were on other islands.
Remember: Bring your snorkeling gear/swimming gear, camera (underwater camera if you have one), some money (for souvenirs, donation to the National Park, or food), shoes (for hiking the rocks of the Baths), sunscreen (the sun is pretty intense), and, prepare ahead of time so that you can spend plenty of time at The Baths.
Overall, I would say that in spending more than a week in the British Virgin Islands, The Baths was a major highlight of the trip. The Baths is what I pictured the Virgin Islands to be like. It’s that picture perfect, postcard worthy location. Make sure if you travel to the islands, that The Baths makes it onto your itinerary!
Useful links:
http://www.thebathsbvi.com/
http://www.b-v-i.com/baths.htm
http://www.britishvirginislands.com/
http://www.ultimatebvi.com/
http://www.bviguide.com
http://www.webcom.com/earleltd/bv/vgmap.shtml
My other BVI reviews:
British Virgin Islands
Tortola
Jost Van Dyke
*** As a side note, there were a lot less people in the British Virgin Islands this spring 2002, as a result of 9-11. Therefore, what I experienced was much less crowded than normal, fairly quiet, and it was much easier to book a flight, transportation options, and a catamaran (www.conchcharters.com- we loved this charter company!). In fact, we passed marinas that had unchartered boats filling their slips, not making any money. As with many aspects of travel and life, things have changed. Many of the charter companies and other places in the British Virgin Islands are suffering financial losses. Because of this, much of our traveling was simpler less crowded.
Recommended:
Yes
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