Beach to Beach Power Swim - Bring it on St John!

There are courses for all levels of swimmers

If you are going to be on St John Sunday, May 26th join in and support the Friends of Virgin Islands National Park's 10th Annual Beach-to-Beach Power Swim.

The race consists of three courses:

• Short Course from Maho Bay to Cinnamon Bay, about 1 mile
• Intermediate Course from Maho Bay to Trunk Bay, about 2¼ miles
• Long Course from Maho to Hawksnest, about 3½ miles. Swimmers can compete in the long course as an individual or as part of a 3-person team.

Swimmers may also compete assisted by snorkel and/or fins in an "assisted swimmer" category

There are still 2 more practice swims on the schedule so even if you are not going to be on St John for the actual swim you can participate in one of the following practice swims if you wish:

April 28: Maho to Cinnamon or Trunk

May 12: Maho to Cinnamon, Trunk or Hawksnest

The practice swims will start at 8:30 from the north end of Maho Bay Beach.

Come out to swim, root the swimmers, support the Friends of Virgin Islands National Park, and have a fun St John day!

Trunk Bay St John from the Front and Back

There is something magical about St John and pictures of Trunk Bay capture this magic whether the pictures are taken facing Trunk Bay or even with your back to the beautifiul Caribbean Sea. Don't know what I mean? Well, this past weekend, I had the wonderful opportunity to take a photography class 'Beyond the Basics' with the fabulous St John photographer, Steve Simonsen. Steve is a pro who clearly loves his craft. He is fun and a great teacher. Not only does Steve want you to learn the basics but he encourages you to have fun with your photos and to tell a story.  

For the first hour, we sat at a picnic table at Hawksnest beach (not a bad 'class room' venue) and were taught some of the basics. Steve then gave us some assignments which challenged us to capture the scene but make sure the light (and shade) did not capture us. I partially succeeded but lost the beautiful greens of the sea grapes in the foreground:

The surf was high at Hawksnest Beach

We then drove to the Trunk Bay overlook which is one of the most photographed venues, not just on St John but in the Caribbean. And, no wonder. The views are magical!

Barely a person comes to St John who does not stop to capture a picture of  magnificent Trunk Bay and its beach

Then Steve challenged us to have fun with the view and try to see something 'new'. At that time a car drove up, parked, and voila...a new 'canvas' was created...we turned our backs to Trunk Bay and took pictures of the reflection as it was shown in a rental car window - go figure! St John and Trunk Bay are beautiful whether you are looking at the Caribbean Sea or you, literally, have your back to it!

This is a picture OF a car window - truly!

We then drove to the ruins at Cinnamon Bay. Rather than being in the bright sun the ruins are in a bit of a forest. Lots of shade with hints of sun. Different challenges to be learned regarding lighting lessons. 

The red of this door was compelling

Not a bad way to spend a morning on St John!