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After purchasing and reading St. John Off the Beaten Track, the author Gerald Singer mentions a 70 feet waterfall found on the Reef Bay gut and Battery gut trail. Has anyone ever hiked this trail and seen this waterfall? Is it worth the effort??
Hello Phil
I believe this is the waterfall at the Petroglyphs. As it is part of the Reef Bay trail, it is worth the 'diversion' to see the area. Bear in mind the waterfall is nothing spectacular or unique. Any waterfall on a tropical island is somewhat special given the natural water conditions and during the dry season the water is a trickle.
The Reef Bay trail is a 2-3 mile trek downhill to the old Sugar Plantation ruins and Reef Bay. Although you can do it alone, the hike back is very tiring and I always suggest taking the Parks Department tour. For $20 they take you to the trailhead, escort you down while discussing the area flora & fauna, stop at the Petroglyphs and plantation ruins and then ferry you back to Cruz Bay after swiming in Reef Bay.
Hello Phil, My husband and I were lucky to do this hike in early January after a "relatively" rainy few days. The waterfall was just above the petroglyphs and because of the recent rain it was quite spectacular! In fact the petroglyphs were almost underwater. We did the hike down, relaxed and swam in reef bay and then hiked our 45+ year old and slightly out of shape bodies back up. We had plenty of water, it was humid and it was a steady climb back up, not really that difficult compared to White Mountains of NH standards. 🙂 Even if the water is dried up it is a nice hike with plenty to see and the petroglyphs are amazing.
