Cinnamon Bay Trail, St. John VI National Park

The Cinnamon Bay Trail connects Cinnamon Bay with Centerline Road. It begins about 20 yards east of the entrance to the Cinnamon Bay Campground on the North Shore Road just past the ruins of the storage house. A National Park Service sign posted at the entrance of the trail displays a map of the trail and gives some details about the route. This trail is 1.2 miles long and ascends steeply, gaining about 700 feet in altitude. For those destined to Reef Bay, the Reef Bay Trail begins 1.0 mile east (left) on Centerline Road.

In the plantation days there was a rugged road going along the north shore of St. John between Brown Bay and what is now called Cinnamon Bay. To reach Cruz Bay from the north shore bays (such as Cinnamon, Trunk, Hawksnest, Denis and Caneel) it was necessary to first go up the mountain to Konge Vey (Centerline Road) and then head west from there. Most of these mountain routes were no more than bridal paths. They generally followed the natural drainage guts in the mountain valleys. In areas where no trails had been cleared, the gut itself served as the path. The trail at Cinnamon Bay follows one of these Danish roads, which in the old days provided Cinnamon Bay with access to Konge Vey.

The beginning of the trail is the most difficult part, so don’t be discouraged by the steepness and lack of shade. There is a conveniently placed flat rock near the top of the first steep ascent on the right side of the trail. It provides comfortable seating for two and may be a welcome rest stop.

The trail soon levels off and crosses a gut. At this point you will find yourself in a relatively cool and shady forest. From here on, the ascent will be easier and shadier.

About 50 yards past the gut crossing is an old iron post that marks the beginning of the spur trail to the America Hill Estate House. These ruins are officially closed due to the dangerous condition of the old estate. Continue up along the trail with the gut on your right. The forest is shady and cool with light filtering through the trees.

There are many bay rum trees, and the air often takes on the aroma of the aromatic leaves. There are two large mango trees growing right beside the gut. Other fruit trees that you will pass on the trail are genip, guavaberry, tamarind, guava, mammee apple and hog plum. During most of the year, you will come across ripe fruits from at least one of these trees.

When you come to what appears to be a fork in the trail, bear right. The other path soon ends in the bush. During the sugar plantation days most of this area was cleared and terraced by slaves. The remains of these stone terraces are visible on the hillside above the trail.

Strategically placed along the trail are lines of rocks crossing at an angle. These serve to divert the flow of water across the trail, preventing the erosion that would result from water flowing freely down the length of the trail. Some of these rudimentary culverts exist from the Danish days. This innovative management of the water run off kept many of the old Danish roads in fairly good condition for many years.

You will start to see a great deal of anthuriums growing near the trail. Off to the left, or upper side of the trail, try and find a fairly well preserved terrace retained by a wall of dry stacked stones. In this area are the remains of a large hole where the earth appears to be black in places. This was once a charcoal pit. Charcoal was an important industry in St. John’s subsistence farming days. It served not only as the principle source of fuel for cooking, but also generated some cash when sold in St. Thomas. Charcoal was prepared by digging a large hole, then filling it with wood stacked in a triangle-like fashion. The wood was then layered with green grass, leaves and dirt. It was set on fire and left to burn for a week or two. This resulted in the production of St. John’s fine charcoal which is still made today, although not very often.

After a series of switchbacks to gain elevation, the trail again crosses a gut. In this area you may find hog plum fruit when they are in season. The problem is that the hog plums are invariably too high to pick off the tree. Worms, birds and insects are usually quicker than hikers to find the ripe fruit that falls to the ground.

After another series of switchbacks, you will come to an area of tall beautiful trees, such as West Indian Locust, Kapok and Genip. You will pass under a natural bridge formed by a large tree that had been forced horizontal at some point. Despite the trauma, it began again to grow vertically. This is a good example of geotropism (the tendency of plants to grow in a direction opposite the pull of gravity).

The path turns to the right and will bring you to two overlooks with splendid views. Looking west, you will see the island of St. Thomas in the distance, with Inner and Outer Brass Cays offshore. You can look down the scenic channel formed by St. Thomas on one side and Thatch, Grassy, Mingo, Lovango and Congo Cays on the other. North of these cays you can see Hans Lollik and Little Hans Lollik. Looking down at St. John you have a lovely view of the valleys below. You can see the large houses newly built at Peter Bay, down into the valleys fringed with coconut palms and along the shorelines of Little Cinnamon and Cinnamon Bays. Cinnamon Cay and the shallow reef around its south side are visible a little offshore from the Cinnamon Bay campground. Out in the distance, north over the Cinnamon Bays, are the islands of Tobago and Little Tobago and Mercurious Rock. To the east, through the foliage, is Whistling Cay and White Bay on the Island of Jost Van Dyke.

At this overlook you will have the opportunity to see and identify some of St. John’s exotic flora. The tree with the smooth and shiny bark is a guavaberry, similar in appearance to the bay rum tree, but bearing smaller leaves. The guavaberry fruit usually matures around November or December. It is used to make guavaberry wine, the traditional Virgin Island Christmas cheer. The branches of this guavaberry tree have provided a home for night blooming cereus, bromeliads and a termite nest. Also found at this overlook are a turpentine, or gumbo limbo tree, and both the scrub brush and heart leaf anthurium.

Cinnamon Bay Trail Overlook

The next overlook is about thirty yards up the trail and also offers spectacular views. The trail continues upward through the forest until it emerges from the bush at Centerline Road. From here you can turn around and make the easier downhill hike back to Cinnamon or, if you have a lot of energy proceed to the Reef Bay Trail which begins about a mile down Centerline Road to the east (towards Coral Bay).