11. Virgin Islands

Back with another park and this one was once again commissioned by a client. They wanted me to capture the beautiful beaches of St. Johns. At the time I don’t think either of us were thinking about the national park which actually covers two thirds of the island. At least I wasn’t. It wasn’t until I was about 20-30 Parks into my national project that I realized I had already completed this park painting.

Established as a national park August 2, 1956 40 years after the United States, purchased from Denmark the group of islands formerly known as the Danish West Indies. St. Johns island was picked to host the virgin islands national park. Known for is pure white sands and crystal clear waters it’s an ideal paradise getaway. Some say the virgin islands are home to the best beaches in the world. A day in the park could mean sailing, kayaking or snorkeling to see the many protected coral reefs. But that’s not all, with hiking inland in the tropical rainforest you can summit the island’s tallest mountain Bordeaux (Bore Doe) which stands at 1286 feet.

From what I could find the island seems rich in history and may have been home to semi nomadic people before even the 200s. 

Now I’m always curious about wildlife. Virgin Islands National park is currently home to 22 species of mammals but bats are the only land mammal native to the island. The waters are home to many coral species that provide homes for many fish. Actually up to 500 species of fish are associated with the park. Turtles are also very noteworthy for this park. Their a highly protected species and of the 7 kinds of sea turtles in the world 3 species come to lay eggs on the island. The Green, Hawksbill, and Leatherback. Leatherback being the largest of all sea turtles though the most rare of the 3 on the island. The leatherback is typically 4 to 6 feet long and weighs 600 to 1100 pounds. But the largest leatherback ever recorded was almost 10 feet long and weighed 2019 pounds. Which is just crazy to me.

Learning about this park was like stepping into a world I’ve never seen as I’m most familiar with the west coast when I think of the ocean so I hope to visit some day! 

Have you been to the Virgin Islands, British or US? And have you been specifically to St. Johns and the Virgin islands National Park?