Kayaking on our own to Turtle Cove?

[alaskanforever12]

So we are wanting to go wind surfing for a while on Emerald beach then go kayaking on our own to some place to snorkel. I would love to go to turtle cove but not sure if that is possible? Or to some other island? Ive been trying to find how much it cost on the internet to rent a kayak in St. Thomas for the whole day and no luck so far. I heard you can rent one from Jack's Shack but is there any islands we could head towards to go snorkeling from there?

Or what about a hike on our own some where? Is that safe? I just don't want to go on a guided tour. Those drive me nuts. I was thinking about going to St. John but why is everyone wanting to go there? I'm not to much of a site seeing person, unless its something very very different. Can anyone help?

We will be in St. Thomas from 7am to 4pm.

Thanks
from the land of the midnight sun

[Ms411]

Hmm, let me see if I can answer this one.

It would be hard to kayak to Turtle Cove, because there's really no place to dock your kayak (from what I can remember - it's been a while). Many day sails go there, because they can drop anchor.

You can rent kayaks at Best Western Emerald Beach (Lindbergh Bay), VI Eco Tours, and Secret Harbor. There are probably more, but these are the ones that most people use. Emerald Beach isn't in a protected cove, so if the water is choppy, they don't rent kayaks. That part of the island isn't popular for snorkeling, but there is some wildlife in the water - just not an abundance of fish like near a coral reef. I heard somebody the other day say they saw 7 sea turtles at Brewers Beach which is the next beach west of Emerald, and is within kayaking distance.

VI Eco and Secret Harbor are more protected, but you're not likely to see turtles at VI Eco unless they take you to a place that they know of, then you're also renting a guide which would up the cost.

Where exactly is "Jack's Shack?" Is that the one at Emerald????

[Stacey779]

I'm not sure about kayaking to Turtle Cove, although from what I understand the previous poster is correct - a lot of day sails anchor there but I don't believe there's a beach where you can leave your kayak.

I did find some kayak rental prices on the Best Western Emerald Beach Resort website, but it looks like they only list them by the hour: http://www.emeraldbeach.com/Beach%20...ce%20SHeet.pdf

I read something about Jack's Shack on the Grand Turk message board. Is that the one you're talking about? I don't think I've seen anything on the St. Thomas boards about it, but I could certainly be wrong.

Happy cruising!!!

[laser110]

Turtle Cove, where the @&!* is that? I know they take tourists on a day sail to Buck Island and supposedly have seen alot of turtles there? Oldtimers help me out, is Turtle Cove a renamed beach, like they renamed Limetree to Bluebeards?


Scott

[Ms411]

laser110, yes. They "renamed" it so as not to get confused with Buck Island on St Croix. Replaced on confusion with another!

[fufanu]

No one has renamed Buck Island. It is still Buck Island. There are 2 main snorkle spots the daysail boats go to on Buck Island, the first is Turtle Cove and the second is Wreck Cove. There is a small beach in each of these coves, but the distance from Emerald beach is about 6 miles over open water, unless you are very fit and kayak in open water regularly, i wouldn't suggest it.

[The Islander]

AlaskanForever - Ditto fufanu on kayaking to Buck Island being tough! Also I doubt a resort kayak rental would allow you to leave their bay with the kayak. They can't see you, get to you to help you if necessary... insurance issues... etc.

You could take a taxi to the start of the hiking trail that goes to Magens Bay, http://www.magensbayauthority.com/naturetrail.html. Hike that trail to the beach and visit the Arboretum - http://www.magensbayauthority.com/arboretum.html and then spend some time on the beach. They rent kayaks at Magens but you can't leave the bay with it - you could kayak in the bay which is big - and maybe kayak over to Little Magens - a small beach on the right side of the coast when facing the water at Magens. Little Magens is usually sparsely populated (do note that while nudity at beaches is illegal, some folks head to Little Magens for this - so just a warning so you aren't caught by surprise if you go there).

You could try Homer's kayak tour, it’s usually very small groups, not the big excursion type but you could ask to double check - or maybe they could do a private trip: http://www.nightsnorkel.com/kayaksnorkel.html.

PS for Scott: Limetree Beach hasn't been renamed; it’s still Limetree - just that Bluebeards has a timeshare property located there. There is already a beach named Bluebeards Beach on St. Thomas - it’s where the Ritz Carlton Timeshare is located. And back to Turtle Cove - there is also a Turtle Cove on St. Thomas, Ritz Carlton Resort is located on that cove. To add to the possible confusion - Ritz' Bluebeards along with Turtle Cove is called Great Bay.

--Islander