Local News

How does two free nights on St. John sound? How about a free sunset boat ride for you and 29 friends? Or perhaps a gift certificate or two is more up your alley? Well we have some great news for all of you!!

We’re super excited to tell you about a party we’re throwing next Friday night along with our friends over at The Beach Bar. And we’re even more excited to tell you about some fabulous raffles that you all have a chance at winning!

So as many of you know, we launched St. Johnopoly earlier this month. A part of all sales are going to four incredibly worthy on-island charities: the Animal Care Center, the St. John Cancer Fund, Friends Helping Friends and Team River Runner. We’re having a party to celebrate the game’s launch next Friday and we hope you all can come. And for those of you off island, there’s a way you can participate too! Here are the details:

The party is happening next Friday, October 3 at 7 p.m. at The Beach Bar. They’re going to have a live band and everyone who buys a drink – not beer or wine … a drink drink 🙂 – will receive one raffle ticket to win a slew of wonderful raffle prizes. Guests can also purchase additional tickets at the event for $5 each. We’ll also have St. Johnopoly games on hand for purchase. Heck, you can even play while hanging out at The Beach Bar!

Not going to be on island next Friday? No need to worry, you can get in on the action too. You can purchase a raffle ticket online at www.StJohnopoly.com/raffle. Tickets are $5 each and all winners will be notified by email on Saturday, October 4. Online raffle sales will close at 5 p.m. on October 3. (We’ll email you to confirm your entry and will also post a list of winners on NewsofStJohn.com)  Heck, you can even watch the party on The Beach Bar’s webcam here.

Want to know what we’re raffling off? Here’s our list as of Friday night. We fully expect to add more to the list as the week progresses…

Items to be raffled off include:

• Two-night stay at Gallows Point Resort
• Two-night stay at Grande Bay
• Two-night stay at the Inn at Tamarind Court
• Free Jeep rental courtesy of Sunshine Jeep Rental
• Sadie Sea sunset cruise for 30 people. BYOB.
• Noah’s Little Arks half-day dinghy rental
• $50 gift certificate to Castaway’s Tavern
• $50 gift certificate to Castaway’s Tavern
• $50 gift certificate to The Beach Bar
• $50 gift certificate to The Beach Bar
• $50 gift certificate to Ocean Grill
• $50 gift certificate to The Tap Room
• $50 gift certificate to Virgin Fire
• $50 gift certificate to Sun Dog Cafe
• $50 gift certificate to St. John Beach Bums
• $50 gift certificate to Barefoot Cowboy Lounge
• $50 gift certificate to Ocean 362
• $25 gift certificate to Cafe Roma
• $25 gift certificate to Cafe Roma
• $25 gift certificate to Tamarind
• $25 gift certificate to Joe’s Rum Hut
• $25 gift certificate to Joe’s Rum Hut
• Free drink coupon package to a plethora of St. Johnopoly spots
• Steve Simonson 2015 Calendar
• St. Johnopoly games – the island’s newest, coolest & only board game
• News of St. John prize pack including Vino to Go, Koozies and Shot Glass
• Love City Radio hat

More prizes to be announced soon!

So exciting, right! Please click here to purchase raffle tickets. Good luck everyone!

We’ve got another “live and work in paradise” opportunity for you all. How many of you out there were born to rhumb? I’m not sure about all of you, but my hand’s in the air!

Born to Rhumb is a 15-passenger, Coast Guard-inspected charter boat that’s been operating on St. John for the past 10 years. It was completely overhauled, from top to bottom, in late 2013 and now has a new 440 hp Yanmar Engine, new transmission, new turbo, all new hoses, water pumps, starter, alternator, batteries, cushions and more. And the best part is that it can be yours…

Born to Rhumb is a popular and very profitable charter operation, according to its current owners. In addition to the boat, the business will be sold with a complete client list, 12′ dinghy, all marketing materials and all equipment on the boat. Financial statements will be made available to serious buyers.

Born to Rhumb can be yours for $295,000.

For more information on Born to Rhumb, you can visit its website at www.borntorhumb.com. You can also email [email protected]

Back in June, we mentioned to you how The Amazing Race filmed the first episode of its 25th season in the US Virgin Islands. If you recall, teams climbed up and jumped off of Carval Rock and made a few stops at other familiar places like Hans Lollick, Magen’s Bay and downtown at Fort Christian in St. Thomas. Several of our boat captain friends were tapped to transport teams, as were our friends over at Caribbean Buzz helicopters. And according to CBS.com, this was the first time the show ever filmed in the Virgin Islands. Pretty cool stuff. 

Well, the show is set to premier tomorrow night and CBS just released a sneak peek. Check it out. I think you’ll recognize some of the locations.

http://youtu.be/QsVa0gZ8LSw

The Amazing Race will premier tomorrow, September 26 at 8 p.m. EST on CBS. Be sure to check it out. And click here to read our story on the filming of this episode. 

Today I’d like to tell you all about my new BFF. His name is Charlie, and he may be the cutest thing that has ever lived!

Charlie is one of several dogs that lives at the Animal Care Center. For those of you unfamiliar with the Animal Care Center, it’s an organization that does a tremendous job caring for the island’s homeless cats and dogs. It has an extremely successful trap and spay/neuter program, as well as feline feeding stations throughout the island. (You can read story that we wrote about that here.)

I heard a few weeks back that the ACC was at capacity in terms of the number of dogs it was caring for. A great majority of the ACC’s dogs get adopted stateside, but the summer’s hot temps prohibit dogs from traveling up north this time of year, according to Ryan Moore, the ACC’s manager. Therefore it’s pretty typical that the shelter gets crowded during the summer and early fall.

Knowing this, I decided to help. I contacted the ACC and offered to foster one of its dogs for a week. I chose Charlie, an adorable little Pit Bull/Korgi mix.

(Disclaimer: Prior to me doing so, Mr. News of St. John said there was no way I could simply “foster” a dog for a week. Just tuck that in the back of your mind for a bit…)

So my new BFF Charlie and I palled around for the past week. We took walks, visited friends, made quick cameos at a few of our favorite island watering holes, delivered some St. Johnopoly games and took a nice little hike out near Leinster Bay. It was fabulous!

Now guess what… Guess who plans to get a new dog… This girl!!!

Yup, Mr. News of St. John was right. I fell in love with little Charlie, and hopefully within the next few weeks, he will be my little buddy permanently. How exciting is that?!

So why am I sharing this with all of you? Because you can help Charlie’s little friends over at the ACC. If you aren’t in the position to foster or adopt, that’s totally cool. The ACC is always looking for people to take the dogs for a walk, keep the kitties company or donate items or money to care for the animals. Every little bit helps. (You can learn more about how you can help by checking out the ACC’s website here.)

The ACC is also planing a few events of their own to raise funds for the animals.

• October 11th – Flea Market Clothing Sale – 10am-3pm @ the Marketplace next to STJ Hardware. All leftover clothing will be sold the following Saturday at the General Flea Market.
• October 18th- General Flea Market – 10am – 3pm @ the Winston Wells ball field. If you are interested in having a table to sell goods, you can stop by the shelter and fill out the paperwork. Tables are $30 (food and drink sales are prohibited).
• December 11th – ACC Holiday Open House (one of the ACC’s most fun nights) – 5:30 @ the shelter where they will have food and beverages available. This is a just a casual night at the shelter where you can hang out with the animals, staff, volunteers, board members and good friends.
• January 24th – Winter Gala – This year’s Gala will be held @ Edens Whim in Great Cruz Bay @ 6pm (Theme still to be decided.)

I never really understood why people shied away from the island during September, To me, it’s one of the best months of the year. The beaches are nearly empty. Parking is plentiful. The water’s warm. And although several restaurants and bars may close, you can still get great food and service from the ones that chose to stay open. See for yourself…

The Beach Bar! Well that’s according to the folks over at the Caribbean Journal. They recently featured The Beach Bar in their Rum Journal. Here’s what they had to say…

It’s one of the first things you see when you reach the harbour of Cruz Bay, St. John, US Virgin Islands, when you look past the rolling green hills and the crystal-clear turquoise water: a bar.

Just at the end of Wharfside on a tiny beach sits The Beach Bar, the most famous beach bar on this almost impossibly verdant Caribbean island and almost inarguably its best one, too.

This is an institution on St John, a place that draws in everybody for tasty Caribbean pub fare and even better cocktails.

It’s the kind of place that you know, immediately upon entering, is beloved.

Of course, this is the Virgin Islands, meaning it is painkiller country, meaning it would be reckless not to try a painkiller (or more than one).

The painkiller: that off-white rum cocktail made famous by Pusser’s Rum and the Soggy Dollar Bar on Jost Van Dyke can be found at seemingly every beach bar in both the British and United States Virgin Islands.

A tasty blend of rum, cream of coconut, pineapple juice, orange juice and nutmeg, its the perfect cocktail for kicking back and enjoying the vistas one of the Caribbean’s most beautiful places.

And the Beach Bar makes a rather good one: sweet but not too sweet, thanks to the Coco Lopez it uses; powerful in a way that sneaks right up on you.

Here, on the water in St John, it’s the recipe for a perfect Caribbean afternoon.

So what do you all think? Is The Beach Bar the best bar on St. John in your opinion? Let us know what your favorite is by voting in the poll below. Voting closed Wednesday, September 24 at 11:59 p.m. 

How about a little villa shopping to end the week? A gorgeous two bedroom, Coral Bay home is on the market and it’s definitely one you’ll all want to check out. It’s called “Love View” and the name pretty much says it all. The best part, however, is that it just had a nice price reduction. Here are the details…

Love View in an all masonry home located in Estate Concordia that features panoramic views of the east end of St John, the BVIs, as well as sunrise and moonrises. It faces the east so it gets great easterly breezes, all while being situated within the pristine quiet of the National Park.

Love View features stone outside showers, granite countertops and ample covered and uncovered outside deck areas. This pod style villa can be continued as a successful short term rental home or enjoyed solely for personal living. It also features a newly surfaced pool. This villa is only a short drive away from Salt Pond and Lameshur bays.

The list price for Love View is now $675,000.

Looking for more information? Contact Tammy at 340 Real Estate Co. at [email protected]

Ziggy the piggy is on the move … and he may be coming to a town near you!

I have to say, I was pretty sad when I heard Ziggy’s plan to leave island … but it sounds like he’s got a pretty cool little adventure in store for him!

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Ziggy, the world famous island pig, he’s a four-year-old “mini teacup” pig. Well, that’s what his parents, Kristin and Jay, were told when they got him a few years back. It turns out that plans changed a bit and Zigs is now a happy and healthy 220-pound lovable little fella. “It’s just more to love,” Kristin told us earlier this year.

After three years of living in paradise. Kristin and Jay have decided to share Ziggy with America. The plan is to buy an RV and travel to all of America’s National Parks. So be on  the lookout, he just may be in a town near you.

Kristin said she plans on blogging about Ziggy’s adventures, so we can all keep tabs on our favorite island pig. Great idea!

Want to know more about Ziggy, the world famous island pig? Click here to read a little profile we did on him back in January. 

Caneel Bay received top honors yet again! This time, Caneel was named as one of the top 25 best resorts for a honeymoon in the Caribbean by the Caribbean Journal.

“Choosing the best resort for a honeymoon in the Caribbean is a bit like choosing an engagement ring,” according to the Caribbean Journal. “There are so many, they are all beautiful and there’s usually one that’s just right for you. The difference is, you’ll have your ring forever — but your honeymoon is just a few days … so you’d better get it right! CJ has you covered, with 25 of our top picks to make sure you have a trip that you remember for a lifetime.”

Here’s what they had to say about Caneel:

“Long one of the flagship Caribbean resorts, Caneel Bay recently became an independent brand; but the resort, like St John, has retained its remote, idyllic luxury.”

Agreed! And while I’ve never actually stayed at the property overnight, I’ve definitely enjoyed my frequent day trips.

For those of you looking to book a stay at Caneel, the resort is currently running an Autumn Escape promotion. For new bookings for stays between November 1 and November 23, guests will enjoy complimentary breakfast with rates beginning at $399 a night. Click here to learn more. 

(Caneel is currently closed for the season. It will reopen on November 1.)

Well folks, it’s a sad day over in Mongoose Junction – Deli Grotto has closed its doors for good. Fortunately, however, it will open under new ownership October 1. And from what we hear, it’s going to be pretty delicious.

For those of you on island over the past few days, you may have noticed a sign over at Deli Grotto stating that it’s closed for the month of September. We found that to be a tad odd considering we were told that Deli Grotto planned to stay open for the season, so we decided to do some digging.

We learned that a local couple will soon take over the space and that it will remain a deli. They’re still in the process of clearing the deli’s new name, so we agreed to keep some of the details to ourselves for a bit. But I have to admit, as sad as I am to see Deli Grotto go (their turkey artichoke panini was my absolute favorite!), I believe the new owners will do an excellent job.

Stay tuned for more details in the upcoming weeks… In the meantime, if you’re looking to get your sandwich fix or perhaps grab a bite to go, Sam & Jack’s in the Marketplace and Baked in the Sun plan to remain open throughout low season.