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Outlook for hurricanes this season worsens

The nation's foremost hurricane forecasters believes there is a two-out-of-three chance that a big storm will track in to the Caribbean this year.  In their latest storm outlook forecast, William Gray and Phil Klotzbach say, "We foresee a very active hurricane season in 2010."

Back in December, the Colorado State University forecasters said six to eight hurricanes could be expected.  In their June 2 outlook, that number has risen to 10, with the number of 'major hurricanes' rising from three to five.

The possibility for at least one major storm, category 3-4-5) tracking into the Caribbean stands at 65%, compared to an average of 42% during the last century.  The area included ranges from Trinidad to the south, the Virgin Islands to the north. Martinique on the east to Cuba on the west.  That's a big area.

Keep your fingers crossed.

Best Beach?

St. John boasts dozens of great places to soak up the sun and play in the sand. 

Chances are that if you were sitting at the Beach Bar, everybody along the counter would have a different beach they think is #1. 

What's your favorite?  Cast your vote for one of the most popular or add your own.

  • The St. John Beach Guide has a great rundown.  See it here.

New restaurant in Cruz Bay

CcLooks like one of Cruz Bay's most popular bars is still outsourcing its food offerings. 

A few months ago, the second floor of Crazy Cracker's became the home of the Surly Cantina, a Mexican food place that left its original location at Wharfside Village.  Owners of Surly moved in and began using the kitchen to dish up tacos, beans, burritos and lots of good stuff. Soon, however, they found they needed to leave the island, creating an opportunity for another food business to move in.

Enter the Dog House, which has drawn a rave review from Poolmom_9 on TripAdvisor.com

"They have a good selection of Steak and Shrimp all for under $20 …. We had 2 different Shrimp dishes and they were excellent … The chef is great and the waitress is awesome. Very sociable and attentive. They even put the NASCAR race on the TV's upstairs and gave us free samples of some delishish apps. because they realized we had been there earlier in the week."

Still talkin’ about the ‘Housewives on St. Johns’

Housewife Yes, The Inquiring Iguana watched the second St. John-based episode of Housewives of New York.  For about 10 minutes.  Then he turned it off.  He felt dirty. Judging from comments about the show, posted on TripAdvisor.com, he wasn't alone.

pattyatips

"Yes, I know…..but its a bit of a guilty pleasure, watching all the drama unfold … But how cool it was to see the ladies land on the north shore of STJ in Peter Bay. It's been fun watching the episodes and spotting some of our favorite spots on the island."

sratamess

"yes but it is sad that they give those childish crazies all the coverage with the beautiful St. John just as back ground…they are nuts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

surfnh

"it's really the dumbest show I've ever seen, a bunch of vain rich women in NYC…..the last day on STJ they spent getting their nails done on their deck, give me a break … wish they'd stop calling STJ St. Johns…..

pattyatips

"It's become a joke in my house….every time they called it St. Johns, I would cringe and my husband would just snicker. Yes, vain and shallow women for sure."

Teenager, woman, top Power Swim finishers

A 15-year-old boy and a 51-year-old woman were the big winners of the weekend's 7th annual Beach to Beach Power Swim, sponsored by the Friends of the Virgin Islands National Park.


Winner Bryson Mays of Frederiksted finished the 3.5 mile course, solo, from Maho Beach to Hawksnest Beach in 1 hour 14 minutes and 5 seconds.  On the distaff side, Sally Dykstra of Austin, Texas churned through the course in 1 hour 32 minutes and 6 seconds.

The winners received a Power Swim medal, crafted by Freebird
Creations.Medal

Overall, 22 women and 24 men finished the long individual course competition; about a third of them live on St. John. About 170 swimmers participated in the event which had short and long
courses for individuals and relay teams. 

Tropical Focus photographer Bob TeamworkSchlesinger was at the Hawksnest finish line as Mays came out of the water.

Safety drill nearly closes ferry dock

One What if they closed the Cruz Bay dock and didn't tell many people?

Well, that's close to what happened when the government and local do-good groups helped observe National Safe Boating week. To make way for safety demonstrations, an aerial rescue in the Sound, and waters ports, the Cruz Bay pier was closed last Saturday to all but ferries.

So besides some confused, frustrated and even angry locals as well as visitors , Safe Boating activities got underway.  The most exciting was a a helicopter rescue demonstration.

Two Front and center, of course, was St. John Rescue, a group of tireless, unpaid volunteers.  Members are quick to respond on land and sea when there's trouble – a good thing since a police presence and ambulance services are so minimal.  Other participants in the training and demonstrations included the Coast Guard, National Park Service, and U.S.Power Squadron.


Three Bob Schlesinger of Tropical Focus was on hand and provided these photos. 

Swimmers, warm up your engines

Power_swim Capping a busy busy month of activities on the island, the Friends of the Virgin Islands National Park's annual Beach to Beach Power Swim is Sunday.

The race includes four different events, all starting from Maho Bay.  There are short, intermediate, and long courses as well as a three-person relay. The fun begins at 8 a.m.

A new component to this years’ swim is the “Race for a Reason” fund raising challenge. Donations will be used to support the “Learn to Swim” program in the Park along with other projects and programs. Map05

All participants raising $100 or more for Friends get receive a Power Swim hat and the top three fundraisers will receive special gifts following the race at the Beach Party/Awards Celebration at Oppenheimer Beach.

  • Details about the Power Swim event are here

Let the sun help you cool off

MarcusDr. Cool is branching out.

Besides installing and service air conditioning units, Dr. Cool is now marketing solar-assisted AC systems.

Solar panels are installed on a house or business's roof, and they collect energy. The main difference from an electric AC unit is that instead of drawing energy from the electric grid, the solar air conditioner uses steam from sun-heated water to power the system, according to Ecolocalizer.com.

The Inquiring Iguana did his best to read up about this process but was not able to figure out how it works.  Giving up, he watched a promotional video the St. John guys produced. See it here.

Sounds like a good idea.  Using less electricity at the island's usurious rates is certainly smart.  One caveat … the Solar AC's guys Web site indicates that the solar panels really need a flat surface, so if your casa has those wavy, colorful tiles, you'll need to find another place for the panels to be installed.

Solar Jeff's Web site has a bit of information here, but not much. http://solarstjohn.com/node

Want this pooch’s picture on a coffee cup?

Ella_waga1 Easy to do thanks to Eloise Anderson and the Smugmug Web site.

Anderson, publisher of the St. John Sun Times, shot about a hundred pictures at last weekend's Wagapalooza event. 

Now she's uploaded them to Smugmug, a Web service where you can use the photos and make puzzles, refrigerator magnets and even books.

"They (also) make great holiday cards," Anderson said. "Show everyone how zany we are here! All profits from print sales and merchandise sales (t-shirts, coffee mugs, totes and MUCH more) go to the Animal Care Center."

Don’t run out of gas or cash

Some experienced St. John visitors think it's a good idea to take a 'glass is half empty' point of view.

On the smallest of the Virgin Islands, there is only one operating gas station, E&C Service in Cruz Bay. But it has been known to run out of gas.  Maybe the barge that brings the delivery trucks is out of service for maintenance, or simply late – no matter, sometimes E&C has no gas.

Gromit, who posts often on the Virgin-Islands-On-Line forum, says "I personally can't relax unless I know I've got at least a half a tank no matter what. It's simply not worth it to risk running out, especially if you are staying in Coral Bay (where Dominio has yet to re-open …)." Read Gromit's message here.

Along the same lines, Gromit adds, "It's always a good idea to have $100-200 accessible because the ATMs have been known to run out (of money) especially over holiday week-ends."

What an island 🙂