st john news

You don't have to weait until Tuesday to hear all 10 tracks from Kenny Chesney's new CD.  The iTunes stiore is streaming the full album free. One of the tracks, "Lindy", can also be played off the store's site.

Highlights of the album look to be "Coconut Tree," a duet with Willie Nelson, the track "Lindy", in memory of an island character who inhabited the Cruz Bay streets and alleys, amd the title track, "Life on a Rock." 

The 20th album from Kenny Chesney is set for release Tuesday, the 30th — and it's going to benefit St. John!  The 45-year-old star will donate a portion of the sure-to-be-blockbuster sales to the Virgin Islands National Park.

It was 15 years ago that Chesney 'discovered' the island. He's been a regular visitor and homeowner ever since.

"As the world becomes more developed, protecting these wild places is going to become harder – and the cost of maintaining them needs to be covered," Chesney explains. "It's easy to forget, or not understand when it's a line item on a piece of paper. But if you've ever seen the trees, the oceans from a ridge, the way it all tangles together, you realize how important making sure lands like this exist for the people who come after us is.

"For me, Life on a Rock comes from this place, so I want to give something back, so it's there for others. Let them find the peace and the awe that I did for so many years. And I like that the music can be connected with protecting something so important.

The first track released from the CD, Life  a Rock, is Pirate Flag.  You can see it here. The video sure looks like it's got shots of St. John, Florida, too.  There's also an old blue chair on a beach. 🙂

The Inquiring Iguana senses that Chesney's making a head-on run at the audience of the original pirate, the aging Jimmy Buffett.

Two new ferry boats, costing nearly $8 million, are expected to go into service between Red Hook and Cruz bay by the end of the year.  

Darryl Smalls, commissioner of Public Works, said the cost of the craft is being borne by the federal government through a grant from the Tranportation department and federal stimulus funds.

"Those vessels, the first in the country that are being constructed under new U.S. Coast Guard regulations for passenger vessels, should be delivered by the third quarter of this fiscal year and go into operation soon after," Smalls said. "The territory's two franchise ferry companies will lease and operate the ferries, which will improve the speed, service, reliability and capacity of the ferry service that so many Virgin Islanders and tourists rely on every day."

The 85-foot aluminum catamarans are being built by Midship Marine Inc., a Louisiana company.  Each can carry 250 passengers.

• Web site of Midship Marine

• New Buses and Ferries Will Improve Territory's Public Transit System 

This is National Parks Week which means there will be no admission fee at Trunk Bay or the Christiansted Histioric Site now through Friday.  The usual $4 toll comes back Sunday at Trunk Bay.

Dropping the fee, despite the Sequester and budget issues in Washington, is meant to encourage people to stop and smell the roses, or at least feel the sand between their toes.  Mike Anderson, deputy supt. at the VI National Park, told Lynda Lohr of the St. John Source, "You can pause and think about what's important."

Trunk Bay access will also be free Saturday.  The Friends of the V I National Park will be observing Reef Fest as part of this week's Earth Day observances.

The Friends announced Earth Day Fair will be held April 19th at the National Park ball field in Cruz Bay from 9 am to 1 pm and have more than 20 educational exhibits and learning activities.  The fair will kick off with a "litter stomp" parade from Julius E. Sprauve school to the fair grounds. 

Then on Saturday, April 20th there will be a fee-free day at Trunk Bay from 12 to 5 pm with various exhibits and interactive activities all centered around reef preservation and conservation.  There will be a free shuttle service from the Friends Store in Cruz Bay.  Call 779-4940 for more details.

According to a press release, "When Kenny Chesney decided it was time to find the rum he’d always wanted to drink, he didn’t approach the various distillers who’d offered him lucrative deals to lend his name and likeness to a brand created for him.

"No, the man who oversees every aspect of giant stadium productions and listens to myriad songs beyond what he writes for his albums, decided he wanted to do it himself.

“Everybody’s always expected this from me,” said Chesney. “There have been people who’ve approached us, stories that have gone around over the years. But rum is what I drink, and I always told myself, if I was going to do this, I wanted to create something I could be really proud of … make the rum I truly wanted to drink."

Chesney's brand will offer a Coconut flavored rum, Coconut Spiced, and a premium White Rum.

Blue Chair Bay Rum won’t be available until May.

The 45-year-old country singer owns a house on St. John, currently listed for just under $8 million.

Anyone who's ever tried to make a call from the beach at Maho will appreciate this: AT&T said St. Thomas and St. Croix will be included in the company's introduction of it higher-speed LTE technology by "the end of the summer."

But not St. John? (Read the corporate news release here.)  

It doesn't seem possible that other two islands would have the improved technology access but St. John wouldn't.  Maybe AT&T doesn't know St. John is here. or perhaps the towers that cover St. John will not be upgraded.  The Inquiring Iguana has always been happy with his AT&T connectivity in the past – we'll just have to wait and see.

The company said the LTE service provides  a stronger connection to wireless service, and faster upload and download speeds. Smartphones like the iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy are capable of using the 4G LTE network.

Sprint is reported planning to add LTE cell towers in the VI, including one on St. John.

Manta Rays, those winged fish, have become almost 'common' around the island. Photograohers at booth Maho Bay and Caneel Bay have posted video of the gorgeous creatures appearing too fly through the crystal clear waters.

There are two types of Mantas, Reef and Ocean. The former fare typically 10-feet in wingspan, while the Ocean type can grow to 25 feet and weigh 5,000 pounds. last year, Mantas qualified as a threatened sp[iecy to be protected by the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals .

This video was posted on the Blog of Maho (see the full item here).

Several rays have been seen coursing along the Bay. They nicknamed one of them, "Manny".

"The National Park has even come out here (and other beaches) to post signs about not touching them," the Blog reported. "Manta Rays have a protective mucus membrane on their skin, and may develop infections or lesions if touched by snorkelers."

At Caneel, Guest Relations manager Chad was able to video a Ray swimming near the ferry dock, right off the main Caneel Beach … and almost close enough to use one of the beach chaise lounges.

"We also have had several confirmed sightings of a Manta Ray at Francis Bay recently, which is an unusual visitor in our shallower waters," Caneel reported on its Facebook page. "And right off Caneel Beach last week, a mother Dolphin with two babies paid us a visit."

There's a cruiser in Cruz Bay, anchored off the waterfront in front of the Grande Bay Resort and Residence Club.

John Alvarado, the director of sales, says the 35-foot power boat is available for full and half-day charters. "It will go wherever the guests want to go," he said.

The craft, manufactured by Scout Boats of South Carolina, boasts two 350 horsepower outboard engines and a speed range in the mid-60s.

Named the ResidenSea, its captain is Michael Luzon. Committing to a full-time captain "ensures that our guest experience will be unparalleled," Alvarado said.

He added that the availability of ResidenSea for diving, snorkeling, swimming or island hopping "completes our vision of providing our members the opportunity to enjoy the ideal St. John lifestyle – a residence, a four-door Jeep Wrangler, and a 35-foot power boat."