New Shared Use, Paved Pathway Planned for Lind Point Trail

The white sandy beach of Honeymoon Bay will hopefully soon be even easier to access on foot.

V.I. National Park officials are hoping to secure Federal Highway Administration funds in order to transform the current Lind Point Trail into a shared use, accessible pathway with historic way points and inviting resting areas, explained VINP Superintendent Mark Hardgrove.

As currently envisioned, the trail would be a paved 12-foot wide pathway accessible by foot and bicycle which VINP officials hope will entice beach-goers to leave their vehicles behind. With close to one million visitors each year, VINP parking areas and roadways are often clogged with cars with vehicles lining North Shore Road during high season.

The shared use path to Honeymoon Beach would originate in the VINP Visitors Center parking lot, yet bypass the current wooden stairway and offer a ramp-like walkway up to the trail past the Cruz Bay Apartments. Officials at first had hoped to make the trail comply with Americans with Disabilities Act requirements, but that seems off the table now, explained Hardgrove.

“There are a few areas where we might have to retain some steps,” said the VINP Superintendent. “We’ll have some steps which will likely be retained near the entrance. Also when you come down to Honeymoon, it’s a steep rocky drop so we might have to have some steps there too.”

“I don’t believe we’re going to meet the ADA requirements, but we’re going to try to make the trail as accessible as possible,” said Hardgrove.

The trail will likely include interpretive signage about the historical significance of the area, according to the superintendent.

“Up near Caneel Bay, there is a beautiful resting area where we’d like to interpret the historic route and the purposes it served as really the original North Shore Road,” said Hardgrove. “We’re thinking of also including signage about Caneel Bay being the first commercial development to serve tourists and employ residents.”

While hoping to attract visitors without vehicles, the new pathway might also help improve the environment, Hardgrove added.

“We’re talking about taking some tires off St. John and using a technique to mix color and texture that would resemble the ground surface,” he said. “If it all goes well, you’ll be able to bounce to the beach, because the surface will be a like a spongy track. We want to make sure the application is environmentally friendly and then we’ll be able to recycle and make a good use for some of those tires.”

Hardgrove and several other VINP officials will head up to the regional National Park Service offices in Georgia this month for the first step in making the shared use trail a reality.

“We’re going up for a Meeting Value Analysis where we’ll look at the value of the project in terms of being environmentally friendly and meeting our objectives,” said Hardgrove. “The funds will come from the Federal Highway Administration and the project must meet their objectives of getting some folks off of North Shore Road and limiting the vehicle need on St. John.”

“That is the pinning of the project,” said the VINP Superintendent. “We have to demonstrate that there will be less vehicles and improved safety for pedestrians at the end of the day.”

While residents and visitors who already use the Lind Point trail for exercise or to access Honeymoon Beach will benefit from improved terrain on the trail, the question remains if the new shared use path will entice anyone to leave their vehicles either on St. Thomas or in Cruz Bay.

“We have a lot of walkers and joggers who go back and forth and I know we’ll make it better and safer for them,” said Hardgrove. “Will we attract people from their cars with the improved access? We’ll have to get the message out for something like this at the cruise ship docks or the ferry terminals.”

Once the project clears the value analysis stage, an Environmental Assessment Report will be created which will offer preferred alternatives and be open for comment, Hardgrove explained.

“If the project is approved after the Value Analysis, we’ll get an Environmental Assessment Report together with preferred alternatives and there will be a comment period specific to the range of alternatives,” he said.

The current plan calls for a 12-foot wide, paved shared use path about 0.7-miles long which would basically follow the existing Lind Point trail, according to documentation from NPS. The construction will also likely require two bridges to cross guts along the path, according to the document, which can be found at http://parkplanning.nps.gov, by clicking VINP under “Choose a Park.”