longer days and summer rates

The days are getting a little longer around here, with the sun rising around 5:45am and setting around 6:45pm. The daylight hours don't change that much here, like they do in the summer and winter up north, but its still nice to get an extra hour or so of sunlight to spend at the beach. If you come down this month or any month in the summer you may be getting more value for you dollar vs. coming in February, what with that whole extra hour worth of daylight! Add to that the summer rate of $80/night ($60/night single travelers) that just went into place and you've got a great deal!

this day in conserving land on St. John...........

In what can only be good for all of us that live here and all of you who will eventually visit: This week we learned of a 3.6 acre parcel of land near a favorite snorkel spot on the East End of St. John being protected forever. Lauren Mercadante has been vacationing and volunteering here on St. John for many years, and now has started the St. John Land Conservancy and purchased the more than 3 acres of property on Haulover Bay.

“What I am particularly excited about is that St. John Land Conservancy has been formed and will be able to do other things on St. John where there is a development threat to property that is really in need of conserving,” said Muilenburg. “There is really a lot of potential support for something like this.”

Full story viewable through our own Tradewinds Newspaper

school picture day

The end of season staff celebration first had us all gather in the dining pavilion for picture day:

lazy afternoons

Some have it pretty good. If anyone knows best how to fully relax, it would have to be Althea. Of all the visitors and locals relaxing on this island, she definitely wins the award for most hours spent "Limin." Today we found her fully stretched-out in a chair just in front of the Maho Store, our lunch time social spot, around noon. While I felt like telling her the chair was for guests or staff and not cats, I thought better of it when I realized she has spent more time on this island than almost everyone that works here.

If you see Althea during your stay be sure to stop and say hello, she has let thousands of guests pet her over the years and will certainly appreciate your friendly touch, even if you wake her up.

Big Maho Pavilion

Most visitors to Maho Bay Camps are very familiar with one of the nicest and biggest beaches on the North Shore, Big Maho. We are conveniently located just a 10 minute hike away from the white sand, palm trees and shallow waters of Big Maho Beach. Over the past few years Big Maho has seen quite a transformation, as visitors have found or created more and more parking spots along the side of the road, both the beach side and other side.

In an effort to stop the roadside parking that damages root systems (possibly leading to more erosion), contaminates the sand, and creates traffic hazards the National Park has recently started two big projects that should help protect the area. The National Park has leased land from the Trust for Public Land on the end of the beach closest to Maho Camps that will be used as a parking area with non-permanent improvements done to the area. On the other end of the beach, furthest from Maho Camps, renovations will be done the the existing pavilion area. Bathrooms are being installed and a few extra parking spots will be created as well as "enhancements to the picnic area" for a grand total of about $500k. The old blue pavilion structure has taken quite a transformation in the past weeks, but we hope to see some beautiful results soon!

Pictured below, what the Big Maho parking situation never looks like at noon on any day of the week:

Maho Bay Camps Glass Studio

Cordially invites you to attend

An opening reception

For Gregory Lee and Mariel Bass

Friday May 6, 2011

5 pm to 8 pm

at Bajo el Sol Gallery

Mongoose Junction

Wood Fired Pottery

If you're ever around when we're firing our kiln then you're in for a treat. Our wood fired kiln is very much a group effort from start to finish: Since everything bulk on this island seems to be shipped on pallets we certainly have plenty of scrap pallet wood to choose from, that would otherwise be tossed in the trash. Picking up the pallets and bringing them here to disassemble is the first chore, and perhaps the most labor intensive. Once the kiln is loaded and fired it required continuous stoking until it reaches a final temperature of 2340 degrees F. After waiting for the last of the wood to burn the kiln stays sealed until its opening, about a day later.

The most interesting part? The ash from the fire becomes part of the glaze, creating a glassy sheen on raw clay surfaces, offering a completely unpredictable result. Unloading the kiln becomes a surprise to everyone, as seen below.