Spring Bay National Park is absolutely stunning.
When we visited on Easter Sunday, even I was amazed at how clean, well-kept and manicured she was.
As we walked from a well-designed and inviting access point, over a stoned platform, down the strip, to the beach, we were impressed with the quality of work done by the NPTVI to restore the area after its destruction by multiple rainstorms.
The gabion baskets recommended by the engineers should protect the beach during future rainstorms and even from runoff that has its source on private properties sharing boundary lines with the park.
The gabions are professionally done and add to the perception that nature, here, is displaying its best face.
For Spring Bay National Park, although only a strip of land about 1,040 feet long and 230 feet wide at its widest point and measuring 5.5 acres, easily displays the quality of work done by the small team at the NPTVI.
It is one of 6 donations to the NPTVI by the late Laurance Spelman Rockefeller. The others are Sage Mountain (86 acres), Virgin Gorda Peak (260 acres), Devils Bay (58 acres), Fallen Jerusalem (48 acres), and via his Foundation, the island of Sandy Cay (14 acres).
When I approached the end of the parkland and was greeted by the dazzlingly bright yellow sand on the beach, which threatened my eyesight for its brilliance;
And when l beheld its union with the sparkling diamonds that the sun’s rays created on the water, my heart swelled with pride.
Arguably, the beach at Spring Bay is the most beautiful in the Territory. The presence of the granite boulders, some approaching 2 stories tall, makes one wonder about their origin.
Scientists have their theories framed in chaos, explosions, chance and time. But the very reason I was on Virgin Gorda; For the Easter holidays; Demanded recognition of the biblical perspective.
So, that 1880 song by S.J. Graham invaded my thoughts. “O, we see the gleams of the golden morning ….”
Spring Bay National Park is one of 21 National Parks maintained by the NPTVI.
And when she was on her knees, the NPTVI reached for all the firepower in its arsenal, mostly green, to bring her back to life and health.
It took longer than expected. Public complaints were incessant but no support materialized although the park is a gold mine to some.
Now, Spring Bay National Park has parted its foliage and although the parks have an independent management structure, they belong to the people.
The Board, of course, is ashamed that the users of the park are reluctant to support her upkeep. It seems that only the law can compel us to protect our national treasures.
And even then, the merchants believe the, still, low entry fees, recently approved by the Cabinet for select parks (Spring Bay was not included) are too high although they dim significantly, in comparison to their charges.
As I approached the surf of the sea, looming granite boulders, some barely breaching the surface up to a fair distance from shore, beckoned me to walk, in safety, on the water. I could not pull a ‘Peter’ because those boulders are well anchored to the seabed.
From my perch, I examined the panorama of boulders that move beyond Spring Bay in both directions and tempt the imagination.
For, The Baths National Park, which could easily be one of the wonders of the world, was close by, although outside of my line of sight.
And, floating on a sea of various shades of blue with easy views to the clear sand below, were pleasure vessels.
The boats reminded us why tourists visit the Territory. For the natural beauty of the BVI marine environment makes it more than a sailor’s paradise.
But to hear the water make its way into crevices between the rocks culminating, at times, in a white spray as it noisily recedes, adds another dimension to the natural hypnosis possible in this setting…
…complimented by the voices of children shouting and daring each other to jump from select boulders into the water. Their screams and laughter of pure delight and adventure brought Spring Bay to life.
And the visit made me forget all about the ordinary cares of life; Of a war being fought a world away; That the price of oil and the petrodollar dilemma looms;
For I was totally lost in paradise; In nature; In bliss.
But Spring Bay does not have a monopoly on beauty for, taken together, the BVI are amongst the most beautiful places on earth.
We must look after BVI with all our might and means.
We know that the NPTVI will continue to do its part. And we expect our government to be bullish, in law, about conservation and preservation.
We wonder if the ‘giving spirit’ of Laurance Rockefeller lingers in the Territory. If so, civil society must mobilize.
And Corporate BVI must support the national parks. It is heartbreaking and scandalous that, in the main, it does not.
Of course, the Park Owners, the public, have a responsibility to treat the parks with respect and sound the alarm when others do not.
And we hope that someone will continue to remind us, on Fridays, of the priviledge and responsibility we have as Virgin Islands residents.
Happy Friday!