| Magens Bay Beach | |
|---|---|
 View of Magens Bay | |
 | |
| Location | Saint Thomas |
| Nearest city | Charlotte Amalie |
| Coordinates | 18°21′58″N64°55′48″W / 18.366°N 64.930°W |
| Operated by | Magens Bay Authority |
| Status | Open all year |
| Designation | Public park |
Magens Bay is a bay in the Northside region on Saint Thomas, United States Virgin Islands, in the Caribbean.
Lying on the northern (Atlantic) side of the island, Magens Bay (Estate Zufriedenheit) features a well-protected white sand beach stretching for nearly three quarters of a mile. It is one of the most popular tourist destinations on the island, as well as a gathering place for locals. The beach sits at the head of a deep bay, the arms of which are Peterborg peninsula to the east and Tropaco Point to the west. The bay's north-west exposure means its waters are usually calm, although storms in the North Atlantic can occasionally generate large waves in the winter months. The sandy bottom means snorkeling is of limited interest, although turtles, conch, tarpon and other fish are commonly spotted. Local fishing boats anchor in the eastern part of the bay.
The beach and surrounding park are currently administered by the semi-autonomous Magens Bay Authority. The services provided by the Authority include lifeguards, parking, showers and bathrooms. There is a snack counter, bar and souvenir shop. Beach chairs, floats, lounge chairs, mask and snorkels, fins, towels, lockers, paddleboards, kayaks, and paddleboats can be rented. [1] The Authority is a self-sustaining entity which funds its operations through a per-person entrance fee (currently $7.00 for visitors and $2.00 for locals, [2] free for kids under 12), parking fees, and payments received from the park's restaurant and rental concessions. The beach property also includes a coconut grove, a mangrove, and an arboretum. [3]
In 2004, The Nature Conservancy and local organizations opened a trail to Magens Bay from a spot off the road in the hills above. It belongs to a 319 acre preserve overseen by The Nature Conservancy, Magens Bay Authority and VI Department of Planning & Nature Resources. 25 of its acres were exclusively donated for this trail. On the trail it is possible to see many different bird species of the preserve, passing though different ecosystems from the top of the hill down 1½ miles to Magens Bay. [4]
A 572 ha area, encompassing the bay, beach, mangroves and associated protected forests, has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports populations of green-throated caribs, Antillean crested hummingbirds, Caribbean elaenias and pearly-eyed thrashers. [5]
Legend has it that Sir Francis Drake used Magens Bay as an anchorage while waiting for ships to plunder. [6]
Early maps of St. Thomas refer to the site as "Great Northside Bay". The popular name, "Magens Bay", arose out of its ownership by vicegouvernor Jacob Jorgenson Magens (1682-1731) and his heirs from the late 18th through the 19th centuries. It changed hands in the 20th century, and was eventually acquired by Wall Street financier Arthur S. Fairchild. [7] Arthur Fairchild donated 56 acres of the beach and surrounding areas to the Municipality of St. Thomas and St. John in 1946 for use as a public park. Fairchild had three conditions for donating the land. 1) a hotel/resort cannot be built on this property, 2) a casino can never be built on this property and 3) the beach should be named Megens Beach. [8] The far Western portion was donated by Fairchild's nephew's widow, Christine Wheaton, in 2002.
Several commercials and movie scenes have been filmed at Magens Bay, including a scene in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1. [9]
Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife refuge in New York City managed by the National Park Service as part of Gateway National Recreation Area. It is composed of the open water and intertidal salt marshes of Jamaica Bay. It lies entirely within the boundaries of New York City, divided between the boroughs of Brooklyn to the west and Queens to the east.
Grand Cayman is the largest of the three Cayman Islands and the location of the territory's capital, George Town. In relation to the other two Cayman Islands, it is approximately 75 miles (121 km) southwest of Little Cayman and 90 miles (145 km) southwest of Cayman Brac.
Saint Thomas is one of the Virgin Islands in the Caribbean Sea, and a constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), an unincorporated territory of the United States. Along with surrounding minor islands, it is one of three county-equivalents in the USVI. Together with Saint John, it forms one of the districts of the USVI. The territorial capital and port of Charlotte Amalie is located on the island. As of the 2020 census, the population of Saint Thomas was 42,261, about 48.5% of the total population of the United States Virgin Islands. The island has a land area of 32 square miles (83 km2).
The Virgin Islands National Park is an American national park preserving about 60% of the land area of Saint John in the United States Virgin Islands, as well as more than 5,500 acres of adjacent ocean, and nearly all of Hassel Island, just off the Charlotte Amalie, Saint Thomas harbor.
Buck Island Reef National Monument protects Buck Island, a small, uninhabited 176-acre island about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) north of the northeast coast of Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, and 18,839 acres of submerged lands, totaling 19,015 acres. It was first established as a protected area by the U.S. Government in 1948, with the intention of preserving “one of the finest marine gardens in the Caribbean Sea.” The U.S. National Monument was created in 1961 by John F. Kennedy and greatly expanded in 2001 by Bill Clinton, over the opposition of local fishermen. Buck Island National Monument is one of few places in the Virgin Islands where brown pelicans and threatened least terns nest.
Trunk Bay is a body of water and a beach on St. John in the United States Virgin Islands. Trunk Bay is part of the Virgin Islands National Park. Trunk Bay is named for the Leatherback turtle, which is endemic to the USVI and are locally known as trunks. The beach area is divided into two halves, the main Trunk Bay beach and swim area and Burgesman Cove which is located on the west end of Trunk Bay near Jumby Bay. Its amenities include a snack bar, showers and restrooms, a lifeguard, and an underwater trail for snorkeling its coral reef. Trunk Bay has consistently been voted one of the top beaches in the world.
Oscar Scherer State Park is a Florida State Park located between Sarasota and Venice, near Osprey. The address is 1843 South Tamiami Trail. There are more than 250,000 visitors a year.
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park, named for John D. MacArthur whose Foundation donated a portion of the land for its construction in the 1970s, is located on and just north of Singer Island, Florida in North Palm Beach, Florida. The park was first opened to the public in 1989. It covers 438 acres (1.8 km2) on land and underwater, including an Estuary crossed by a 1,600-foot (490 m) boardwalk, and Munyon Island, a wilderness isle in the Intracoastal Waterway that was home to the lavish Hygeia Hotel at the turn of the Twentieth century. The hotel burned to the ground in 1917. Hiking trails and pavilions are open for public use on Munyon Island, which is accessible only by kayak or boat.
Honeymoon Island State Park is a Florida State Park located on Honeymoon Island, a barrier island across St. Joseph's Sound from Palm Harbor, Ozona, and Crystal Beach. The park is 385 acres (1.6 km2) in land area with 2,400 acres (10 km2) submerged and 4 miles (6 km) of beach. It lies at the western end of Causeway Boulevard, which becomes Curlew Road east of Alternate US 19. Its address is 1 Causeway Blvd. Consistently receiving more than one million visitors each year, it is the most-visited state park in Florida.
Egmont Key National Wildlife Refuge and State Park is a National Wildlife Refuge and State Park located on the island of Egmont Key, at the mouth of Tampa Bay. Egmont Key lies southwest of Fort De Soto Park and can only be reached by boat or ferry. Located within Egmont Key National Wildlife Refuge and State Park are the 1858 Egmont Key Lighthouse, maintained by the U.S. Coast Guard, and the ruins of Fort Dade, a Spanish–American War era fort that housed 300 residents. Egmont Key is located in Hillsborough County Florida on a narrow strip of the county that extends along the Tampa Port Shipping Channel.
Bahia Honda is an island in the lower Florida Keys.
The Magens Bay Arboretum is a five-acre arboretum located just inland of Magens Bay, Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. It is operated by the Magens Bay Authority and open to the public.
Waterlemon Cay is a small cay surrounded by a fringing reef located in Leinster Bay on Saint John, U.S. Virgin Islands. It is named after the water lemon.
Highway 35 is a road on St. Thomas, USVI. Beginning in an intersection with Highway 30 overlooking St. Thomas Harbor, the road runs north through eastern Charlotte Amalie, passing by Fort Christian. Once out of the immediate vicinity of the town, Highway 35 begins its twisty journey north to Magens Bay. The road passes Highway 33 and has a brief concurrency with Highway 40 before turning to the northeast to meet Highway 42. Highway 35 finally turns north again and dead-ends at the entrance to Magens Bay Beach.
Gibney Beach, or Oppenheimer Beach, is a beach on Hawksnest Bay on northern Saint John in the United States Virgin Islands. The beach's names originate from Nancy Flagg Gibney and J. Robert Oppenheimer and their families, the owners of the beach in the mid-20th century. The beach has been mostly accessible to the public since its acquisition, and a community center has been created on the property, where Oppenheimer’s house used to be.
Louisenhoj is a settlement on the island of Saint Thomas in the United States Virgin Islands.
The fauna of the United States Virgin Islands consists of 144 species of birds, 22 species of mammals, 302 species of fish and 7 species of amphibians. The wildlife of the U.S.V.I. includes numerous endemic species of tropical birds, fish, and land reptiles as well as sea mammals. The only endemic land mammals are six species of native bats: the greater bulldog bat, Antillean fruit-eating bat, red fruit bat, Brazilian free-tailed bat, velvety free-tailed bat and the Jamaican fruit bat. Some of the nonnative land mammals roaming the islands are the white-tailed deer, small Asian mongoose, goats, feral donkeys, rats, mice, sheep, hogs, dogs and cats.
Northside with its population of 10,049 as of the 2010 United States Census is the second-most populous administrative census subdistrict (CSD) on Saint Thomas, only less populated than the Charlotte Amalie subregion with the islands’ territorial capital of more than 18,000 people. Northside is sometimes called Nordside in Virgin Islands Creole, which is the Danish translation for north side. Northside is home to communities such as Neltjeberg, Zambee, Resolution, Ensomned, Barrett, Solberg, Lerkenlund, Misgen, Mafolie, Louisenhoj, Estate Thomas, Mandal, Enighed, Canaan, and Peterborg. By area, the Northside subdistrict is the largest administrative census sub-district on the Saint Thomas island.
Alibijaban is a small island located off the southeastern coast of Bondoc Peninsula in the Philippines. It belongs administratively to the municipality of San Andres, Quezon province, and is coterminous with the barangay of the same name. With a population of 1,738 inhabitants in 2020, it is the smallest of seven barangays in San Andres.
The St. Croix East End Marine Park (STXEEMP) was established to "protect territorially significant marine resources, and promote sustainability of marine ecosystems, including coral reefs, sea grass beds, wildlife habitats and other resources, and to conserve and preserve significant natural areas for the use and benefit of future generations." It is the U.S. Virgin Islands’ first territorially designated and managed marine protected area (MPA).
