brown bay

The trial to Brown Bay Beach starts on the left side of Hwy 10 just over a mile from the Hwy 10/107 split in Coral Bay and is marked by a sign. There's room to park either on the south side of the road or at the start of the trail itself.The hike can be arduous if you don't wear the right kind of shoes (NO flip-flops!) or decide to haul too much stuff with you. It's an easier hike out as the north side has a gentler incline than the south. Watch out for cacti, especially on the southern side of the hill. Brown Bay Beach is narrow yet mostly white sand. There's lots of shady spots afforded by the close foliage. Much of the bay bottom is covered in sea grass, but there are lots of places where the grass doesn't grow. Snorkeling is quite easy here thanks to a long and gentle slope to the bay floor. You can be a hundred feet from shore and still only have water up to your thighs. The plentiful grass means prime turtle habit, though we didn't see any the day we went. There's a nice bit of coral to the west (and apparently also to the east, though we didn't go over there). Of course, there are NO facilities of any kind.The headline for Brown Bay Beach is the wildlife. A trip there reminded me of visiting tide pools as a kid in Southern California. There are hundreds (if not thousands) of conch roaming the shallows, munching on whatever it is they munch on, along with crabs of various sizes, and the biggest schools of baby fish I've ever seen. Giant clouds of them along the east edge, away from sandy parts of the beach, along with the larger fish attracted to the potential feast. We even saw a bright orange and red starfish. We've been to many St John beaches over the years, but none of them have ever felt as *alive* as this one. Bring a small cooler with snacks and beverages and stay the day at this unspoiled gem of a beach!