Virgin Islands National Park: America's Paradise

01Music This week on our national parks journey, we leave the United States mainland and travel down to the Caribbean.

02There you will find three islands that make up the United States Virgin Islands, St.

03Croix, St.

04Thomas, and St.

05John.

06The Virgin Islands National Park is a tropical paradise on the island of St.

07John.

08The park covers more than half of the small island.

09It is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and the Caribbean Sea to the south.

10The climate here is warm all year.

11Tall green peaks rise from the ocean, which is filled with wildlife.

12The island's white sand beaches and clear blue seas are considered to be among the most beautiful in the Caribbean.

13Evidence of human history on the island dates back thousands of years.

14Archaeological evidence shows the first people to arrive on the Caribbean islands came in canoes from South America more than 2,750 years ago.

15The Taino people lived along the shores of St.

16John Island.

17Over the years, the population of the Taino natives grew.

18You can see evidence of the Taino culture in the petroglyphs within the Virgin Islands National Park.

19Christopher Columbus first saw the island in 1493.

20Later, Spain, Holland, England, and Denmark all tried to claim the Virgin Islands as their territory.

21These nations sought to profit from the production of two main crops, cotton and sugar.

22The crops were grown on large farms called plantations that once covered the island.

23African slaves and indentured servants were forced to travel on ships in terrible conditions to live and work on the plantations.

24In 1733, the slaves revolted.

25During the revolt, almost one quarter of the island's population was killed.

26Plantations were destroyed.

27In 1762, after many struggles, Denmark took control of the Virgin Islands.

28Slavery in the Danish-controlled Caribbean Islands ended in 1848.

29After that, St.

30John's crop production and its population greatly declined.

31In 1917, the United States bought the islands of St.

32John, St.

33Croix, and St.

34Thomas from Denmark.

35By the 1930s, news of these beautiful American islands spread to the mainland United States.

36It marked the beginning of what is now a profitable tourist industry.

37And in 1956, land on St.

38John Island formed America's 29th National Park.

39Lawrence Rockefeller was an American millionaire, businessman, conservationist, and philanthropist.

40He visited St.

41John in the 1950s.

42He quickly fell in love with the island's clean, pure beauty.

43He purchased a small resort there, Caneel Bay.

44He also purchased more than 2,000 hectares of the island and donated it to the government.

45That donation created the U.S.

46Virgin Islands National Park.

47It was officially opened as a national park on December 1, 1956.

48Along with land, the Virgin Islands National Park today protects almost 3,000 hectares of coral reefs, marine life, and shoreland.

49In 1978, much of the nearby Hassel Island was also donated to the Virgin Islands National Park.

50The only way to reach the park is by boat.

51Some people arrive on their own sailboats.

52Others come in on large cruise ships.

53Visitors also arrive on water taxis from the island of St.

54Thomas.

55St.

56John offers many kinds of places to stay.

57Very large or very small hotels, villas, or campgrounds with wood-framed tents.

58At Cinnamon Bay, visitors can rent an empty camp space and set up their own tent.

59It is an affordable and adventurous way to stay in the park.

60From the tropical hills to the blue waters, there are many things to do at the Virgin Islands National Park.

61Visitors enjoy fishing, camping, sailing, scuba diving, snorkeling, and bird watching.

62There are many hiking paths to take.

63Some of the walking paths lead visitors to historical ruins.

64These ruins help explain the park's cultural history.

65The Peace Hill Trail, for example, is a short walk up a rocky and sharp hill.

66It leads to the Peace Hill windmill ruin.

67People built the windmill centuries ago.

68The windmills made energy for sugar production.

69The Cinnamon Bay Trail goes through a forest and leads to the ruins of the Cinnamon Bay Sugar Plantation.

70Along the way, hikers smell the scents of mango, kapok, and apple trees.

71Some of the oldest and tallest trees in the park are found along the Reef Bay Trail.

72Hikers also pass Danish sugar plantation ruins, stone walls, and ancient rock carvings, or petroglyphs, from the Taino people.

73Along the way, there is also a huge waterfall, fresh water pools, and animals, such as deer, bats, and land crabs.

74Some of the hiking trails end at a beach, where you can swim, snorkel, or dive.

75Of all the park's beaches, Trunk Bay Beach is said to be the most striking.

76Below the clear blue water is a 200-meter snorkeling path.

77Signs beneath the water describe the turtle, coral, and exotic fish species found here.

78Hawk's Nest Beach is also a popular place for snorkeling.

79Near the shore are three small reefs of elk horn coral.

80The elk horn coral gets its name from its shape.

81The reef looks similar to the huge horns of an animal called an elk.

82It is a very rare kind of reef.

83Scientists say it is in danger of becoming extinct.

84The Virgin Islands National Park is often called America's Paradise.

85It protects St.

86John's pristine nature and preserves the record of human history in the Caribbean.

87I'm Katie Weaver.

88And I'm Ashley Thompson.

89I'm Ashley Thompson.

90I'm Ashley Thompson.

91I'm Ashley Thompson.

92I'm Ashley Thompson.

93I'm Ashley Thompson.

94I'm Ashley Thompson.

95I'm Ashley Thompson.

96I'm Ashley Thompson.