Spyglass Hill, Coral Bay, St John, USVI

12/02/2018

A few recent house photos. Spyglass still has a week open in Fed, one in March, and most of April. Come visit.

11/27/2018

Jumbie Morning!
Just returned from a great Thanksgiving trip to Spyglass Hill. The island is recovering very nicely, beaches are perfect as always, and the house looks great.

09/27/2018

Spyglass Hill is getting a kitchen renovation this fall, and we still have space in Feb. Check us out on VRBO or Airbnb.

03/13/2018

New living room furniture and some young people enjoying it!

02/27/2018

A few more photos

02/25/2018

Renters returned to Spyglass Hill last week. Here are some current interior photos.

01/23/2018

Spyglass continues to get ready for visitors. New roof. New doors and windows, and new furniture on its way. First new renters in late Feb!

01/18/2018

New Roof on Spyglass

01/04/2018

Just returned from St John and Spyglass.

Our family had a working Christmas, and it was great. Accomplished a lot of small projects and enjoyed the island too. Utilities crews were everywhere, and we got power to the house the day we arrived. Cleanup crews were on our street clearing debris Christmas week. Beaches were beautiful and nearly empty (sometimes empty). Restaurants, markets and businesses open. Some houses and businesses still piles of rubble. And the forest in the center of the island and coral reefs will take time as ecosystems do.

Spyglass Hill was great, but still under repair. We have new materials and new furniture coming in and renters lined up for February, March and April.

We were impressed by the pace on island recovery, and although it will still be a long road, especially for many who lost everything, the island is strong and the rainbows shine bright.

12/18/2017

We are traveling to St John tomorrow for more clean-up, repairs, refurnishing, and yes, a little vacation.

Just heard a few minutes ago. Power has been restored to our house! 100+ days after Irma.

12/14/2017

More good news from St John. Maho Bay was officially reopened b=y the park service today. AND power was restored to the upper half of our road with power to Spyglass sure to come soon!

12/09/2017

Wait, are those pole up and wires strung in the background? I think power could be coming sooner than we thought.

12/09/2017

It has been over 3 month since Irma devastated Coral Bay St John. Today... Power reach the first buildings in Coral Bay! Spyglass Hill is having its roof repaired by friend and Ashfield neighbor Todd Pease! Five new mattresses were delivered to our house! We still have work to do, but renters are lined up for March, and Feb is open and looking good!

12/07/2017

http://newsofstjohn.com/

An Online Blog About the Daily Happenings of St. John, USVI - By Jenn Manes

10/29/2017

10/27/2017

Just returned from a brief trip to Spyglass Hill and St John with my friend and neighbor Christian.

Here is the report. I would say that the island has turned a corner and is beginning to return to some kind of "normal". Flight, taxi, ferry, car rental, gas station, dolphin market in Cruz Bay all worked basically as usual, if perhaps a little slower.

Some supplies are in short supply (e.g. gas cans), but more supplies arrive every day. Utility crew have made it up to the health center, but no power restored yet. Most people there seem to have a generator.

The drive over the island is humbling. In the center of the island the forest is still bare naked, a skeleton of itself. Long swallowed ruins are emerging from the depths of time.

Coral Bay has widespread destruction and massive debris, but many people are beginning to rebuild. Calabash market has become a community center with some food and lots of cold beer and maybe wifi this week. Oasis opened for business this week. Ms. Lucy's is in the process of clean up and repair.

Other places and houses have not started rebuilding yet. Especially those that were major losses. They are just piles of rubble in the rain. People's lives and livelihoods strewn about.

Wires are all over the road. Some debris is being piled roadside for future removal.

The trail to salt pond is clear, the beach is beautiful and deserted, the coral, especially soft coral, suffered major damage.

Spyglass Hill was dry and comfortable. The downstairs room is largely undamaged. We spent a lot of time doing additional cleaning and mold abatement. We got a small generator connected that can basically power the house (lights, fans, fridge, water pump). But even without the generator running, we were quite comfortable. We also reconnected the stove. Met with the insurance adjuster. Evaluated all the wiring. And bought a few tools. Measured.

The house is habitable and ready for next steps.

10/12/2017

Here is a good blog for daily (or so) information on how St John is doing. http://newsofstjohn.com/

I (Paul, Molly's Son) am planning to head down Oct 20 for assessment and cleanup.

An Online Blog About the Daily Happenings of St. John, USVI - By Jenn Manes