“Just the right mix of comfort and protection set amid the natural splendor that is the

real St. Croix. A masterful complement of workmanship and sensititvity to nature’s own artistry!”

David - Van Nuys, CA

Welcome to our home! The camp is built in and around the life of our small Caribbean homestead. We are constantly adding fruit trees to our orchard and the gardens are getting larger day-by-day. Guests are welcome to pluck fresh herbs for cooking from our herb garden and sample fruit from the trees and vines when it is abundant.

Our home is surrounded by peaceful green meadows and forests, tropical wildlife, and the incredible history read in the countless stone ruins – it all makes for a supremely relaxing environment. And the opportunities for hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, ruins exploring and more offer the chance for a wonderfully adventurous holiday.

We are here to help introduce you to the flora and fauna of the island and their varied attributes.

We are near the wildest and one of the most majestic part of the island and we can serve as a base camp for excursions there, either on your own, or with us on a guided hike or workshop.

Away from the hustle and bustle of our town centers, set amongst its massive trees, even the air tastes better around here!

We’ve always been a natural gathering-place; centuries past this was a settlement for the native Taino and Carib Indians. When Europeans colonized St. Croix the rich farmland in the area was used to grow sugar cane, tobacco and cotton. They left behind many reminders of their busy and violent past: stone bridges still cross the valley streambed, 1700s factories where the cane was boiled down to molasses or distilled to rum are now covered by vines and massive trees. With the collapse of the island’s agricultural economy, the area emptied out and become home to cattle operations, a few small farmers, and moonshiners.

In more recent times, with the cattle farmers mostly gone, our area has been reverting back to forest. Along with the remnants left behind by the Danish in the stream beds and steeper hillsides, we now have a beautiful regenerating tropical forest and we are currently reforesting certain areas of camp with native hardwoods and native fruit trees.

Our neighbours are mostly involved in agriculture in some way or another and we enjoy a laid-back, peaceful lifestyle in our little corner of the island.

“When I started building my first house in this area there was no power or telephones. Cattle, horses and hundreds of hogs free-ranged everywhere. The roads were dirt, and during storms often impassable. Over the last decade we’ve entered the 20th century. We now have a paved road and power and phones…but it still feels like another world here. Time travels slowly. Horses, cattle, goats, and fruit orchards and vegetable gardens are still all around us… The lush green of our valley is loaded with mango and soursop, genip and cacao trees. Daytimes you can still hear the call of Mangrove Cuckoos a quarter mile away and from deep down the gut (streamed) the mournful cry of the deep forest barbary dove”

Bruce Wilson, Camp Founder

“It’s not easy to construct buildings in a sustainable way in the tropics. Termites are the reason why all building is done with arsenic treated pine or masonry blocks. I wanted to build the camp, as much as possible, from local, natural, untreated materials: a healthy and aesthetic choice. I’m constantly on the lookout for useful trees as I travel around the island. Only dead or dying trees are harvested, and normally landowners are happy to have me remove them. Storms (and droughts too) are nature’s way of cleaning out the weak and older trees.”
Bruce Wilson, Camp Founder

Principal species used are West Indian Mahogany, Thibet, Rain Tree (Saman), Almond, Black Olive and Teak.

We cut logs into lumber using our bandsaw mill (ours is model LT15 by Woodmizer). We can cut up to 26″ wide boards. The mill is a wonderful tool, making possible a kind of construction that otherwise couldn’t be done (or afforded). We also occasionally sell wood from inventory.

The beds for the camp were built in a rustic arts and crafts style using pegged mortise and tenon with knotty teak boards.

Alternative Energy

Our bathhouse produces hot water from a solar thermal flat plate collector. The system produces lots of hot water, keeping it ready for use in two 80 gallon super-insulated tanks. Low-flow shower heads mean you can relax in a nice hot shower after your day of exploring the island…or after your day of swinging in your hammock doing absolutely nothing!

Special thanks go to our Virgin Islands Energy Office who dedicated themselves to helping low-impact tourism by funding these systems through a grant from the US Dept of Energy. In the second phase of this project we will almost go off the power grid with a rooftop photo-voltaic array and battery storage system.

Open-roof showers allow you to look up at the Caribbean skies, day or night!

Pavilion

Here’s the center of activity for the camp. The camp pavilion is a place to relax and meet people - fellow campers, locals…a place to cook, eat, drink and enjoy yourself.

The Pavilion is made with beautiful slabs of mahogany and situated to catch the Caribbean breezes.
There’s a propane stove for guests to use, as well as multiple fire pits for campfire cooking or just sitting around the fire with friends, enjoying the cool Caribbean nights.

We have plenty of pots, pans, dishes, and silverware so if you like to do your own cooking, you don’t have to travel with any equipment. There’s also a fridge and a sink, as well as plenty of lighting for the evening time.
The pavilion is also equipped with a bar, making it ideal for parties, weddings and more!
We have free Wifi available for all guests in the pavilion as well as various other hotspots
Click here to read more about group events in the pavilion…

Tortoise Colony

Come visit and feed the tortoises!

These prehistoric animals form the core of a captive breeding program running almost two decades. South American red-footed tortoises (Geocolonius denticultata) are thought by some to have arrived by indigenous canoe from the South American continent long long ago. They share the ruins with guests staying in the schoolhouse apartment.

These mellow friendly animals are slowmoving but curious. They love to eat hibiscus flowers, fruits, and vegetables.