Is Waterlemon Bay doable with a 5 year old? He can actually swim! I'm more concerned about a long hike to get there.

Kraushaus, thanks for that link! I perused the site a bit and found an extremely importat link titled "Hikers Beware!" It warns about some plants you want to recognize and avoid. Thank you for this! I will be hiking a LOT on St. John, and was wondering about this very thing.

Hello,

I'd be concerned with both the hike and the swim. The hike is flat so thats not a problem; I'd bet a 5 year old would be ok hiking there but after hiking and swimming/playing on the beach that they would be fussy on the hike back.

As for the swim; there is a current around Waterlemon Cay and for an adult it can be tiring so I'd actually be more concerned about the snorkel then the hike.

Any parents take their small children out to Waterlemon Cay and have feedback?

--Islander

Once you get out to the cay, there is a real shallow sandy area that you can rest at before going counterclockwise around the cay. AND, definitely start from the big sandy beach and take your time swimming along the right--we saw more there than we actually saw out around the cay that day-in fact, saw a nurse shark too. Then take a break on the shallow area, go around, rest again & then come back in. You'll regret starting from the closest point to the cay & it is rocky as someone said. As far as the advice of driving down the "road"--in the past 5 years it has been washed out quite a bit & there was one area in January that even with a little Jeep or Suzuki I would not want to try to chance it--it was pretty washed out. Take the walk from the parking lot & enjoy the view & besides, you're on vacation!! Its not that much further of a walk! Have a great time!

With a 5 year old I would recommend going there by boat. You can rent dinghy or small boat in Cruz Bay or jump on one of the DaySails that head there. I would try Lameshur bay for snorkeling with a 5 year old, since there is no hike and the snorkeling is great.