And you don’t even need to bring a tent, because these eco-style dwellings are the coolest thing ever.
Mt. Victory Camp is an eco-lodge nestled in the hills on St. Croix’s west end, or the rain forest area. We recently attended a birthday party there for our neighbor George, who turned three. Not ever having been there and not having camped since we moved here 5 years ago, we decided to stay the night.
The property is majestic. Owners Bruce & Mathilde Wilson have done an incredible job in keeping things as low key as possible, being environmentally conscious, but still making you feel at home. We played amongst historic sugar plantation ruins with the tortoises. Yes, tortoises. You see, there is a breeding colony of red-footed tortoises that are believed to of come here many years ago by canoe from South America. They hang out and live in part of the ruins. There is a dwelling incorporated into the ruin with lofts and bunk beds that you can even request to stay in.
In total, there are five eco dwellings, one bath house that is shared and a large pavilion with several picnic tables. When we were there, we met some guests from Indiana who were island hopping and just on St. Croix for one night. They told me that the accommodations were not only reasonably priced for their brief stay, but provided everything they could possible need and was just plain fun to stay in.
Carl, Savanna and I stayed in the furthest dwelling from the pavilion. Each dwelling is a bit different but can accommodate 2-6 adults. Ours had two twin beds that we pushed together to make one bed that we all shared. Each dwelling also has a kitchenette for basic cooking with gas. I have to admit, the dwelling next to us was really cool, but not practical for us with a toddler. The sleeping quarters were in a loft! The entire dwelling was open (ours was screened in which I was thankful for!)
Back to the party….of three year olds! We brought all of our own food and drinks- cooked over an open fire (hot dogs!) and made s’mores for dessert. Camping. It could not have been more perfect…until it was time to go to bed.
We tried, we really did. And in no way what I am about to tell you is a reflection of Mt. Victory’s accommodations. It is merely poor planning on the new parent’s part (ie, me & Carl). Here goes: We had to leave camp. Savanna WOULD NOT GO TO SLEEP and she was not having it sleeping in the same bed with us. We tried for a few hours…but it was not working! So, close to midnight…we packed up and went home. I was totally bummed. I felt like we failed at camping with the baby. Carl and I grew up camping…what went wrong this time??? The only conclusion I can come to is this was our first attempt with Savanna, but not our last BRUCE!!! We will be back and we will be better prepared and we will stay the ENTIRE night in your eco dwelling!
Mt. Victory is unique to St. Croix. Bruce and Mathilde promote St. Croix and all the eco-tourism we have to offer (which is alot!) If you are looking for an adventure, and an eco-friendly accommodation, then I recommend you check out Mt. Victory. You can also see other eco-friendly accommodations here and see more St. Croix eco-tourism here.
A Fantastic blog post, I will be sure to save this in my Del.icio.us account. Have a good evening.