Lime Kiln Beach, Montserrat and Memories of Davis Bay in St Croix
Many are the rewards of visiting Lime Kiln Beach in Montserrat. Clear calm seas, sensual ebony sands, and a near-zero chance of crowds are a few pictured here. They’re not, however, the only nice things about this special beach. Not pictured is an enchanting tangle of almond trees set just back of Lime Kiln. Beneath it: a picnic area straight out of my most cherished childhood beach memories.
Sweetly shaded with a collection of benches and tables scattered about, the picnic area called to mind the Davis Bay of my youth in St Croix. The Davis Bay before the Carambola Resort came about. That was a wild, densely forested beach paradise complete with historic ruins. The kind of wild beach paradise where a young island boy’s imagination could run wild without any provocation whatsoever.
Lime Kiln was smaller and a bit more developed. (The only benches at old Davis Bay were driftwood or rocks.) At the same time, though, this cozy seaside corner of Montserrat was no less exotic to me. Each tree its own jungle gym inviting a climb. Each hole in the sand harboring a crab to study.
Little boy me could easily lose myself crafting make believe adventures here. As at David Bay, though, the call of those clear seas would win out eventually…at least for a while.
Taken together, the beach and its shaded picnic area would’ve kept my younger self entranced for hours.
As for older me, well, let’s just say that my Montserrat Tourism Division friends had to drag me away from Lime Kiln during our fall 2019 visit here. Some things never change, I guess…