Ram Head Trail St. John: 2023 Detailed Hiking Guide

by | Last updated Aug 28, 2023 | Best Hiking Caribbean, St. John

With 2/3 of the island designated as national parkland, St. John USVI offers numerous places to experience the beautiful outdoors! My husband and I love day hiking and have been all over the world seeking out the best. Some of our favorites have been Lion’s Head in South Africa, Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia, and the Kozjak Waterfall and Vintgar Gorge in Slovenia. Now, we are adding Ram Head Trail St. John to the list!

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Quick Overview of the Hike

  • Hiking distance: 2 miles roundtrip
  • Hiking time: 90 minutes as long as you do not accidentally take any of the spur trails
  • Difficulty: moderate

Ram Head Trail Parking + Map

Map of Ram Head Trail in St John USVI

Ram Head Trail St. John

Rent a Jeep and drive to the Salt Pond Bay parking lot to park.

If you are coming from Coral Bay on Centerline Road, take a left on Route 107 and follow it down PAST Concordia. Once you pass Concordia, the road will turn sharply right and the dirt parking lot for Salt Pond Bay will be on the left.

The parking lot fills up quickly, so get there early. You also want to get there early because the hike is mostly exposed to the sun and it gets HOT.

Salt Pond Bay Beach Parking Lot

Salt Pond Bay Beach parking lot

Step-By-Step Hiking Experience

After you park, walk 7 minutes down a dirt path until you reach Salt Pond Bay Beach, a beautiful crescent-shaped beach with gorgeous clear water.

Salt Pond Bay Beach in St. John USVI

Salt Pond Bay Beach

Walk all the way to the left side of Salt Pond Bay Beach (as you face the water) and you will come across a well-marked side path that will lead you to the Salt Pond.

Yes, it actually produces salt! See the photo below.

Check it out and then make your way back to the main rocky shoreline trail.

Pathway to Salt Pond in St. John

Side trail to Salt Pond

Salt Pond in St. John USVI

Salt Pond

Continue your hike along the water’s edge until the very end of the shoreline, and then the trail turns left inland.  

Ram Head trail along shoreline in St. John USVI

Ram Head trail along the shoreline

After you turn left inland, you will navigate the path up and down a few rocky, dirt-path hills.

Ram Head hiking trail in St. John USVI

Ram Head hiking trail

After about 15 minutes, the trail will abruptly end at Blue Cobblestone Beach.

We snorkeled to the right of the beach on our return hike from Ram Head, which was incredibly refreshing after getting all hot and sweaty.

Blue Cobblestone Beach and Ram Head

Blue Cobblestone Beach

Rocks on Blue Cobblestone Beach in St. John USVI

Blue, grey, and white rocks at Blue Cobblestone Beach

Walk all the way to the left END of the beach (as you face the water) where you will pick up the trail again as it makes its ascent up the hill.

IMPORTANT TIP: About halfway down Blue Cobblestone Beach, you will come across a well-marked spur trail. My husband and I thought this is where we were supposed to continue the hike. THIS IS NOT PART OF THE RAM HEAD TRAIL.

As we hiked up this steep spur trail, the trail would disappear in sections. We got turned around and had to bushwhack our way through the vegetation and large spider webs (with their big spiders!) to find our way back down. This critical mistake cost us 50 minutes, very sore muscles later, and an unhappy husband.

Spur trail on the Blue Cobblestone Beach

Spur trail off of Blue Cobblestone Beach. DO NOT FOLLOW IT! Keep walking to the END of the beach to pick up the Ram Head trail again.

Once we navigated our way back down to the beach, we come across some other hikers and followed them to the end of the beach. The trail picks back up here as it winds its way upward toward Ram Head.

Ram Head trail off the Blue Cobblestone Beach

This is the CORRECT Ram Head trail off the Blue Cobblestone Beach

Now, the fun part.

As we made the gentle ascent, we passed by multiple gardens of Turks Head Cacti (also known as Barrel Cacti). They have these little pinkish-red fruits on top that you can supposedly eat.

We did not try it, but I read it tastes like Dragon Fruit.

Turks Head Cacti on Ram Head

Turks Head Cacti on Ram Head

We hiked past a deep ravine and crashing waves right before we reached the summit.

Deep ravines on Ram Head hiking trail

Deep ravines on Ram Head hiking trail

The breeze feels amazing as you get to the top, especially with the intense sun!

Wow, our effort was rewarded with stunning panoramic views!

Ram Head is apparently the site where slaves tragically leaped to their death to avoid recapture and torture during a slave rebellion in the 1700s.

Ram Head hike in St. John USVI

Coastal views from Ram Head

Panoramic views from Ram Head in St. John USVI

Panoramic views from Ram Head

What to Bring

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Water Bottle

The sun is brutal, and the hike is mostly exposed with very little shade. Bring that water bottle and hydrate!

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Trail Runner Shoes

You will need to navigate over dirt trails and rocks. Do not wear flip-flops. I wore my trail runners, which worked out great.

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Snorkeling Gear & Daypack

After this hot and sweaty hike, you will be thankful for that refreshing swim and snorkel afterward. I wore my bathing suit under my clothes and brought a light daypack to store my snorkeling gear as I hiked. You could snorkel at Blue Cobblestone or Salt Pond Bay after the hike.

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Hat & Sunscreen

There is not much shade. Wear a hat (love my ponyflo!)and lather up with sunscreen. I personally use Elta MD UV Clear sunscreen.

Final Thoughts 

My husband and I really enjoyed hiking the Ram Head Trail until the point we took that spur trail and got lost for 50 minutes. If you follow my instructions though and stay on the correct trail, this is an incredibly enjoyable day hike!

Looking for more outdoor activities? Check out my St. John Snorkeling Guide on all 11 sites we visited! 

If you are just in the beginning stages of planning your St John USVI getaway, then don’t miss my guide on the Top 12 Things to Do in St. John and the Best Places to Stay in St. John. 

And if you want to know how to piece all the amazing St. John activities together, check out my ultimate itinerary below. 

Ram Head Trail St John

Ram Head Trail

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Questions about the Ram Head trail?

Let me know in the comments below!

2 Comments
  1. Chris

    This was really helpful! Thank you. What a great and very unique hike!

    Reply
    • Nichole

      Thank you so much for reaching out. I’m really glad to hear you found this guide useful. Happy hiking.

      Reply

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