Johnny Horn Trail

Hiking trails St. JohnLast verified October 31, 2026

Around St. John

The white beach of Trunk Bay and the small, wooded Trunk Cay seen from the hillside above — Trunk Bay, St. John

Sailboats moored in Cruz Bay below red-roofed buildings on the hillside of St. John — Cruz Bay, St. John

Boats anchored off a palm-lined beach in Cruz Bay, St. John, beneath tall white clouds — Cruz Bay, St. John

The Johnny Horn Trail is a strenuous 1.8-mile hike in Virgin Islands National Park over the hills between Leinster Bay and Coral Bay. It begins at the east end of the main Leinster Bay beach, about 20 minutes' walk from the Annaberg parking lot on the Leinster Bay Trail. Hikers can stop after the first section, a moderate climb past historic sites to a hilltop viewpoint, and return for a swim. At 0.7 mile, the Brown Bay Trail branches off past the Hermitage ruins toward Brown Bay. The main trail passes near the top of Base Hill, with views of Coral Bay and a spur over Hurricane Hole, then follows a road down to the Emmaus Moravian Church in Coral Bay, so plan a ride back. The park estimates two to four hours. It is steep and sunny, so hike early or late and bring water, snacks and sturdy shoes.

Services

Strenuous 1.8 miles from Leinster Bay to the Emmaus Moravian Church in Coral Bay
Brown Bay Trail branches off at 0.7 mile
Start from the Annaberg parking lot by way of the Leinster Bay Trail
No fee

How we checked

Last verified on October 31, 2026. We checked it against the sources below.

Source: National Park Service pages https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/johnny-horn-trail.htm (updated April 2, 2021; 1.8-mile strenuous trail from the east end of the Waterlemon Bay beach at the end of Leinster Bay, historic sites, side trail at the top of the first hill to a hilltop site with views in all directions, first portion a moderate climb after which visitors may return to Leinster Bay, Brown Bay Trail at 0.7 mile, Base Hill views of Coral Bay, spur with views of Hurricane Hole, follows a road down to the paved road at the Moravian church in Coral Bay, two to four hours, steep and sun-exposed, best early or late), https://www.nps.gov/viis/planyourvisit/snorkeling.htm (updated June 6, 2022; Leinster Bay Trail times from the Annaberg lot; Brown Bay reached from Leinster Bay or by the Brown Bay Trail off East End Road), https://www.nps.gov/viis/planyourvisit/fees.htm (no entrance fee) and the park alerts feed https://www.nps.gov/viis/park-alerts-viis.json (no closure posted); Friends of Virgin Islands National Park FY26 Terrestrial Programs Report, https://friendsvinp.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/FY_26-Trails-Terrestrial-Report.pdf (Johnny Horn Trail and Brown Bay Trail maintained; Hermitage ruins on the Brown Bay Trail); all accessed 2026-10-31. No source gives the length of the Brown Bay Trail. Map point: NPS Data API things-to-do record 'Johnny Horn Trail' (18.365155, -64.720476), https://developer.nps.gov/api/v1/thingstodo?parkCode=viis, accessed 2026-10-31; it lies near the east end of the Leinster Bay Trail line (NPS Public Trails OBJECTID 26113).

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