Parking
Use the Francis Bay beach-end access on Northshore Road. The park recommends this end for easier boardwalk access; it does not identify a separate boardwalk lot or accessible-space location.
Overview
About Francis Bay Boardwalk
Why go
- Wheelchair- and stroller-accessible boardwalk through mangroves.
- Two viewing platforms over the salt pond.
Heads up
- The boardwalk alone is a very short outing; the longer trail adds rocky and hilly ground.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Virgin Islands map
Full mapElevation13–20 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
3 active Virgin Islands alerts
- ClosureCaneel Bay: designated areas only; pier closedAt Caneel Bay, stay in designated public areas; other areas remain closed because of present safety risks, and the pier remains closed because it has been deemed unsafe.Official details
- CautionModerate rip-current risk at U.S. Virgin Islands beachesThe National Weather Service reports a moderate rip-current risk for the U.S. Virgin Islands. - Choose a guarded or more protected beach and swim near a lifeguard.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Virgin Islands Tour Guide
Your drive to Francis Bay Boardwalk, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Virgin Islands National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this trailhead
Francis Bay Beach and Salt Pond Boardwalk0:00 / 0:33
“Francis Bay's upper trail access is coming up, for a beach day with a salt-pond birding stop. If swimming and the boardwalk are your main aim, use the beach-end parking for the easier approach.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Virgin Islands Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Maho Bay and Crossroads
- Annaberg Sugar Plantation
- Maho Bay Overlook
- Waterlemon Cay via Leinster Bay
- 26 audio storiesacross Virgin Islands’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor White-tailed Deer, Green Iguana, Brown Pelican, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 22 trails, 42 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Francis Bay Boardwalk
A short, level boardwalkFrancis Bay Boardwalk is an accessible out-and-back of about 0.
Francis Bay Boardwalk is an accessible out-and-back of about 0.25 mile round trip, following an elevated wooden walkway through mangroves to two viewing platforms over the salt pond. Allow roughly 15 minutes if you stop to look around. This is the quick pond-viewing option; the wider Francis Bay Trail continues over rocky, hilly ground.
Out over the salt pondThe boardwalk follows the pond's western edge, ending at a short pier and fenced deck.
The boardwalk follows the pond's western edge, ending at a short pier and fenced deck. The mangroves close around much of the approach, then the platforms open a view across the water. They are there for watching birds and the pond habitat; sightings vary. From the last deck, keep the boardwalk and mangrove branches in the foreground to frame the water on a phone.
Start at the beach endUse the beach-end access on Northshore Road.
Use the beach-end access on Northshore Road. The park recommends it for easier access to the boardwalk; the steeper, uneven approach begins at the Francis Bay Sugar Factory. That wider hike takes about 30 to 90 minutes or more and includes rocky, hilly sections, so its distance and timing do not belong to this short walk. The boardwalk was built in 2009 with help from Friends of the Virgin Islands National Park. Dogs may use park trails on a leash no longer than six feet, but pets are not allowed on beaches.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Virgin Islands
150 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
114 sightingsGreen IguanaMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
62 sightingsBrown PelicanMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
35 sightingsGreen Sea TurtleMost seen around noonSighting map
32 sightingsAmerican FlamingoMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
26 sightingsNurse SharkMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Virgin Islands. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
