Discover Antigua: Signal Hill Hike & Beach Day Trip

HEY FRIENDS!

I’m finally back with another post in my Discover Antigua series! After the first post in March, I really thought that was it for exploring given the rona (Yes, it is still a thing!). However, our restrictions have since relaxed and we’re basically free to roam with certain guidelines. Ever since the lockdown started, I think more people started used hiking as a “release”. It was one of the few activities people were still allowed to do, once socially distanced from each other. Going through social media during the weekend I’d see so many people on all sorts of trails and I was definitely impressed at the variety Antigua offered. As for me, I probably did one mini hike which was located in my area and called it a day. However, this time I decided to venture out to one of the more popular trails: Signal Hill. Since I recently started Youtube, I turned it into a vlog and planned on visiting the beach that same day. However, that wasn’t possible so my beach day trip was moved to the following weekend, where I visited Darkwood Beach. Let’s get into it!

Hiking: Signal Hill Trail

As mentioned earlier, this is a popular hiking trail in Antigua and Barbuda and originates from the Wallings Dam Nature Reserve. The plan was to leave home at 5:30 a.m., however that didn’t go as planned. Given where I live, it was about a 30-40 minutes drive, basically another adventure. We got there around 6:30 a.m. and still finished within good time. It’s a pretty easy hike and despite us taking breaks in between it took us an average of 25 minutes to go up and back down (i.e. 50 minutes total).

Another plus of this trail is that it’s marked for your convenience. Before we got to the start point for the signal hill trail, we walked through what was called reservoir trail (I believe). There are also other trails located in Wallings, such as the Rendezvous Trail which is another popular one but with a much longer hiking time.

As usual, the views at the hike end point are always worth it. You got to see sea views as well as various points around Antigua. Additionally, there is ample space for individuals to sit and relax, which we did prior to going back down. I would say it was well worth the hike, especially since I’m not a morning person.

Beach Day: Darkwood Beach

Location: South-west coast of Antigua
5 Minutes from Jolly Harbour (restaurants, shops etc.) | 25 minutes from St. John’s
Has shaded areas (trees or umbrellas)

Originally, the plan was to go to Little Ffryes (which is featured in my vlog) but we were too late as all of the shaded areas were already taken. Therefore, we drove a little further and found a nice spot on Darkwood Beach. I’ve been to Darkwood beach a few times, but I don’t recall it being this nice *lol*. I suppose different areas on the beach have their advantages. Overall, it was a gorgeous day out; the water was clear and warm plus from our vantage point we could see Montserrat, Redonda and Nevis. We spent about two hours or so here just chilling on the beach and enjoying each other’s company.