Buck Island Reef National Monument in the US Virgin Islands has begun restoration of the island’s only land-based hiking trail.
The project will rehabilitate the 1.8-mile Buck Island Trail, a critical visitor access route in the remote marine national monument.
Crews have conducted trail maintenance, cleared overgrown vegetation, installed and repaired erosion-control features, and will replace aging signage to improve safety and visitor experience on the trail.
“This project embodies our mission to protect and maintain nationally significant public lands for the American people,” said Angelita Alvino, superintendent of Buck Island Reef National Monument.
The effort is part of the National Park Service’s contribution to the nation’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. While Buck Island is far from Revolutionary battlefields, it symbolises the expanding reach and stewardship responsibility of the US.
The project brought together park staff and a GAOA-funded Maintenance Action Team, including skilled craftspeople from the Historic Preservation Training Center and young-adult interns from the American Conservation Experience conservation corps. These teams specialise in preserving historic structures, enabling the NPS to complete projects while passing critical trade skills to the next generation. Youth corps participation reinforces national goals for preservation trades, jobs-skills training and civic engagement—central priorities of the NPS.
Established by Presidential Proclamation in 1961, Buck Island Reef National Monument was one of the first marine protected areas in the US system and remains a model of integrated land and underwater conservation.
The Buck Island Trail begins at either Diedrich Point or the West Beach picnic area. Visitors walking this trail can experience the beach forest, take a side trail for panoramic views of coral reef and cross Buck Island in 45 minutes.
