Mélange Travel & Lifestyle Magazine April 2017 | Page 389

The Quill
The Quill or Boven National Park is one
of 3 National Parks on St. Eustatius
and is the extinct volcano that once
created the island. Today the Quill still
has a perfectly formed crater and at its
bottom is a unique rainforest. The park
area also covers 5 hills in the north of St
Eustatius.
Photo Credit: Walter Hellebrand
National Marine Park
The second of St. Eustatius’s National Parks is
a marine park that encompasses the entire
coastline from the high tide mark to a depth
of 30m. This park was created to protect the
reef and the sea life and so fishing is not
allowed but the park officials work closely
with the 3 dive centers on the island to
allow snorkeling and diving. To promote the
dive tourism, as well as the natural reef and
shipwrecks, some artificial reefs have now
been built.
Photo Credit: St. Eustatius National Park
Miriam C. Schmidt
Botanical Garden
The third of St. Eustatius’s parks is the Miriam
C. Schmidt Botanical Garden which covers 52
acres on the Atlantic side of the Quill. The park
contains a kitchen garden, a palm garden and
a greenhouse but also has some interesting
nature trails. The park also contains a picnic
area which affords some fantastic views of the
nearby island of St. Kitts. As with the other
two of St. Eustatius’s National Parks, to visit
the Miriam C. Schmidt Botanical Garden you
must first buy a $6 permit which should be
available from your hotel.
© St. Eustatius National Parks