The Baths

The Baths National Park
The Baths National Park
	One of many baths found among scattered granite boulders
	Location of The Baths in Virgin Islands
Type	Natural Area
Location	Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands
Coordinates	18°25′46″N 64°26′43″W / 18.42937°N 64.445398°W

The Baths is a beach area on the island of Virgin Gorda among the British Virgin Islands in the Caribbean.

Geography

The Baths is situated about 1.2 miles (1.9 km) south off Spanish Town at the southern tip of the island between Spring Bay and Devil's Bay. The Baths is an area of unique geologic formations and one of the BVI's major tourist destinations.

Area

Although volcanism accounts for much of the Virgin Islands, The Baths was formed by granite that eroded into piles of boulders on the beach.^[1] Granite forms from the slow cooling of magma at depth nowhere close to surface volcanoes. The granite only appears at the surface after geologic ages have eroded away all the overburden covering it. Once exposed, erosion continued to isolate the granite into large boulders and round their surfaces. The boulders form natural tidal pools, tunnels, arches, and scenic grottoes that are open to the sea.^[2] The largest boulders are about 40 feet (12 m) long.

Since 1990, the area has been a BVI National Park ^[3] as are the adjacent bays,^[4] and the area is a major tourist attraction, with swimming and snorkelling being the main attractions.