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With large, rounded scarlet blooms made up of individual flowers and set on green leaves, ixora looks somewhat like a geranium. This year-round bloomer is popular with home gardeners and landscapers who use it as a hedge.

Splendid views of Salt River and the sea, plus a stroll through plantation ruins dating to around 1750 (seeJudith’s Fancy), reward motorists who drive through this gated neighborhood of upscale homes. Just check in with the guard first. Follow Hamilton Avenue to the end for glimpses of Salt River Bay. Turn off onto Caribe Drive to see the ruins, which include those of a great house and a tower. This is a small neighborhood, so don’t worry about getting lost.

Rent kayaks at oceanfront hotels for a paddle around the bay or take a kayaking and snorkel tour through a mangrove-fringed lagoon with Virgin Islands Ecotours.

Many resorts offer complimentary kayak use for a paddle around their bay. Otherwise, you can rent them at Nanny Cay, Trellis Bay, or Cane Garden Bay for a paddling and snorkeling excursion.

Virgin Kayak at Cane Bay and Caribbean Adventure Tours at Salt River rent kayaks and do tours.

Most hotels in Virgin Gorda and the outer islands provide free kayaks. If not, rent one at Virgin Gorda’s Leverick Bay Water-sports (seeBoating, Virgin Gorda).

Rent a kayak from hotels. Arawak Expeditions at Low Key Watersports in Cruz Bay does day trips and overnight sojourns. Crabby’s Watersports in Coral Bay drop you off so you can paddle back to their base.

This area has three trails. The short Yawzi Point Trail leads from the beach to a promontory. The Lameshur and Bordeaux trails start just past the beach at the road’s end; the first is 1 mile (1.6 km) to Reef Bay and the second runs about a mile uphill to Bordeaux Road.

The Bitter End Yacht Club in Virgin Gorda has a 3-day program that gets you ready to handle bare boats.

Bearing yellow-green fruits used in everything from ice tea to tarts, lime trees grow wild and in gardens.