Boonie Stomping: Spanish Steps

Crab bro says "Don't tread on me"

To celebrate six months since I slammed my scooter into the pavement and attempted to break everything, Tom and I decided to do our first boonie stomp (that's Guam speak for a hike, folks). I had previously hiked Tarzan Falls with some friends, but this was the first time we had gotten to go out together. I've been a bit depressed for the past few weeks, and really needed to get out. I miss my job, my friends, and my activities back in Tucson, and just haven't really found my place here yet. But this hike reminded me that I really do like my new island home, especially all of the awesome outdoor activities it offers.

Directions

The directions we found online for Spanish Steps were a little vague, and since neither of us had been before we got a little lost. Because this hike is located on Big Navy you need to either have an ID card or be sponsored to get on base. Follow the main road all the way down until you reach the dive shop/marker for the Guadalupe Church remains and make a left. Go past the entrance to Gab Gab Beach, past a parking lot on your right, and past a guard house that looks rather intimidating if you don't know that your destination is beyond it. Immediately past the guard house take a left and then travel along a fairly straight path for a while (Note to self: next time we do this hike why don't you pay attention to the mileage so you can give better directions.) You will eventually come to a three way "intersection". At that point you can't go straight anymore because the road is closed. There is a sign that says "ordnance road", which is the left turn and then right behind that sign is a little pull in that leads to a dirt path. Follow the dirt path to a clearing, park, and you are at the trailhead.

The Hike

No really,  it's not that bad.

I was a little worried about the start of this hike as I had heard that it is rather steep and involved some scrambling with a rope. Normally this wouldn't be an issue, but since I'm still recovering from surgery I'm not as amazingly buff as before. Even so, the descent down the remnants of a stairway from the Spanish period wasn't bad at all as we took it slow and enjoyed the views from the cliff. When you reach the bottom the path leads into the jungle where you come across a well from the same period as the stairs. If you follow the trail (I say trail lightly, they are somewhat worn paths with occasional markers tied to trees) to the right you will reach a beach, but our destination was the lagoon to the left. During our walk we saw hermit crabs (I'm sorry hermit crab bro I almost stepped on), lizards, and lots of spider webs. While we did not see any brown tree snakes my biologist friends have PROMISED me that they were there. All over the place. *SHUDDERS*

The Lagoon

The lagoon was, in a word, stunning. The water isn't deep enough for diving, but was prefect for strapping on our snorkels and fins, and checking out wildlife. Gab Gab is definitely better for the variety of fish and coral you can see, but because of the trek to get there this beach is far less crowded. There was a family hiking back out when we arrived and a small group of Navy folk arrived as we were wrapping up, but otherwise we had the place to ourselves. The current was pretty rough while we were there and at one point we got pulled out further than we were expecting, but we were able to walk back on the rocks. Good thing too since the tide wouldn't be turning again for a while. My knee and shoulder were hurting pretty badly after the climb down and the swimming so we skipped the beach this time, but definitely will be going back with a group. I highly recommend this hike to anyone who can get on base. It's not too difficult, the views are amazing, and the lagoon is some of the prettiest water I've seen since coming here.