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Trip Report #4: Los RoquesFiled from Porlamar, Venezuela10 50.32 N 064 00 WJanuary 30, 2006
Photo: Tom and the surf on the north side of Tortuga Because of the distance to Tortuga and the fact that we did not feel safe anchoring near one of the islands close to the coast, we had to plan our departure to take place in two stages. We left Marina Maremares and motored through the canal to the large open area in front of the Paradiso Complex, still within the safety of the Puerto La Cruz lagoon, to anchor for the night. This area is reasonably close to the outlet and we would be able to negotiate the channel in the morning while it was still dark.
Photo: The Paradiso Condo Hotel and boat slips We left the anchorage at 6 am and motored out into the bay, past anchored tankers and freighters and then past the island of Borracha. Borracha was a place where we would have liked to anchor, but in the last couple of weeks, a cruiser anchored there was boarded by 5 men, 4 carrying guns and one carrying a knife. The thieves took $10,000 (who would have that much money on the boat?!) and many items, beat up the people on board, and made a mess of the boat. It may have been just an isolated incident, but we decided not to take a chance.
Photo: Tanker ready to take on oil in Venezuela
Photo: David, as we pass the island of Borracha There was no wind and we motored the entire way to Tortuga, arriving at Cayo Herradura at 4:45 pm. We made our way through the coral heads (not as tricky as the guide book indicates) and into the anchorage and found the perfect spot among the many other boats anchored there. The anchorage, though, is very large, and there was plenty of room in good holding for everyone.
Photo: David catches some rays on the way to Tortuga We decided to spend a day here before moving on to Los Roques, which would be an overnight, 85 mile sail. The cay is lovely, ringed with long stretches of white sand beach. There is nothing here but a few fishing camps, which looked as though they were used from time to time, only one being used while we were there. This would be a good place to explore, walk the beach, swim, snorkel and relax.
Photo: David at the Tortuga lighthouse
Photo: A Fishing camp on Tortuga
Photo: Try to relax, Dave!
Photo: Peg & Tom pose for a formal portrait on Tortuga It was great to have the day to relax and regroup before moving on to Los Roques. The 85 mile sail would have to be done overnight so that we could arrive in daylight. We left at 3:45 pm with 18 knots of wind and 6-8 foot waves and were sailing with the wind on the quarter with main and yankee. As the wind began to build with the setting sun, we reefed the main and changed down to the staysail. The sun sets here fairly early, about 6 pm., so there are not a lot of daylight hours. Soon after the sun set, we had a clear, starry sky until the full moon rose at 8 pm. The wind and waves were steady all night and we had an uneventful sail. The sun appeared on the horizon in back of us as we approached the southeast entrance to Los Roques at the Sebastopol lighthouse. We could clearly see the wreck of a freighter to the east of the reef.
Photo: Wrecked freighter on the reef at Los Roques, from inside the reef As we approached, we could just see the waves on the reef, all along the east edge of the Los Roques archipelago. We picked a spot midway between the end of the reef and the rocky ledge to the northeast of the lighthouse and surfed our way on fairly large waves into the calmer waters inside the reef. Again, this entrance is not as tricky as it looks, but we would not want to negotiate it in the dark. We anchored at Buchiyaco, organized the boat, had a good breakfast, took a nap and just swam and relaxed the rest of the day. The next morning, we sailed between the inner and outer reefs to cover the 12 miles to the harbor at Gran Roques to check in with authorities. The channel is wide and deep, but sprinkled with occasional shoals and reefs that require careful attention. But with a nice wind coming over the reefs and flat water, it was a beautiful reach.
Photo: Dave reaches his way through reefs and shoals to Gran Roques When we arrived at Gran Roques, we anchored in 12 feet in the main harbor in front of the Guardacosta. We checked in with the Guardacosta, the Guardia National, Inparques and the Autoridad Unica, in that order. None of these agencies is in the same building, so by the time you have visited all of them, you have seen a lot of the island. At the Autoridad Unica, which is at the airport, we paid our entrance fee to the park, which was $2 USD per foot of boat plus $12 USD per person. We had checked out of Venezuela while we were in Puerto La Cruz, because there is no place to check out on Los Roques. The Guardacosta official was very polite, but explained that we would have to leave in 48 hours. We found ourselves in a bit of a Catch-22. We could not check out here and so had to check out in Puerto La Cruz, but now we were told we could not stay to wait for weather. David was due to fly out of here in 72 hours and we could not leave before then. So we thought we had best keep a low profile. While we were doing the check-in procedure, the Guardacosta officials asked if they could borrow our dinghy to check on a boat in the harbor. This made us think that they did not have the equipment and vessels to patrol the harbors and islands regularly. We spent a day exploring the town and hiking up the hill to the oldest lighthouse on the island. This is a pretty little town, with gaily colored houses and posadas (like bed-and-breakfast inns). There are no autos and only sand streets, and as far as we can tell, there is only one restaurant open for lunch, the La Cuchera, which serves a very nice lunch. There are vendor's stalls which serve empanadas and churros and other "fast food". The many posadas in the town serve meals for their customers and the La Natura Viva serves other clients for dinner.
Photos: Gaily colored houses in Gran Roques Small freighters arrive twice weekly to bring supplies to the islands. There are two or three small groceries and one large one, but all of them have similar items for sale and similar prices. Fresh veggies are at a premium, but the local tubers, potatoes, and cabbages are available. We were able to purchase a few fresh tomatoes and red peppers. Bread was unavailable during our stay, because there had been no delivery of flour in quite a while. The fuel tanker arrives twice a week, but the time of its' arrival is not reliable. Fuel is available, however, from a number of business establishments on the island. The Dive Shop is a good resource if fuel, or anything else, is needed.
Photos: More colorful buildings in Gran Roques There was one internet center in Gran Roques and the connection was reasonably fast. David was appalled at the price, however, which was about $10 an hour. It was worth it to us and we pointed out that there was no competition on Gran Roques - this was it. The hike to the old lighthouse was up a well-worn trail and was not that difficult a climb. David had to wait for us, but he didn't seem to mind it as there were great views of the islands from the trail and really spectacular views when we got to the top.
Photo: The oldest lighthouse on Gran Roques
Photo: Peg and David at the top, Francisquis visible
Photo: From the lighthouse on Gran Roques, a view of Francisquis
Photo: The airport and the parked DC3 on Gran Roques We decided that since we were lying low, we would sail to the island of Noronsquis, about 4 miles from Gran Roques (too far for the Guardacosta in a borrowed dinghy), and wait for weather. This small island is ringed by reefs and the little bay inside is well protected from all directions. There is a beach that is frequented by tourists brought from the posadas on Gran Roques for the day and there is fairly good snorkeling on the reefs.
Photo: The beach on Noronsquis
Photo: Tom in the shade of the picnic pavillion on Noronsquis While we were there, a fishing boat came in and stayed overnight. The next day we went over to talk with them, David interpreting, and asked if we might buy some fish. They happily supplied us with 3 large red snapper-like fish, called Rubio (we think), cleaned and scaled, for about $8 USD. We probably could have haggled for a better price, but we were happy with the purchase and the fish was delicious at dinner that night.
Photo: The fishing boat and crew on Noronsquis The day trip boat, Rosinante, agreed to take Peg and David into Gran Roques on the day of his departure. David's flight on a DC3 took off at 4:30pm for Caracas, and the Rosinante brought Peg back to Starboard Home, all for $20.
Photo: Dave waits in the "airport waiting room" for his plane to depart.
Photo: The DC3 to Caracas
Photo: On his way home
Photo: Dave on the DC3 on his way to Caracas, past the old lighthouse We were sad to see David leave. We really enjoyed the time we had with him. He was so good on the boat - good crew, good company, good family. But we'll look forward to his next visit with us. On this trip we hooked him on Suduko puzzles and star-gazing, and we'll see what we can drum up for the next trip. We're still on Noronsquis, waiting for a weather window to head toward the Leeward Islands and then to St. Thomas. Supplies of fresh food is dwindling, but as long as we have a can opener, we won't starve. 73s, 88s,love and hugs - Peg & Tom Maynard s/v Starboard Home
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Grand Daughters' web pages: Anna's Home Page, Anastasia's Home Page Isabelle's Home Page
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