Venezuela

Venezuela

In the morning of 6th March 1999 we sighted the Islas Testigos and after the wind eased off we started the engine and motored there to arrive in front of the village on Isla Iguana just before noon. I then rowed ashore to check in with the Guarda Costa. This was really just an interim courtesy call rather than the real international check-in which we would do in Margarita. I landed on the sandy beach and walked up through the village and up the hill to the Guarda post where I was simply asked to write my details into the visitors book. I was pleased with the informality of this process. We then up-anchored and motored over to anchor again at Playa Tamarindo on Testigo Grande. There snorkelling over the reef was good. It was hot and so walking around the cactussy island or up the hill did not appeal, but it was a beautiful place to stay a while.

Frigate bird with its distinctive wing and V tail shape - Testigo Grande

The village and hill on Testigo Grande

After a 2 nights there we up-anchored and sailed over to Porlamar on Isla Margarita. This is a big town on a duty-free holiday island. As we approached we saw many open fishing boats apparently very well crewed. As we got nearer the fishermen revealed themselves to be pelicans perched on the gunwhales ready to dive in for a meal! We anchored close to a breakwater sheltering a small marina near the Hotel Concorde. We went ashore and got a taxi to go to Vemasca (Venezuelan Marine Supply). This was a 1960's American car which had clearly seen better days. Getting out we noticed a few wheel nuts missing - obviously roadworthiness tests are not as strict here as they are in Britain! Vemasca are the chandlers there who offer a free yacht check-in/check-out service. The formalities to enter or leave Venezuela by yacht (-or even leave one province to go to another) are so complicated and time-consuming that it is recommended that you get an agent to complete these formalities for you. There are agents in every port of entry who can do this and Vemasca does it at cost. Handing over our passports I proudly announced that we had visas. Unimpressed the agent said "Then you'll get a 90-day stay. If you hadn't had visas you would get a 90-day stay!" Most Western passport holders do NOT need visas to go to Venezuela. However if you ask a Venezuelan embassy you will get the reply that you DO need a visa. The embassies are short of funds and want to top up their coffers by charging you US$30 for doing unnecessary paperwork! We paid Bs24000 to check-in from abroad and Bs 8000 to check out to another part of Venezuela. At that time about Bs1000 = £1. It is these bureaucracy charges which I find to be a significant deterrent to extended cruising in this country. However we enjoyed our stay in Porlamar. Near where we left the dinghy there was a bamboo and coconut thatch bar on the beach which we frequented. It was quite a walk into town but we ate out, found internet cafes, bought rum, shirts and sandles. It was hot there but it is a nice town and not expensive. I expected it to be a bit like Spain, but having gained independence about 180 years ago there were a few subtle differences. In Spain the siesta typically lasts most of the afternoon - you have a good lunch and then you go to a park and have a sit down and have a snooze - nothing opens or happens before 5pm. And there was me in Porlamar thinking it was the same. After lunch I went to a park and sat down on a wall and lent my head against a stone pillar - I was surprised that one of my neighbours was indicating something - I didn't understand and thought he was just being silly - I pulled my hat brim over my eyes and tried to doze - within 5 minutes a uniformed figure approached me - fortunately I had not yet nodded off - the figure was some kind of policeman and indicated in no uncertain terms that this was unacceptable behaviour! - this is South America and you don't argue with policemen!

After 3 whole days in Porlamar we checked out (at a cost of Bs8000) and sailed to Cubagua. This had been the first Spanish settlement in the Americas. Columbus had seen locals with pearls and very soon a couple of his mates had found that this island was where the pearls came from - and so they enslaved some natives and forced them to dive for the oysters using the town of Nueva Cadiz on the Eastern end of the island as a base. This exploitation lasted almost 50 years until there was an earthquake and tidal wave on Christmas Day 1541 which destroyed the town!

Click here to see a Venezuela planning chart

We then sailed round the Araya peninsula and into the Gulf of Cariaco, then motored into the wind for a little way until we got to Laguna Grande. This is a large lagoon on Northern shore of the gulf of Cariacou and it is described as a "colossal bay which is breathtakingly beautiful with an endless variety of contrasting hills in whites and glowing reds. ... It is a timeless desert landscape, outstandingly colourful and decorative." Intrigued by this description we had to stop by and see for ourselves.

Click here to see a chartlet of the gulf of Cariacou

Three views of the spectacular landscape and mangrove lined shoreline in Laguna Grande

Next day we sailed about a bit in the big lagoon and then went out and then sailed Westwards to clear Cumana to go out of the Gulf of Cariacou and then go into the Mochima inlet. We had heard from Brian and Jo on "Meavaig" that Cumana was not too much of a town to write home about ( - although I am sure that it may have some good points) and so we bypassed that place. An hour and a half later we approached an excited group of dolphins and seabirds participating in some kind of feeding frenzy. Perhaps the dolphins had herded a shoal of sardines into a ball at the surface ready for their dinner and the seabirds were diving in to take advantage of the situation!

Two views of the dolphin and seabird feeding frenzy which we saw on our way to Mochima. It looked a lot more impressive than these photos suggest. A better camera will be carried next trip!

We motored on and into the fjord-like inlet leading up to the small town of Mochima. This is a National Park area and deservedly so. Some years before it had become so popular among foreign yachtspeople that restrictions were introduced to limit the numbers. We anchored close to the town and dinghied ashore for a look around and then had a drink in a bar - it seemed to be a pleasant enough place. Next day we up-anchored and motored down the harbour, then turned left and looked around the small group of islands just to the West. They are the Caracas Islands in the Ensenada Tigrillo and we anchored on the Western side of the central one called Caracas del Este. I had some engine maintenance to keep me occupied for the afternoon but Simeon swam ashore and had a good look around on the cactussy island.