Amekaya at anchor in Providencia.
After our 60 hour passage to Providencia from Guanaja we were ready from some rest. But, it wasn't so much the actual passage we needed to recover from but the 6 months before when we were rushing to get things done before we actually did the passage so we could be ready to travel when our group came together and we got our needed weather window to make the passage. So with all that rushed preparation behind us and the actual passage completed we could now relax and get back to our cruising lifestyle.
Our original sailing group at lunch on the day before two of the boats left.
Many cruisers actually have schedules.We know many people this year that are in a hurry to get to the Panama Canal before the price increase. Others have their six month cruises. In the past we have had a few deadlines we needed to make and this year hitting the right departure conditions to get here to Providencia was one of those key dates. But, that's all behind us and when we get up in the morning there is no agenda for the day.
A community fete on the dock. The band is using local instruments.
For the first week on anchor in Providencia we did very little except tasks around the boat and walk about town to provision and inquire about things we needed. As strange as it seems it actually took us almost a week after arriving to realize that we were now relieved of the stress of hitting the deadline
Relics of old Fort Warwick. A British establishment fromt he 18th Century overlooking the entrance to Santa Catalina harbor.
and we now had no schedule. For several days we slept late, didn't do extreme adventures and generally just hung out on the boat and chilled. We got together with the others from our group often for happy hours or lunches and just enjoyed being in a new place very different from the Rio and the very familiar islands.
Out for dinner on the night the new arrivals made it.
Providencia has had an interesting history. Originally settled by English Puritans with African slaves who were chased from the island by the Spanish. Eventually after their conquest they neglected the
islands and then it became home to pirates including the famous Henry Morgan. A large rock edifice
Morgan's Crack
on the channel side of Santa Catalina is known as Morgan's Head and a split peak above the settlement is know as Morgan's Crack. After the fall of the Spanish Empire the islands migrated back to English control and then went to Colombia. There is currently a dispute in the World Court that has decided the islands should go to Nicaragua for no reason other than they're closer to that country. Colombia and the people refuse to accept the judgement.
Providencia from our dive boat in the swells.
Two boats from our group left for Panama the end of the week we arrived to stage for going through the canal. A week later two other boats left to go to San Andres and on to Panama. But, after they left three other boats that had planned to travel with us on our passage but were delayed, arrived although one didn't stop in Providencia and went on to Panama to make a canal passage. The other two stayed with us for about a week and then went on to Panama just before we left for San Andres.
The gap between Santa Catalina and Providencia islands.
Providencia is the perfect image of a tropical island. A mountainous ridge of rough peaks reaching hundreds of meters toward the sky. The lush rain forest canopy is made up of indigenous tropical hardwoods, fruit and palm trees. The island is ringed by a reef with small cays around it and the islanders live mostly on fish and imports from the mainland. The hillsides are very green and the water is very blue. Only about 6,000 people live on the island and in the high season several hundred tourists. Providencia has an indigenous black crab that lives in the jungle most of the year and every spring migrates to the water to lay their eggs. There are thousands of them and the roads are closed as they make their way to the water.
Crab Cay just off the East side of Providencia.
The island of Providencia is beautiful anchoring spot. There are many peaks and the proximity to Santa Catalina makes for a wonderful anchorage. The islands are connected by a footbridge that breaks up most of the swell coming in from the north. Holding is good anchored off Santa Catalina and the islands block the prevailing easterly or northeasterly winds. The water was rich with nutrients from runoff caused by the frequent squalls.
Almond Bay Beach.
While we were in Providencia I was able to get in four dives. Conditions were not really favorable as the seas were rough with little protection offered by the small island. The time we were there we had frequent squalls wth lots of overcast and rain showers making visibility underwater less favorable. With the rain also came lots of runoff further reducing visibility. I dove with one of the local dive operators and each tank dive was less than $30/dive including them picking us up on our boats. Saw several black tip reef sharks on each dive and did the "Spiral" which is a vertical cave dive beginning at about 80 feet and going down to 120 ft. The first two dives I did with some of our other friends and we wanted to go out again after the other boats arrived but the weather wasn't conducive. As much as I like to dive as often as possible it's nice to have the luxury to only go out when it's pleasant.
Southwest Bay
During our first week we went with several friends to a little place called the Lighthouse Cinema. It really wasn't a lighthouse or a cinema but they showed locally produced movies about the island and offered beverages and light snacks. I think we all had their hummus and veggies plate that came with a fantastic slice of toasted coconut bread with each serving. They didn't sell the bread but it would have been a great purchase.
Rolands Reggae Bar
One day we rented a golf cart with some friends from the later group to arrive and went around the island. We stopped by several beaches and had lunch at a fantastic Rastafarian place on the south end of the island. The food was great and the scenery very authentic. We also chilled out at a beautiful resort called Deep Blue. Seems like it would be a really great low stress vacation spot.
Deep Blue Resort
Currently there is interest by Colombia and commercial interests to develop Providencia to resemble the island of San Andres. The two islands are night and day different. Separated by only 50 miles of water, Providencia with its 6,000 residents has unspoiled natural beauty where local fish is the primary food available at most restaurants. San Andres on the other hand has 100,000+ residents, high rise hotels, duty free shopping, big beaches and caters to mainland South American tourists. Providencia has mostly indigenous islanders more akin to Caymans, Jamaica and the eastern Carib who speak Creole and English with a little Spanish. On San Andres Spanish is pervasive.
One of the bus stops around the island. Each one was very creative reflecting island life.
The government is pushing to expand the government dock to allow cruise ships to enter. It's not clear what kind of cruise ships but presumably smaller ones. It's hard to imagine what cruise ship passengers would do on the island. There is no infrastructure or services capable of handling large numbers. Presumably the operators and promoters will handle that to the exclusion of the local people that will have their lives disrupted.
View off the southern shore if the island.
We were able get some bottled water from one of the markets in the town to partially fill our tank and one day I jugged fuel to top off our fuel after the passage from Guanaja. We have plenty of resources on board to continue to San Andres and then to Panama. The markets in Providencia were good but
Cattle heading down the road to pasture.
lacking in large quantities of good fruits and vegetables. The supply chain for the island begins in mainland Colombia and goes to San Andres. Then it is loaded on a smaller boat for the trip to Providencia. But, it's still better than in the Bahamas The local islanders collect rainwater to use for most things and there is no public water and limited sanitation. There were many trash cans around town where we could dump our trash and appears to be recycling for bottles, cans and paper.
One of the many iconic churches around the island.
Providencia is an easy island to enjoy and just chill. The people were friendly and most had a fairly good use of English although the food selection was limited we could make do. Very easily could have stayed longer but a weather window presented itself so we moved on to San Andres to enjoy Christmas and New Year's Colombian style.
Our final sunset in Providencia.
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