Cabo Cruz was a great place for the humans to go snorkelling, but rubbish for dogs as I was not supposed to go ashore here. The reef protected bay is very shallow, so you do no get really close to town, so it is not easy to sneak ashore either.
So the humans decided to stop off at Las Coloradas, in the Ensenada Guano, on the way north to the city of Niquero. Here the guide book promised that we could find an anchorage right off the beach. There was no wind, so the trip was a gentle motor weaving through the well charted sandbars that boarder the shipping channels on this section of mangrove covered coastline.
We passed two Guarda Frontera boats anchored on the edge of the channels. With so many sandbars littering the waters here all the shipping is funneled down just a few channels with safe deep water. Rather than patrolling, they can just anchor off and visit boats as they pass by. We assumed they were clearing in ships as they entered Cuban waters from the Caribbean Sea. We had already cleared into the country so they did not hail or visit us as we passed.
I was very excited to see a long white sandy beach breaking through the dense green vegetation as we approached Ensenada Guano. The human inched the boat as close to shore as they dared and dropped the hook in 3m of water in grass and thick sand right off the beach and the structures built there. We slipped the kayaks overboard and headed ashore to explore.
We found a lovely long beach with gently sloping sandy swimming area. There were lots of Sea Grape and Almond trees offering shade and the beach was backed by a long painted wall. Behind the wall was an encircled small Cuban holiday camp. Small painted cottages circled round a grassy courtyard. A playground, cafeteria and DJ hut sat in the centre. It was a Friday afternoon and coaches were starting to arrive and the DJ moved his speakers out towards the swimming area. No one seemed to pay us any attention and we assumed that it was rarely visited by cruising yachts.
We read in our guide book that the area is quite historical. Castro, Che and their band of revolutionaries landed on the boat ‘Gramma’ to start the revolution here. We suppose this is what attracted Cubans to visit the spot and eventually the development of the holiday camp as a place to stay. As the evening wore on the beach filled with families and the music played on. Thankfully it all shut down at 11:30pm, very early by Caribbean standards.
A nice little spot to stop between Cabo Cruz and Niquero.
end:
Photos, charts and information we added later once we got internet. Use link below:
Review of Southern Cuba Part 1- including the pictures you missed
