Nightlife & Nature

Boqueron on the weekends definitely pulsates with nightlife, much of it with young students from the university in Mayaguez, just to the north of here. "Happy hour" runs from 7-9 and once everyone is warmed up, the live music comes out around 10. However, unlike other places Boqueron actually shuts down their bars at 1am. To be honest we've found that although the night life in much of the islands is pretty intense, I think everyone starts drinking so early in the day that the party usually winds down by midnight anyway.



Last night we met a delightful couple from the Finger Lakes region of New York and enjoyed quite a time chatting in one of the many bars that line the street. The clouds that had been threatening all afternoon opportunistically chose this time to open up and drench the streets so we were quite happy to sit under cover and enjoy the $2.50 beer. Being the cruisers that we are, we didn't last too late and off to bed we went.



Today dawned bright and sunny but the next few days all have the same forecast: bright and sunny in the morning but clouds and rain in the afternoon. By 11 our boat chores were wrapped up so we took the dinghy to explore the large mangrove lagoon that lies on the south side of the bay.

The entrance is a channel that is well marked past the sand bars.

Once inside we discovered the lagoon was massive, but very shallow outside the marked channel.

Why such a well-marked channel, we wondered? Well here's the reason. The local police, customs, rescue and natural resources agencies all have their boats tucked away here.

We then headed to the beach for a stroll. We realized that this is the first beach we been to since St. Martin. Shame on us! The beach here is accessible through a park where there are well maintained facilities including change rooms and showers but also beach volleyball courts with viewing stands, little vacation villas and ample parking. I would imagine this place is packed on holiday weekends and during the summer.

At regular intervals are the lifeguard huts. They give the beach a very jaunty appearance.

As the skies threatened once again, we turned back towards the dinghy dock at the far end of the beach.

As we were walking along the beach we noticed another catamaran pulling into the anchorage. We had been the only cursing boat there, surrounded by local boats, some maintained and some probably abandoned. Not only was this another cruiser arrived, but they were also Canadian. As we returned in our dinghy we met up with Jacques and Raphaelle with their two young sons, from Montreal.

I suspect that tomorrow will be a quiet day in Boqueron, more rain is in the forecast and the town will quieten down ready for another week.