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Walking the soft white beaches of Los Roques
it is rare to see another human being. There are empty conch shells,
coral sculptures, scuttling hermit crabs, shiny lizards and long-legged
sandpipers. A heron watches while a fluffy white chick sits in its
nest amidst the green sea-purslane. When I took to the warm turquoise
waters, jumping jacks flopped in the shallows; frigate birds with
sharply angled wings floated above; curious terns looked me in the
eye; and pelicans dive-bombed for breakfast. Below the surface,
designer fish played hide and seek in the corals: angelfish, butterflyfish,
parrotfish, blueheads, snappers, baby damsels, a fleeing turtle
and the black jewel encrusted iridescent baby damsel.
 Los
Roques is a coral archipelago 150 km off the coast of Venezuela
consisting of 42 small islands surrounding a huge lagoon. Here,
in this paradisical playground, hurricanes hardly happen. The days
are hot and the nights are cool. The trade winds permanently blow
in a North Easterly - South Westerly direction and the rainy season
only produces an occasional cloudy afternoon or the odd squall simply
washing the azure and white landscape a gentle silvery grey. And
while mosquitoes lurk in the mangroves on a few of the islands,
they only forage for humans just before sunrise and sunset, when
coil burning keeps them at bay.
It is rare to see more than one or two other people
because there are so many islets off which to anchor and because
this is a strictly regulated national park with half the lagoon
off limits to conserve the coral and sea grass beds. Visiting yachts
are only granted a fifteen days stay and each body stepping off
the tiny landing strip on Gran Roque, the only inhabited island,
pays a £10 surcharge. Venezuelan visitors day trip or weekend for
scuba diving or a sail on a catamaran, snorkelling, lunch, accompanied
by liberal cuba libres (rum, gin and coke), local 'Polar' beer and
obligatory sunset. Guests then repair to Gran Roque for dinner and
a comfortable night in one of the many delightful posadas, mainly
run by Italians to an excellent standard.
Positives
Undiscovered. Desert island existence. Total peace. No hurricanes.
Negatives
Gran Roque is tiny, so necessities can be expensive. Mosquitoes
in the mangroves on two of the islands. (Extra potent jungle recipe:
1/2 baby oil, 1/2 over the counter repellent, 1 cap B12 liquid,
shake and apply.) Caracas reputedly dangerous for tourists - avoid
the barrios and driving at night.
 Activities
Sailing, Snorkelling, Scuba Diving, Bird Watching. Mainland Tours
(see Exploration, Venezuela)
Best time to travel
All year round. Average temperature 28°. Hot days and Cool Nights.
Clothing
Sailing gear. Light, informal, non-synthetic. Rainwear with hood.
Sweater for evenings. High Factor sun creams.
Food
Drink mineral water, local coffee, rum and beer, every kind of fruit
juice, green coconut. Eat tropical fruits, fish, lobster, prawns,
vegetables.
Shopping
Indian hammocks and baskets. Coffee, rum, gold & semi-precious jewellery,
latin music.
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