[pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-BBEa7Zh_1CE/Un29NO-0xgI/AAAAAAAAYTA/BT6okHXfiT8/s144-c-o/PB040170.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection2Stage16VenezuelaTrinidadGuyanaCaracasToGeorgetown#5944115118256473602″ caption=”My boat park at the local’s house in the river mouth. The higher board is the yard fence…” type=”image” alt=”PB040170.JPG” ]

Staying inside Pomeroon river

Pos: here
Loc: Pomeroon Rivermouth
Acc: tent
Dist: 41,3 km
Start: 5:15 End: 15:25

My daring campsite close to the water’s edge stayed just about dry with my kayak across as a break water. The waves washed during high tide some of the sand aka shell pieces as a wall in front of it, also on the outer tent walls, and my tent inside stayed fully dry. I just was irritated about the sound of the many palm tree leaves this night, it always sounded like rain to me! But it stayed also dry from above. No ants, good sleep.

It really was the last sandy beach, only once around noon, on very low tide, I spotted from the distance a section which may have been a small sandy river mouth. No chance to get there on low tide. I had to stay out very far, probing the water depth again and again, still at some point I came across a mud field and I need to make another wide berth. I spotted on the eventually running up tide a small gap, and dared to go through, just about without getting stuck! Well, I’d had just to wait a bit, and the water would have been rising enough. Still I was mostly paddling all day on water depth below 50 cm, also not really fast in this way.

At least I knew I’d be landing tonight not somewhere in the muddy bushes, although I was checking on higher tide constantly the options, just in case… but not a single dry spot to be seen. I may have grounded my kayak somewhere on the wide spiky roots of a tree, and maybe first time tried to hang my hammock… but not necessary.

I spotted a large flat roof inside the small river before the large Pomerron river mouth, I was actually quite curious what it was, but too tired to check it out. I soon would have learned it belonged to the lodge located deep inside Pomeroon river. A very fast motorboat came straight up to me, driving right, driving left, I hate this! The only thing I can do is to lift up my paddle hoping the driver will see me! Actually, this driving left and right is for him to look out also left and right, if there is maybe more than one kayak… but I rather would like him to stay straight that so I can paddle away accordingly! It was a large boat with a shed load of tourists all dressed in orange life jackets, coming from that lodge, heading straight to that roof I saw, probably their picnic destination or such. Good I was not going there…

[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-kIHEGYvMJ7o/Un2-ynAER5I/AAAAAAAAYTA/nER8UqhdnTw/s144-c-o/PB040172.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection2Stage16VenezuelaTrinidadGuyanaCaracasToGeorgetown#5944116859870922642″ caption=”I could not take a better picture of the house as the space for distance was lacking on the tiny dry properity spot” type=”image” alt=”PB040172.JPG” ]

I rather paddled into the river mouth, deciding to knock on the first suitable looking house asking for a camp site for tent or hammock. I had to paddle about 2,5 km into the river mouth, but the current from the rising tide took me in nicely fast in with about 8 km/h. I knew I had to get out again…

[pe2-image src=”http://lh3.ggpht.com/-_frEZSkZqCI/Un295rij2AI/AAAAAAAAYTA/whHEl-vGhck/s144-c-o/PB040171.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection2Stage16VenezuelaTrinidadGuyanaCaracasToGeorgetown#5944115881836795906″ caption=”My tent barely had space in the small quite dry yard ground between all the usable crab. The outhouse in the backgroud.” type=”image” alt=”PB040171.JPG” ]

The first house had even some small dry looking yard around the house on stilts, so I called out “Hello, hello!”, and was able to talk to first the woman, shy, calling for her husband. He was young, and very nice and friendly after he understood my wish to stay the night there in my tent and where I came from, and that I didn’t really enjoy to paddle some more bunch of km into the river to maybe stay at that lodge run by Germans. Thanks! To the right and left of the wooden house on stilts was somehow dry soft ground, basically tiny plant pieces, reinforced with many many of the softish outer coconut shells. He cleared up a small tent space on the left side from the crap you keep as you may need it one day, and I was happy to have a dry spot. Not really in much privacy though, in the house lived nine people. Two brothers with their wives, the father, and four young kids. I was able to have a quick look inside the kitchen/ living room area, and was surprised about the luxuries I saw there: a generator, TV, stereo, an old mechanical sewing machine, and much kitchen stuff. Where does the money come from in this area? They said the mother and some sisters live in “town”, maybe they generate the income eventually to help the other part of the family live in the “almost” traditional way?

They were very friendly, but shy in general, so I retreated early into my tent, giving them a few food pieces as a present, also saying I had my own food. In any way, I don’t think a dinner invitation is common here… I saw them cooking mud crabs and heard them cracking them like nuts…not my favourite either. Ducks and chicken ran around my tent and under the stilts, a bunch of careless boat wrecks half sunken or just merely the bare ribs to be seen, in addition to the only seemingly working boat. At some point I decided to get out of my hot breeze less tent to drag my boat rather on dry land than letting it float in the river, and I got to talk a bit more with the men. But sorry, the mosquitoes started to eat me instantly, and the chat didn’t last long. How can the locals suffer this invasion?

At 6.30 pm, it was time for TV for the family, the generator was just located close to my tent near the out house. I stuffed ear plugs in deep, hoping to kill also the TV noises with loud shooting and killing sounds running at high volume to overcome the generator noise. What an idyllic place… but it could have been worse! I fell asleep anyway, and at 8 pm the spook was already over. I learned that this floating object across the river a bit more inside was actually an outpost of the coast guard. Would I have been hosted better there? I don’t think so, this was quite an experience. Thanks!