by MSc. Ronald Betancourt
(from the Spanish original)
Among so many places I have visited throughout Nicaragua, one worthy of special admiration is the Río San Juan. This impressive and majestic water route has inspired poets and writers, conquistadores and pirates thirsty for riches, scientists, and those just curious about nature. From their lips pours a flow of poetry and praise for its majesty and fascination.
This small piece of Nicaragua has become a historical and cultural paradise in which the echoes of past struggles resound in the dreams of each visitor. Nature and all its attributes interplay with each other. The residents show us the simplicity of their culture and the grandness of their way of life.
In a letter to King Charles V of Spain, the conquistador Hernán Cortes said: “He who possesses the passage between the two oceans will be able to consider himself the owner of the world.” These few words took root in the ears of conquistadores from all over the world and they came from the north and south dreaming of finding the much sought after strait that would link both seas. From that time on, the potential of its natural resources and the possible use of the river course as a route between the Atlantic and Pacific were the main causes of struggle in the zone, which throughout history has been repeating itself in one way or another.
Before embarking on this journey, it is appropriate to mention that the San Juan River was discovered in 1525 by Spanish conquistadores who had begun to establish settlements near the shores of Nicaragua’s great lake. At that time, they called it “el Desaguadero” (quite literally, the Outlet). They were aware of the importance of controlling the passage from the lake to the ocean to the east and two years later, they founded San Carlos where the river begins to drain from the inland sea. Fourteen years and several expeditions later, they discovered the mouth of the river that made the extraordinary connection between the Nicaraguan settlements and other Spanish colonies around the Caribbean like Havana, Cartagena de Indias, and Portobelo.
The San Juan River runs for 200 kilometers, carrying the waters of Cocibolca (the indigenous name for what is now known as Lake Nicaragua) to the Caribbean Sea. Along some stretches, it is wide and serene and there are human settlements along its banks downstream to the town of El Castillo; while in others, we can experience the grandness and strength of its torrent, ideal for those who enjoy a small dose of adrenaline pumping through their veins.
There are also small bars or islets covered with dense vegetation. Following its course, we can feel the sensation of the rebellious waters that produce eddies and whirlpools and the banks become more wild and rife with a feeling of solitude, of having gotten away from it all. From the point where one tributary, the San Carlos River, enters the flow and then downstream to the fork in the river, the stream is broad and majestic with long rectilinear stretches framed by the tropical forest of the Indio Maiz Reserve. Twenty-five kilometers before it enters the Caribbean, the river divides into several branches, creating a swampy delta with numerous lagoons, of which the main one is at San Juan del Norte, formerly known as Greytown Bay.
The point at which the San Juan begins its long journey to the sea is San Carlos, the port of entry to the river and the main city in the zone. Despite being rustic, this relatively small population center has the necessary means for lodging tourists from all over who come to seek a serene setting, rife with the customs and popular traditions of its inhabitants who can introduce us to the San Juan River. Some of them come for the international sports fishing derby held every year in September when festivities for the town’s patron saint occur.
From this city at the headwaters of the San Juan River, one can enjoy spectacular vistas of beautiful sunsets from three outlooks over the lake to the islands making up the Solentiname Archipelago. The peace and serenity that one breathes in at this small lakeshore site is impressive. Residents offer us a little of their customs rooted in the history of their ancestors, making it almost impossible to sit back and not immerse ourselves in this natural paradise and its untiring history.
From this small city, we can contemplate a little of the long route awaiting us along the river in a small boat. We are reminded that hidden in the magic of its waters are written the moments of admiration and greed that have sparked the desires of great men in the history of Nicaragua. But before setting out, we cannot help but take the time to enjoy an exquisite meal of an enormous fish recently hauled in from the waters of the lake and served at any one of the simple cafeterias in San Carlos. It is a feast for the eyes that invites us to savor its succulence, leaving us with an appetite to repeat it once again on the return from our long voyage.
Downriver, we reach two towns along the banks, El Castillo and Boca de Sábalos. The Sábalos River enters the flow at the latter, enticing us to wish to know even more of the magic of this paradise. In the evening, we enjoy ourselves in some simple lodgings and we look into other comfortable hotels and see tourists who, like us, are desirous to know parts of this zone surrounded by some private reserves, farms, and even some hot springs.
El Castillo is a small town characterized by its tranquility and it has several hotels, restaurants, cafeterias, a cyber-café, and a butterfly enclosure. Horseback or canoe tours are available. Launches leave every day from San Carlos to these two towns and buses out of the terminal at San Carlos can make it to Sábalos.
On arrival at El Castillo, we see the historical monument of the Fortress of the Immaculate Conception, named such by the Spaniards who built it in 1675 to defend their interests in Nicaragua by blocking passage upriver to invaders from the Caribbean who wanted to reach the interior of the country or Lake Nicaragua. In 1762, it was the main scene of the battle in which the young Rafaela Herrera defended the fortress and the upriver reaches, firing off blasts from the cannons to repel Lord Nelson and his force of English invaders and Miskito Indian warriors. Today, it is being remodeled after having resisted the continual battles with time and the environmental conditions of the zone.
About six kilometers downriver from El Castillo, and along its north bank, is the Indio Maiz Biological Reserve. Its area of 3,180 square kilometers is a tropical rainforest inhabited by many different species of plants and animals, including birds with spectacular plumage and mammals from small to large, including jaguars, which, with a bit of luck, one may catch a glimpse of. All this ecology makes us feel the surrounding beauty as we continue towards the Caribbean Sea. The reserve can be explored on foot or you can go up the tributary of the Bartola River and view it by boat. Another way is to go up the Indio River, a tributary entering the San Juan upstream of San Juan del Norte. This is an impressive area of unexplored nature, rich in beautiful flora and wildlife.
This whole area is a combination of water, land, and nature with a variety of places that range from rainy, sunny, dusty, to virgin jungle. The setting is primitive and rustic with an abundance of insect life and other jungle animals. The marvelous twilight hours can be immortalized by the lens of your camera in order to never forget the natural beauty.
You might see a freshwater shark, the only ones in the world, which have adapted to the waters of the river and Lake Nicaragua. You can savor a great variety of tropical fruits along with the fascinating typical food and drink of this zone of Nicaragua. There are not many people, but those that are there will treat you with friendliness and hospitality. A voyage in this historical paradise of Nicaragua will be, without a doubt, an unforgettable experience.
