Perhaps the reason Little Corn Island is still considered paradise is for most people, it’s not easy to get to or from (yes you can take a puddle jumper from Managua but what fun is that). We did our research and had a plan so we were prepared for long trips to get to and from paradise. Well…so much for plans.
Our trip started in Managua with an 8 hour journey on a chicken bus (i.e. school bus). While not as comfortable as a coach, it wasn’t nearly as bad as expected. It’s amazing what you can enjoy when you’ve got earbuds, good tunes, and you’re on your way to paradise. Plus, every few hours the driver pulled off at a restaurant so we could use the facilities, stretch our legs, and buy some refreshments.
We arrived at 10pm in Bluefields (named after the pirate) on the Caribbean coast where our semi-weekly ferry to the island was scheduled to depart the next morning. Bluefields is not a nice town. It is a dirty port town that smells from garbage on the streets and the catches of the day (fish, shrimp, and even turles) being sold from buckets and tables lining the main road. It has an edge and undercurrent that tells you it’s not the safest of towns. It was suggested we shouldn’t go out at night. During the day there is very little to do and few opportunities for outdoor activities. It’s the type of town you want to get out of as soon as possible. Our arrival in town was timed perfectly…..had our ferry showed up.
The ferry is scheduled to run twice a week, Saturdays and Wednesdays and if it is canceled due to weather it still doesn’t run again until the next scheduled departure. That happened to us and changed our well timed and conceived 24 hour journey into a 5 day, stuck in Bluefields time warp. Did I mention it’s a dirty, smelly, not safe, not anything to do town?
Time in Bluefields moved slowly. I mean sloooooooooowly. We spent our first few days desperately trying to figure out how we could get to the island and then, when the realization hit that we were stuck until Weds, we planned one of the two things to do in town, each day to pass the time. One day we spent nearly 2 hours in a small one room museum and on another we took a boat ride to a beach, in pouring rain {side note: that actually turned out well. It was an open boat with about eight rows of seating for four across (called a panga}. Before leaving, a large plastic tarp was passed over everyone’s head and that was our protection from the rain storm, and it turned out to be sunny at the beach). The day before our ferry, we showed up to the ticket office knowingly 15 minutes before they opened, just to make sure we got our tickets (plus we had nothing else to do).
The ferry ride was an experience as well. The boat was probably 60 feet long, had an inside seating area for about 50 people, a bench front to back looking out towards the water ran along each side of the boat, and a few benches in the back, around the space where luggage was stored. After those seating areas were full, they doubled the capacity with standing room only passengers (that included us since because we had tickets, we showed up later than most people). Then when we thought the boat was full, they added even more people. Once the boat left port people sat, stood, and laid, wherever possible. Half way through the trip I estimated there was about 9 square feet of open floor space on the boat. Did I mention the boat ride was 6 hours long.
My initial seat was on the wood plank flooring along the side of the boat, in the walkway between the bench and railing. I was not alone as just like the rest of the boat, this area was filled with passengers sprawled all around me. Just behind me Sonja found a bucket to sit on. After a while I grew tired of my 2 feet of floor space and ventured to the back of the boat for a semi-comfortable seat on some stored luggage. Later, I stood just above the engine room and enjoyed the sounds of the huge twin engines running the boat (by enjoyed the sounds I mean went deaf). With about 2 hours remaining in the trip, the engine mechanic gave me his seat so for the last part I was sitting in the lap of luxury (a concrete step just above the engine room). Overall and surprisingly, the trip didn’t feel that bad and also seemed to go by rather quickly. It was crowded but everyone was friendly and courteous.
The ferry arrived at Big Corn Island and then finally after another short panga ride to Little Corn Island, we arrived in paradise.
We planned to take the ferry back but changed that when our hostel owner mentioned a cargo ship offered rides back to the mainland. There was an impending storm coming and we didn’t want to get caught stranded on the island with days of rain if the ferry once again got cancelled (we were still shell-shocked from the previous week). So, this cargo ship leaving a couple days before the ferry and storm, was the perfect answer.
Twice a week a cargo ship brings food and goods to the island and since it has no return cargo, let’s passengers hop on board for the return trip. The boat is about the same size as the ferry but instead of 200 passengers there were about 10. Those in the know brought hammocks to string up for the ride (i.e. not us). But, we had a nice perch on some wood planks against barrels so we had something to lean against, could stretch out, and even nap a little.
This return trip started in a bit of a rush. Since it’s island time, there really was no time. We were told the boat would maybe come at 10am but no one ever knows, we saw the previous boat didn’t arrive until 3pm (and leave at 9pm). We fiigured we’d have a leisurely morning but when I walked out of the room to make coffee at 8:30, the hostel owner let me know the boat was there. After rushing down to the pier we found we had to be on the boat ready to go at 9:30am. We hurried back to collect our still slightly damp laundry, pack, and prepare for the long journey. We made it in time luckily because the boat left even earlier.
Of course it wouldn’t be proper travel if there wasn’t a chicken on board. As we were waiting to leave someone walked on board with an ax, machette and chicken. We thought he was gonna kill it then and there but no, the chicken went for the ride. In fact, the chicken spent what was probably it’s last few good hours, 2 feet from my head.
The first stop was Big Corn Island an hour away to drop off additional cargo. After waiting 3 hours and no one arrived to pick up most of it (island time), the items were left on the dock and we shoved off on our 6 hour journey towards the mainland. Now would be a good time to reference how once again we had a well conceived plan.
Unlike the ferry, our landing spot was El Bluff, the beach we took the panga to during our time in Bluefields. This meant when we got off the ship we would need to take a panga back to Bluefields, then a bus at 4pm, 9pm, or 11pm back to Managua. When we first heard about the cargo ship we thought the 4pm bus was doable. However, for those doing the math, on our day that was quickly ruled out, 9pm or 11pm would have to do (remember rule number 1, get out of Bluefields as quickly as possible).
During the voyage another concern arose. Our scheduled arrival time to El Bluff was after the pangas shut down for the day, meaning it was quite possible we would have to spend the night at the dock in El Bluff. However during the voyage, Sonja and I were both befriending different people (we were the only non-Nicaraguan’s on the boat) and when one person on arrival organized a private panga for other passengers, they included us.
So now at just after 9pm, with our major hurdle behind us, shockingly, we were ecstatic to step foot again in Bluefields. With almost two hours until the last bus we just had to head to the bus station to complete our journey. And upon arrival, one thing happened, the one thing we didn’t expect, the one thing we had no concern about, the last bus was…sold out.
So instead of buying tickets and sleeping on the overnight bus, we bought tickets for the first bus the next morning at 5:30am and spent the night on the wood benches in the covered, open air, bus terminal in Bluefields Nicaragua. I hate this town.
Besides a quick nap by me, we stayed awake all night and the time went quickly, and at 5:30am we left Bluefields, FOREVER. After a couple good naps, I am finishing this post on the bus back to Managua.
Life is good!