Swimming for Exercise on Culebra Island
Where can I swim for exercise on Culebra Island?
(The following is an answer to a reader question, and the continuation of two recent posts Running on Culebra and Biking on Culebra.)
There are no public pools on the island of Culebra, but if you’re like me and enjoy swimming for exercise, then this post should help a little bit.
On Culebra, of course, you are surrounded by water with many amazing beaches, however, trying to find a calm place to swim for exercise can sometimes be tricky during the winter. One of my favorite spots to swim from November to March is Tamarindo beach.
Typically Tamarindo is well protected from the north swells, and the predominant wind direction (NNE) this time of year does not affect conditions too adversely.
.32 Mile Swim (.16 each way) – Short Swim
When you arrive at Tamarindo beach if you start at the corner of the concrete structure shown below -
Walk into the water (Luis Pena will be directly across from you) and swim to the left following the coast line.
The green dot on the map below denotes the starting point and the red dot denotes the turning spot.
If you are not all that comfortable swimming for distance in the ocean, with this route you can get a nice little .32 mile swim (with the confidence of always being able to touch bottom) if you go all the way to the tree (shown below) and back to the starting point. Note, I usually try to keep a rock or two balanced on the trunk for easy identification.
.62 Mile – Long Swim
If you are looking for a bit more distance and have done the initial .16miles, you can swim from the turn tree (shown above) all the way down to the other end of Tamarindo. The green dot denotes the starting point and the red dot is the end, which is back at the initial concrete structure.
When you get down towards the other end of Tamarindo you want to sight for the ‘topless’ tree (see below) and when you are directly across from it you will turn and head back.
Should you happen to find yourself on Culebra Isalnd during the summer months, Flamenco beach makes a fabulous swimming venue and you can easily sneak in a full mile if you start at the second life guard tower and follow the coast down to the mullecito (.5 miles) and back again.
If you have any questions about swimming, biking, or running on Culebra get in touch with us here at the Palmetto Guesthouse.
Tamarindo Beach on Culebra Island « Culebra Blog | Culebra, Puerto Rico said,
Wrote on May 22, 2011 @ 3:46 am
[...] visiting Culebra Island, Puerto Rico if you like to swim for exercise then you should head to Tamarindo beach which is usually like a swimming [...]