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THE CARIBBEAN SECRET; Part 2

© Loren Armstrong

In the first installment of this article, we looked at some major features of four islands; Aruba, St. Thomas, St. Martin, and St. Lucia. In this week's installment, we are going to begin to compare Margarita to those islands.

COMPARATIVE FEATURES OF MARGARITA ISLAND

1. The island is actually two islands attached together by a very narrow point of land. The eastern section gradually becomes more 'green' or tropical in appearance as you travel eastward. The western part of the island is very much like the desert regions one would encounter in parts of the western United States, where the mountain ranges tower over cactus and brush covered plains. In some ways the western part resembles Aruba, but rather than having a single hill, that section of Margarita has many BEAUTIFUL and rugged mountains rising from 3000 to nearly 4000 feet.

2. Just like Aruba, Margarita has almost constant 15 to 20 mph winds blowing most of the year. It is for this reason that one of the beach areas of Margarita, Playa El Yaque, has become one of the most popular windsurfing beaches in the world.

3. Margarita Island is much larger than many of the Caribbean Islands. As a result, it has well over a hundred miles of beaches along its coastline. I am not including the many miles of rocky coast in that figure. MOST of the island's shoreline consists of very nice beaches. Some are better than others, but there are dozens of TOP NOTCH sites where you can wander the shores. If your choice is seclusion, you can surely find a spot with no human footprints. On the other hand, if your choice is to be part of the crowd, beaches such as Playa El Agua, Playa Caribe, Playa El Yaque, and others will fill the bill.

4. On the western end of the island, the Macanao peninsular features a natural bridge very similar to the one at Aruba. The main difference is you can easily take photos of it in its natural state, as it will not be covered with tourists arriving in hordes from the cruise ships.

5. Like St. Thomas, Margarita Island has MANY terrific vistas that one can view while on an island tour. Four that I especially recommend are:

(A) the view overlooking the Isla Bonita Resort on the north side of the island, (B) the tremendous view of most of the island from the top of La Sierra, accessed via a mountain road out of the town of La Ascuncion,

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