MARINA PUESTA DEL SOL

Latitude: 12’ 37.27 N

Longitude: 87’21.55 W (Marina)

This attractive anchorage is home to Nicaragua’s first ever full-service marina, located one mile inside Estero Aserradores and 14 miles north of Corinto. No expense has been spared; Marina Puesta Del Sol, located in a beautiful sheltered tropical lagoon, has a welcoming atmosphere with five stars in order.

To enter Marina Puesta Del Sol, you must first arrive at a red and white ocean buoy at GPS waypoint 12’36.46 N by 087’ 21.94 W. The ocean buoy is precisely one mile from the entrance channel.

If arriving from the south, be sure to clear the surf line to your right or starboard. If sailing in from the north, the same vigilance applies, keeping a lookout for breaking surf to your left or port side as depicted on the charts. Once you arrive at the ocean buoy, you can set a course of 70 degrees magnetic for one mile until arriving at the well-marked entrance channel to the estuary.

The depth at the entrance shallows out to 7.5 meters (25 feet), so expect some swell upon crossing the bar. There is a maximum tidal range of 2.7 meters (9 feet). It is important that you arrive at the entrance at high slack tide to minimize the current in the channel. Once across the bar, the channel’s red and green buoys will lead you to Marina Puesta Del Sol.

The marina has all the amenities cruisers could ever wish for, including 40 first class slips with 110v power, water, and cable TV. The clubhouse has hot water showers, laundry machines, internet/fax, and a full-service bar and restaurant. A new 140’ fuel dock recently opened providing clean and refined diesel and gasoline. There is also a pump-out station and yacht maintenance.

If Marina Puesta Del Sol is your first port of call in Nicaragua, polite and uniformed immigration and port captain officials are on site to handle efficient check in/out procedures. Immigration will issue each person aboard a tourist visa for US$7.00. Citizens from the USA are given a 90-day visa. Canadians receive 30 days. There is a one time fee of US$15.00 to bring the boat into the country. The port captain will request your zarpe from your previous port of call and issue you a national zarpe for $10. Cost per foot per day in the marina slip is US$.40 cents, water and electricity included. Vessels staying longer than 2 months are given a 25% discount. Moorings are US$5.00 per day regardless of boat length.

The nearest major town of Chinandega is 1 hour away by private vehicle over gravel / paved road. Buses depart daily for Chinandega from the small village of Aposentillo at 05:00 hrs, 08:00hrs and 16:00hrs. It takes an additional 30 minutes longer by bus than private vehicle and can be bumpy. Chinandega is a busy commercial trading town. The streets are filled with open markets and shops of every kind. There are several banks, internet cafes and supermarkets ideal for provisioning. In order to bus back to Puesta Del Sol from Chinandega, you need to go to “mercadito” near the central park. Buses leave the city at 09:00hrs – 12:40hrs – 15:00hrs daily destined for the village of Aposentillo. The marina is a 5-minute walk from Aposentillo.

Roberto Membreno, a soft-spoken gentleman in his youthful 70’s, is the visionary behind Nicaragua’s first marina. Though Robert has lived the past 6 decades in the United States, he was born in Nicaragua and has now returned to give something back.

The estuary of Aserradores is a pristine natural harbor with white sandy beaches, palm trees and volcanoes hovering in the distance. Winds are predominantly out of the east and northeast. Marina Puesta Del Sol is an ideal place to leave your boat for an extended period of time while traveling or visiting the many spectacular sights of Nicaragua. For those wishing to arrive by helicopter, there is a designated heliport at 12 degrees 37’.08 N 087 degrees 20’30 W.

For more information on Marina Puesta Del Sol, phone their Nicaraguan office at 011-505-276-0585 or U.S.A. office at 408-588-0017 email: mpuestadelsol@yahoo.com web: www.marinapuestadelsol.com

Eric Blackburn, S/V Chickadee

excerpted from “Cruising Central America”

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