Not Bluffing About El Bluff in Bluefields, Nicaragua

Greetings,

I’m on Bluff Island or peninsula rather that is becoming an island is best known for handling limited cargo, boat repairs and hosts a basic pier. It is a 15 minute ferry aka speedboat ride from Bluefields, Nicaragua. Bluefields has an interesting history and was named after a famous Dutch pirate named Abraham Blauvelt who hung out in the Rio Escondido and is Nicaragua’s largest port. Recommend you read the history and not somewhere your average SHABL reader would want to pass time. El Bluff is somewhere I didn’t know existed until I ended up here.

If you’re making your way to the Corn Islands by bus and boat, you’ll end up here to catch a ferry to the Corn Islands from El Bluff. Our ferry leaves at 3AM tomorrow night so we’re holding up here until then. There is nothing really going on here whatsoever from what I can see except a place to catch the ferry to Big Corn Island.

Have met some interesting characters and the gent posted below met us at the dock. He’s legit and will help you find the only hotel on the island from what I’m gathering. He speaks perfect English and Spanish and be sure to reward him for his expertise.

The trip from Managua to the Corn Islands so far has been quite the adventure. If you’re a vacationer on a limited time frame, just take the plane. If you’ve got lots of time and looking for an adventure with a purpose, the way I’ve gone is recommended. The fast boat trip in a panga from El Rama on the Rio Escondido is similar to the Mekong fast boat experience only shorter and more comfortable. There is one road from El Rama to Bluefields and not always open all year, no buses run it.

Will update full once on the Corn Islands, a local lady is making us a fish curry of sorts and it’s almost done. This is truly a “you’ll never know unless you go” type moment. Besides the bus, we took a speed boat for 1.45 hours from Rama to Bluefields, quite the experience as the driver is swerving through massive driftwood the entire way. Below is the crew I’m traveling with.

More on everything when I arrive on Big Corn the day after tomorrow…

Tips hat,