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PUERTO RICO | San Juan, Puerto Rico Travel Guide
Saturday, April 20, 2024
7 Of 7
El Cañuelo, The Isla de Cabras Peninsula and Caparra
El Cañuelo & The Isla de Cabras Peninsula
The long western lip at the mouth of the San Juan Bay, Isla de Cabras (Goats Island), and the little fort of El Cañuelo formed a crucial part of the defense of the city during Spanish rule. Originally built of wood in the late 1500s, El Cañuelo was briefly occupied by the Dutch in 1625. Afterward, realizing the importance of the location, the Spanish built a small masonry fort that today stands abandoned. Cannon fire from El Cañuelo and El Morro caught enemy ships in a deadly crossfire that effectively removed the threat of sea attack on San Juan. To reach Isla de Cabras from downtown San Juan, take Carr. 165 past the federal prison to Carr. 180 (just west of the Bacardí Rum Distillery). You may smell noxious fumes as you pass a thermo-electrical plant and a detergent manufacturer, before reaching the Cañuelo Recreation Area, which is nothing more than a couple of forlorn picnic areas and decrepit basketball courts with rusting, netless hoops. A fenced-off police post and a couple dozen mangy stray dogs inhabit the end of the peninsula. The square edifice of El Cañuelo (there is no entrance) abuts the water, surrounded by trash and tangles of old fishing line. This depressing scene is offset by a gorgeous view across the bay. Nearby, a few local fishermen on a rock jetty cast their lines – wistfully it seems – over the water toward stately El Morro and the cheerful buildings of Old San Juan.
Caparra
The last tourist site in the San Juan area was the first settlement established by Juan Ponce de León upon arrival to Puerto Rico in 1508. It’s as unlikely a destination for travelers today as it was for the capital of the island 500 years ago. Ponce de León and his small band of settlers lasted three years on this swampy hole in what is now Guaynabo before malaria and Indian attacks forced them to relocate to present day Old San Juan. Unearthed in 1936, the remains of the site are little more than a few foundations of original buildings – a footnote to the island’s history located in one of its most featureless and most commercial areas – on Km. 6.6 of Hwy. 2. A small museum has a few Taino Indian artifacts and is open irregularly. Entrance to the site is free, but call ahead to make sure it’s open.
Last updated November 26, 2007
Posted in Puerto Rico | San Juan
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