Las Isletas, a daytrip in Granada

WHAT: A (half)day trip in Granada, Nicaragua, to the scattered islands in the big lake

WHERE: About two km south from Parque Azul 

HOW LONG: You can choose how long you'd like to go. We opted for a two-hour boat ride

HOW MUCH: We paid $25,- for two persons for a private boat for two hours. We arranged it ourselves at 
the wharf at Santa Cruz, where the boats leave. Any taxi driver can take you there for $2-3 from the 
center of Granada 

Legend has it that when the Mombacho volcano erupted some thousands of years ago, it threw enormous rocks from its cone into the biggest lake of Central America: Lake Nicaragua. Hundreds of islands, both large and small, were born by then, straight in front of what is currently known as Granada.

The lake, also called Lago Cocibolca by the indigenous, is a freshwater one. It’s closer to the Pacific Ocean than the Caribbean, but nonetheless its rivers flow into the latter via Río San Juan. It was via this river that important trade routes were established centuries ago. But their existence brought some nasty developments too. Back in the days of piracy the islands became a hiding place for pirates that attacked Granada over and over again, to quench their thirst for gold. 

Nothing dark of that all nowadays. The sun shines bright as we enter the wharf where the boats are waiting for the tourists. Since it’s the afternoon already, many of their owners are just chilling on the shores. Boats usually hold up to 10 people, but because there are no other visitors as we enter the place we have the luxury to go with a private boat, with a pretty discount too. There’s a possibility as well by the way to rent kayaks, but if you’d like to see quite a couple of islands it’s better to go by boat. That way you can easily catch a glimpse of the immensity of the lake.

We learn quickly that not all of the islands are deserted, currently there’s a community of about 1200 people living across the area. Most of them are fishermen living a simple life, but in stark contrast many islands star some luxury properties too. They are privately owned by the wealthy elite of Nicaragua and abroad, for example the Flor de Caña family, who come to their houses in the weekend. Some of the properties are actually out for rent if you’re interested in throwing a nice party (check AirBnB in that case).  

For birdnerds the boat ride is a fun expedition too, since the birdlife around the islands is absolutely abundant. From the beginning onwards we spot a great amount of herons, parrots, cormorants, hawks, montezumas and many other birds.

The jungle houses some other animals too. We stop at the Isla de Los Monos (Monkey Island), were a couple of spider monkeys are king. You can hand them over some food if you want too, since their existence depends on the people around them, who feed them. Be careful though, they’re quite intelligent and like to jump in the boat. 

Golden hour already sets in when we go back. We see how the fishermen try to catch the last fishes of the day with the ever strong present Mombacha behind them. If you want to, you can have a swim in the lake. But be careful, apparently there are some bull sharks out there too that have adapted to the freshwater life, iehh!