29-Nov-2019 -- This report is the 7th out of nine reports reaching or attempting confluence points during my 2-week bicycle trip around Cuba. The story starts at 21°N 76°W and continues from 22°N 79°W.

After spending the night in the city of Sagua la Grande (24 km from the confluence), I set off from my hotel at 6:30 AM and cycled a pleasant, asphalted road without traffic to the village Isabela de Sagua (6 km from the confluence). Due to the embargo, there is currently hardly any gasoline available, such that most of the traffic consists of horse carriages.

Isabella is a poor town with wooden houses and a view historic cars. There are also some nice restaurants serving seafood.

This confluence is located on an unhabituated island 6km from the confluence. Since the village is touristic and has a harbour with fishing boats, I was quite confident to find someone to bring me to the island. But Cuba is complicated: The fisherman would love to earn some money with touristic cruises, but they would need a permit to do so first. I went to the official “Marina”, who had very nice yachts, to enquire permission, but I was turned down: the Marina was new and not yet able to organise touristic cruises. The problem was that the archipelago is officially border area and entering that zone requires permission by the police. So, I went to the police / military department who turned me down as well.

Now it was the right time to give up. Tail winds took me quickly back to Sagua la Grande. I reached the town before 9 AM, such that I still could enjoy my hotel breakfast. I ended this cycling day in Corralillo (in the Spa Hotel Elguea), which is a good starting point for the next unvisited confluence point.

CP Visit Details:

• Distance to a road: 6020 m
• Distance to a track: 6020 m
• Distance to a footpath: 6020 m
• Distance of bicycle parking: 6020 m
• Time to reach the point of return from Sagua la Grande: 1 hour
• Time at the turn around: 7:29 AM
• Measured height: -4 m
• Minimal distance according to GPS: 6020 m
• Position accuracy: 23 m
• Topography: flat
• Vegetation: probably forest
• Weather: mostly sunny, 24° C (felt temperature)
• Given Name: The Noboat Confluence

The story continues at 23°N 81°W.

More pictures of the trip can be found here.

On a small islet a couple of kilometers off the Cuban mainland.