Colombia : Profile

Facts

Colombia has a coastline on both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea; most of the coastal development is on the Caribbean side, which has the large towns of Cartagena, Barranquilla and Santa Marta.
In spite of persistent reports about the danger of cruising in Colombian waters, because of the risk of being intercepted on the high seas by a drug-running vessel, a determined campaign by the US Coast Guard, whose vessels patrol the Caribbean Sea, has made this area into one of the safest in the world, with no reports of yachts being molested on the high seas, although many have been stopped, and even boarded, by a US Coast Guard vessel.
Most cruising boats visiting Colombia do so on their way from the Eastern Caribbean islands to the Panama Canal, while those heading in the opposite direction use Colombia as a convenient stepping stone in their battle with contrary winds and current.
While Cartagena is a popular landfall, and has excellent repair facilities, with a good boatyard, haul-out facilities and a complete range of services, the new modern marina at Santa Marta now provides a very attractive alternative.
There are also good repair facilities at Barranquilla with both haul-out and repair services, but the approaches to the port, which lies on the bank of the River Magdalena, are very difficult, Barranquilla is also considered a high security risk area.
The Colombian islands of Providencia and San Andres are visited by boats on their way north from Panama, and repair facilities and provisioning are good on San Andrés Island although more limited on Providencia.
Some of the cays and reefs further north, such as Serrana, Serranilla and Roncador also belong to Colombia, which maintains a military presence on these cays. Boats that have sought shelter there have been visited by the military, but have been allowed to stay.

Although the overall security situation in Colombia has improved considerably in recent years, the threat of terrorism is still high in some parts of the country. It is advisable to check a website such as the British Foreign Office before travelling inland. However, visits to major cities and other popular tourist destinations is not usually a problem.

SY Sarana have published a useful Colombia Cruising guide, which identifies areas in the country which are safe for cruising. Essentially the areas covered in the guide are still very secure and the inland areas (which the guide points out) have improved but are still not 100% stable.

See www.sailsarana.com/gbook/colombia.pdf for recommended safe anchorages as well as places to avoid.

It is suggested that sailors file a simple "float plan" and the necessary form and email address are included in the guide. In addition, new contact information for all the Pacific Military bases, with their email addresses, can be found in this guide.

The officer who is 2nd in command of the Colombian Pacific Naval Fleet, has extended the long standing offer for visiting yachts to use the mooring buoys at Isla Malpelo.

The Caribbean Safety and Security Net (safetyandsecuritynet@gmail.com) gather information by anchorage or by island, so sailors can plan their cruising in the Caribbean with an eye to appropriate behaviour and precautions wherever they decide to go. Should you have information about a security incident, as well as contacting Noonsite please also forward details to the Caribbean Safety and Security Net, as theirs is the most comprehensive source of Caribbean security incidents against sailors on the net. Please be sure to include boat name, date of incident and anchorage/port where the incident took place.

Updated December 2011.

Weather

The climate varies according to altitude, the coast being tropical, hot and humid. The NE trade winds cool the coast during the winter months, while the summer has much lighter winds. Hurricanes rarely reach as far south as Colombia.

Colombia Weather Forecast