 Guyana : Profile
The Guyana coast is characterised by shallow and muddy waters so care should be taken, although with the help of a cruising guide it makes a fascinating destination. An added attraction is that Guyana is outside the hurricane belt. Using the rivers to visit the interior takes you right into the heart of the Amazon rain forest. With Bartica now a Port of Entry, the River Essequibo makes a particularly attractive destination and is popular with visiting cruising yachts. The river Berbice is navigable for 100 miles (160 km) past the port of New Amsterdam and is also possible to take keeled boats up the rivers Pomeroon, Waini and Raima. The capital Georgetown is a dirty, bustling port with no facilities for yachts. On the right bank of the river Demerara, the town has nineteenth century houses on stilts and boulevards built along disused Dutch canals. Seawalls and dykes protect the town, which is built on an alluvial flat area below the highwater mark. If electing to anchor in the Demerara River the yacht should not be left unattended. As in many South American countries, armed robbery and violent crime does occur. The UK Foreign Office recommend exercising caution when travelling in Guyana, however most visits are trouble-free. The local authorities have been working hard over the last few years to improve the security situation for visiting yachts and are keen to develop yachting tourism. The Official language is English (often with a creole flavour).
Georgetown is notorious for petty street crime. Do not walk alone at night, or even during the day.
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.
The climate is hot and humid, especially from August to October. The wet seasons are from April to August, and November to January. Guyana lies outside of the hurricane belt.
Guyana Weather Forecast
Bartica
*
, Georgetown
*
*Indicates a port of entry.
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Related ReportsAround the next Bend - a 7 month journey along the many rivers of Guyana and Venezuela (29 Sep 2010) Guyana Cruising Report - January 2010 (03 Feb 2010) Our Experience of Guyana (13 Mar 2009) Guyana - The Land of Many Waters. A new Cruising Destination/Hurricane Hole for Cruisers (19 Nov 2007) Venezuelan Rescue & Maritime Safety Organisation (01 Mar 2004) Related NewsGuyana – a safe haven for yachts (14 Sep 2010)
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