There are two Roatans. One of them is a third world island in the sun
where there is a large fishing fleet. There are piles of junk and litter. Locals live in shacks and little kids run around in
the dirt with stray dogs. The other Roatan is for the tourists, especially scuba diving types. It features manicured beaches,
clean surroundings and air conditioned rooms. The island itself is beautiful, with deep bays and fringing coral reefs. Lush tropical
vegetation etc. We visited four places here.
Hole In The Wall is nestled in a deep cove in the eastern part of the island and is the home of the expat cruisers who live in the area.
Every Sunday they have an all-you-can-eat dinner which is very well attended. For eight dollars, you get steak, lobster, vegetables and
desert. They serve strong drinks and cheap beer, and a trio of folk musicians. Here we met interesting cruisers and enjoyed the beautiful
setting.
French Cay, further west, was a calm anchorage next to a nice resort called Fantasy Island. The resort let us have use of their facilities which inluded
a pool, showers, snorkel beach, swim beach, restaurant, dinghy dock, and laundry. The area was adjoined by French Harbor, a filthy
lagoon where the water smelled of sewage and trash lined the shore. The French Harbor Yacht Club is the only place in French Harbor that is
pretty, clean and well-maintained.
The West End is the tourist area with the nicest beaches. There is a small town where discos provide loud music
until very late at night.
Cayos Cochinos, about 20 miles south of Roatan, was quite, with better diving and snorkeling. Only a few people live here. After
a few days here, we motored over to La Ceiba where we hauled the boat ot of the water to paint the bottom. During the five-day project
we stayed in a nice hotel with t.v. and air conditioning. We sanded and primed the bottom before applying two coats of anti-fouling paint.
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