Isla South Region, Puerto Rico

A Vertical Aquaponic Eco Farming Project in PR

Or as I’ve nick-named it- “The Tryon Project”,
after it’s creator, Mr. Richard Tryon.

I had the great privilege of meeting Mr. Tryon and his wife where he gave me (and me 1st Mate) the big tour and back-story of his Santa Isabel pilot project.

We got there just as a van full of college students were leaving. That’s not Recao, but Cilantro he’s holding up. Very polite dude, BTW.

This article is somewhat of a departure from my usual travel material, but I like it because it shows off some of the more interesting projects being done in Puerto Rico. Especially any effort to help create self-suffecient, self-relient individuals like me-self… ARRG! I also thought Puerto Ricans on the mainland would be interested in this as well. So here’s what I got. [Read more…] about A Vertical Aquaponic Eco Farming Project in PR

A Little Side Trip on the South Side

Or, Shopping in Ponce & the Slow Road Home

The area along the south coast between Ponce and Salinas is very relaxed. Not many tourists make it out this way. Highway 1 meanders near the coast, sometimes right up by the beach. If you have the time, I really recommend it. It stretches from Guayama in the southeast, all the way to Ponce. I’ve done it several times now. The area is primarily agriculture. Papaya, banana and palm groves are spread out all over this region.

Remnants of the old sugar mills are everywhere. [Read more…] about A Little Side Trip on the South Side

TROPIC VENTURES, A True Borinquen Vibe

& Sustainable Rainforest Enrichment Project

I stumbled onto the Tropic Ventures Web site while trying to track down local sources for live Bamboo shoots. Bamboo is great for controlling surface water erosion, but grows like a weed (It is a grass, after all). Among other activities, Tropic Ventures offers a walking tour and a home cooked gourmet lunch for $20. That sounded like a deal so I wanted to check them out.

The group’s ‘mission objective’ as quoted from their Web site:

“The project’s mission is to demonstrate the economic use of rain forest land using methods that do not destroy the forest ecology.”

Their black and white brochure introduced
me to a new word-
Silviculture.

Per Wikipedia: “Silviculture is the practice of controlling the establishment, growth, composition, health, and quality of forests to meet diverse needs and values of the many landowners, societies and cultures.”

A Spanish idea. OK… I like that. I’m no tree-hugger, but I do support and expect the responsible management of renewable resources. Otherwise, they are not technically renewable if we use them up. Time for new management. [Read more…] about TROPIC VENTURES, A True Borinquen Vibe

San Juan Photo & Social Club, Woohoo!

A ‘Meetup’ group made for folks like me

Before I took off on my first trip to Puerto Rico, I looked online to see if there were any ‘Meetup’ groups there. If you are not familiar with them, they are simply small groups or clubs of like minded folks. Any theme or idea can be the basis for a Meetup. There were a bunch in Alaska and thousands of them all over the US. Not so many outside the US. Well, as luck would have it, there IS a Photo Meetup group in PR (based in San Juan). I finally had the opportunity to meet these folks and spend the day shooting in and around Ponce (on my side of the island).

I have a lot of experience with non-profit volunteer organizations via my involvement with the JayCees. At one time, the JayCees were very popular in Alaska. Anyway, I learned a long time ago to keep expectations to a minimum… That I could not expect more than I was willing to contribute and that making time to participate has a direct effect on the group’s success.

I was pleasantly surprised with the SJ [Read more…] about San Juan Photo & Social Club, Woohoo!

Arroyo, PR… ‘Pueblo Grato’ (Grateful Town)

The Old Sugar Mills & Plantations of PR, Part 3

As mentioned in my 2 previous posts, the area in South East PR was home to the last Sugarcane haciendas (plantations) and sugar mills.

If Guayama was the epicenter of this climatic chapter in PR’s history, then Arroyo was its ‘port of call’ on the coast. The commercial port at Aguirre Central did not come into being until the early 1930’s.

The ‘Welcome to Arroyo’ sign is a sculpture commemorating buccaneers of the sea and days gone by.

Profiteering & smuggling were very much a part of its past!

As per the last post, we were there on a Thursday. It was hot and humid but there was a little bit of a breeze down by the sea. That did take the edge off the +90F heat.

Arroyo is a sleepy little town about 1/4 the size of Guayama. It was formally founded on Christmas day, 1855, but was a Spanish settlement long before that. Its always been a popular rest stop on the way to other destinations. However, Arroyo has a checkered past. Legend has it, that a ship wrecked individual washed up at Arroyo. They thought he had Cholera so they tossed him back into the sea. At the time, Cholera was widespread across the island. Another story claims a local known for his generosity, came down with Bubonic plague and was reportedly burned alive to protect its citizens. It was known back then as ‘Pueblo Ingrato’. These events have haunted Arroyo ever since. Hence its desire to clean up its reputation and declare itself, Pueblo Grato.