Paseo Tablado La Guancha (
English
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English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
: ''La Guancha Boardwalk'') is a
boardwalk
A boardwalk (alternatively board walk, boarded path, or promenade) is an elevated footpath, walkway, or causeway built with wooden planks that enables pedestrians to cross wet, fragile, or marshy land. They are also in effect a low type of bridge ...
in the La Guancha sector of the
Playa barrio
''Barrio'' () is a Spanish language, Spanish word that means "Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter" or "neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city, usually delimited by functional (e.g. residenti ...
in the city of
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Ponce (, , , ) is both a city and a municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.
Ponce, Puerto Rico's most populated city outside the San Juan metropolitan area, was founded on 12 August 1 ...
, facing the
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...
. It was built under the mayoral administration of
Rafael Cordero Santiago
Rafael Cordero Santiago (24 October 1942 – 17 January 2004), better known as "Churumba", was the Mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico, Ponce, Puerto Rico, from 1989 to 2004. Many considered him as a synonym of Ponce, being baptized as "El León Mayor ...
,
Mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
of Ponce from 1989 to 2004, at a cost of 2.6 million dollars, and inaugurated on 23 June 1998. It receives over 750,000 visitors a year. In September 2017 the boardwalk was damaged by
Hurricane Maria
Hurricane Maria was a deadly Saffir–Simpson scale#Category 5, Category 5 Tropical cyclone, hurricane that devastated the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly Dominica, Saint Croix, and Puerto Rico. It is regarded as the wo ...
and the area closest to the water was fenced off and off-limits to the public, but the rest of the facilities continued to operate uninterrupted. In January 2020, however, while still fenced off from the 2017 hurricane damage, the boardwalk—together with its adjoining recreational complex—closed when the area suffered severe damage from the
2020 Puerto Rico earthquakes and, as of 17 June 2020, it remained closed. By late 2020 arrangements were made for the merchants that operated from waterfront kiosks to reopen their businesses out of provisional facilities at a temporary location away from the waterfront while reconstruction of the waterfront area takes place.
Description and amenities
The Paseo Tablado La Guancha is located in Ponce's sea shore. Built in the 1990s, the boardwalk overlooks the
Club Náutico de Ponce
The Club Náutico de Ponce (''Ponce Yacht and Fishing Club'') is a yacht club in Ponce, Puerto Rico. The club is located contiguously on Isla de Gatas, near the La Guancha recreational and cultural area, and next to the Port of Ponce.
The co ...
and has many restaurants and bars. It also has
kiosk
Historically, a kiosk () was a small garden pavilion open on some or all sides common in Iran, Persia, the Indian subcontinent, and in the Ottoman Empire from the 13th century onward. Today, several examples of this type of kiosk still exist ...
s which sell food and alcoholic beverages. "It's basically a boardwalk filled with many different local eateries. They mostly sell delicious 'fritters', like what we call 'bacalaitos', or fried cod fish
urnovers There are also 'empanadillas', which are basically fried meat- or cheese-filled turnovers. Apart from the food, the boardwalk is a great place to relax and take a light stroll. At one end of the boardwalk there is a lookout tower, giving an elevated view of La Guancha. You can see many big
tarpon
Tarpons are fish of the genus ''Megalops''. They are the only members of the family Megalopidae. Of the two species, one (''M. atlanticus'') is native to the Atlantic, and the other (''M. cyprinoides'') to the Indo-Pacific Oceans.
Species a ...
s. These are not the prettiest, and do something really weird with their mouths once in a while. Just outside the boardwalk there are fun playgrounds for kids and a cool arcade. Ponce's beach is very near the boardwalk, you can even walk to it." There is also a marina where visitors can rent
pedal boats and
kayak
A kayak is a small, narrow watercraft which is typically propelled by means of a double-bladed paddle. The word kayak originates from the Greenlandic word ''qajaq'' ().
The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each se ...
s to explore the bay, an open-space stage for social and other similar activities, and an observation tower from where the
Cardona Island Light
Cardona Island Light (also known as Faro del Puerto de Ponce or Cayo Cardona Light) is the only 6th order lighthouse in Puerto Rico with a cylindrical attached tower. The light is located on Cardona Island, a small island on the west side of th ...
house can be seen. A 45-minute boat ride is also available to
Caja de Muertos
Caja de Muertos (; also in English: ''Coffin Island'') is an uninhabited island off the southern coast of Puerto Rico, in the municipality of Ponce. The island and its surrounding waters are protected by the Caja de Muertos Nature Reserve, beca ...
, a small island that features the 1887
Caja de Muertos Light
Caja de Muertos Light, (''Faro de la Isla de Caja de Muertos'') is an 1887 lighthouse in Ponce, Puerto Rico, that is unique amongst all other lighthouses in Puerto Rico for its unusual Cross of Lorraine, double-arm, T-type shape structure. The ...
house and
several beaches.
Atmosphere
The Paseo Tablado La Guancha is a good place to mingle with local ''Ponceños''. Some visitors simply contemplate the water and relax while catching a cool breeze. During weekends it becomes livelier, with much live
salsa music
Salsa music is a style of Latin American music. Because most of the basic musical components predate the labeling of salsa, there have been many controversies regarding its origin. Most songs considered as salsa are primarily based on son montun ...
and large crowds. Except for Mondays and Tuesdays, the boardwalk is usually quite a lively place and great for people-watching.
Recent developments
In September 2017, the boardwalk was damaged by
Hurricane Maria
Hurricane Maria was a deadly Saffir–Simpson scale#Category 5, Category 5 Tropical cyclone, hurricane that devastated the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly Dominica, Saint Croix, and Puerto Rico. It is regarded as the wo ...
.
On 7 January 2020 La Guancha was damaged and made inoperable by a
6.4 magnitude earthquake so that twenty-four establishments in the area had to shut down their operations.
''Cierre indefinido en La Guancha en Ponce.''
Michelle Estrada Torres. Voces del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 8 January 2020. Accessed 11 January 2020.
See also
*Complejo Recreativo y Cultural La Guancha
The Complejo Recreativo y Cultural La Guancha (English: ''La Guancha Recreational and Cultural Complex'') is a recreational complex in barrio Playa (Ponce), Playa in Ponce, Puerto Rico, with family recreational and cultural facilities that open ...
References
Further reading
* Fay Fowlie de Flores. ''Ponce, Perla del Sur: Una Bibliográfica Anotada.'' Second Edition. 1997. Ponce, Puerto Rico: Universidad de Puerto Rico en Ponce. p. 13. Item 65.
* Nelson Garcia. "Origen del Nombre de La Guancha." ''La Perla del Sur.'' Ponce, Puerto Rico. 23-30 enero 1996. p. 37.
{{Ponce, Puerto Rico, state=collapsed
Tourist attractions in Ponce, Puerto Rico
Buildings and structures in Ponce, Puerto Rico
Restaurant districts and streets
1998 in Puerto Rico
1998 establishments in Puerto Rico
Barrio Playa