Our own private island...

Icacos, Puerto Rico


We ended up on Captain Mingo’s boat bound for the small isle of Icacos completely by chance. 

We began the day bound for Culebra, Puerto Rico.  The small island off of PR’s east coast is known among locals as having the most beautiful beaches in Puerto Rico. 



Leaving Guayama and heading east at 6:45am, we were graced with a breathtaking sunrise over the ocean.  Getting up early on a Saturday isn’t so bad with a reward like this. 



We arrived in Fajardo to purchase our ferry tickets at 8:00am. 
We were too late.

The 9:00am ferry for Culebra was sold out, and the next one didn’t leave until 1:00pm.
We got into line for the ferry to Vieques instead.



The 9:30 ferry for Vieques sold out.  The next one didn’t leave until 3:00pm. 

We stepped out of the line, resigned to visit the less-magnificent (but still nice) beach at Luquillo instead, since it was only a 15 minute drive away.

Fortunately, Rachel had a better idea. 
With the help of the internet on Danielle’s phone (not the first time that’s come in handy), she googled the phone number of Captain Mingo, who has a small yellow boat that he uses to take people to neighboring islands.

We called him up, and the conversation went something like this:
        “Hi, can you take five people to Icacos today?  …Umm…9:00?  9:15?  Okay…we’ll see you soon then!”  Cost was $25 per person (more expensive than the ferry to Culebra or Vieques and the ride was much shorter…but we also had our own private boat to take us there and pick us up whenever we wanted).

Approximately half an hour later, the five of us were aboard Mingo’s boat, “Punta Brava,” bound for the tiny island of Icacos. 



The day was gray when we got there, but soon the sun came out, letting us marvel in the absolute beauty and tranquility of the island.

Though deserted when we arrived just before 10am, the beach soon filled up with catamarans taking tourists on snorkeling tours.  And by 1pm, they left…and the beach was ours again. 

Deserted...

Not so much.

Sitting on the beach and relaxing in the sunshine, it was the type of day that made me think to myself, “Why would I ever want to move away from Puerto Rico, again?” 





On the way back to Fajardo, Mingo even let Danielle drive the boat.  A rather perfect ending to the day.  


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