Isla La Tortuga
Aerial view of Cayo Herradura over turquoise water

Map

Landmarks

La Tortuga's cays, points, beaches and lagoons, from west to east.

Image: Google Earth

La Tortuga and its cays, from west to east: the numbers on the map match the list.

Map of Isla La Tortuga and its caysIllustrated map of the coastline of La Tortuga, Los Tortuguillos, Cayo Herradura and Punta Delgada, with 13 numbered places.Isla La TortugaCaribbean SeaN04 km1Tortuguillo del Oeste2Tortuguillo del Este and its lagoon3Cayo Herradura4Cayo Herradura lighthouse5Los Palanquines6Punta de Ranchos ponds7Boca de Cangrejo Lagoon8Carenero Bay9Punta Salinas10Los Mogotes Lagoon11Punta Oriental12Punta Delgada13Playa CalderaMap: islalatortuga.com · data © OpenStreetMap contributorsMap of Isla La Tortuga and its caysIllustrated map of the coastline of La Tortuga, Los Tortuguillos, Cayo Herradura and Punta Delgada, with 13 numbered places.La TortugaCaribbean SeaN04 km12345678910111213Map: islalatortuga.com · data © OpenStreetMap contributors1Tortuguillo del Oeste2Tortuguillo del Este and its lagoon3Cayo Herradura4Cayo Herradura lighthouse5Los Palanquines6Punta de Ranchos ponds7Boca de Cangrejo Lagoon8Carenero Bay9Punta Salinas10Los Mogotes Lagoon11Punta Oriental12Punta Delgada13Playa Caldera
Map: islalatortuga.com · data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL)
  1. Tortuguillo del Oeste. The smaller of the two Tortuguillos, which almost touch.
  2. Tortuguillo del Este and its lagoon. Its lagoon is important for migrating shorebirds.
  3. Cayo Herradura. A horseshoe-shaped sand spit about 1,600 m long, with patches of low scrub and a calm inner beach that forms a bay. It is one of the most popular cays.
  4. Cayo Herradura lighthouse. The cay's lighthouse, a landmark for navigation.
  5. Los Palanquines. Shoals that form part of La Tortuga's group of cays.
  6. Punta de Ranchos ponds. Four seasonal saltwater ponds ringed by salt-tolerant plants such as Batis maritima and Salicornia.
  7. Boca de Cangrejo Lagoon. In the west of the island, it holds the most shorebirds in August and September.
  8. Carenero Bay. A bay on the south coast of the main island.
  9. Punta Salinas. Archaeological site of the Dutch saltworks, excavated in 1993, 2009 and 2010.
  10. Los Mogotes Lagoon. The only studied lagoon directly connected to the sea; it was the largest Dutch saltpan.
  11. Punta Oriental. The island's south-eastern point, beside Los Mogotes.
  12. Punta Delgada. The eastern tip of the island, also called Punta del Este, with two main beaches: Playa Caldera and Playa El Yaque.
  13. Playa Caldera. A tourist pier, a large sign spelling out "Venezuela" and an eco-tourism complex; it is the beach that gets the most direct swell.

More cays and beaches

Welcome sign at Playa Caldera with palms and a wooden boardwalk
Welcome sign at Playa Caldera. Photo: Baileymay17, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
Sources
  1. Wikipedia (es): «Isla La Tortuga». https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isla_La_Tortuga
  2. Marín Espinoza, G. et al. (2011). «Diversidad de aves playeras (Charadriiformes) asociadas a humedales de la isla La Tortuga y sus cayos». Boletín del Instituto Oceanográfico de Venezuela 50(1): 49–57. https://desarrollosustentableve.com/wp-content/uploads/Marin-et-al-2011-Diversidad-La-Tortuga.pdf
  3. GeoNames: nombres geográficos de Venezuela (VE). https://www.geonames.org/
  4. Antczak, A. et al. (2015). "Risky business: historical archaeology of the Dutch salt enterprise on La Tortuga Island, Venezuela (1624–38)". Post-Medieval Archaeology 49(2). https://doi.org/10.1080/00794236.2015.1124193
  5. OpenStreetMap contributors. https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright