Robinson Crusoe Island was renamed in 1966 to attract tourists. Originally, it was named Juan Fernandez Island after Juan Fernández, a Spanish sea captain and explorer who was the first to land there in 1574. It is "believed" to be the island on which the marooned sailor Alexander Selkirk resided from 1704 to 1709, and is thought to have inspired novelist Daniel Defoe's fictional Robinson Crusoe in his 1719 novel about the character (although the novel is explicitly set in the Caribbean, not in the Juan Fernández Islands).
The town is not very large and there is not much to do there, but they are know for their spiny lobster. The last census was in 2012 when they counted ~800 inhabitants. The island is very mountainous. There is an airport on the opposite side of the island (the only area with flat ground), but you have to take a boat to get to or from it.
Sarah had a 9:00 am zodiac cruise around the bay and Maria got up around 10:00 am. Sarah returned to the cabin about 11:00 and said she had a great time. The zodiac took them to an area full of fur seals who seemed to enjoy preforming for them. She stayed on board only long enough to change and then took off to catch the tender to go ashore and explore.
The day started off cool and cloudy, but before it was over, the sun came out and it was very nice indeed.
Maria and I got to shore about noon.
We walked up to the Patriot's Caves, where the political exiles were housed and where we ran into Sarah.
There is a very small fort on the bay. We walked to an elevation over looking it and could see its artillery pointing toward the bay.
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| Cumberland Bay |
The Patriot's Caves.
We walked around to the opposite side of the bay to the Lord Anson restaurant where we split a spiny lobster for lunch. Very good.
We made a friend who guarded us during lunch.
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| Lord Anson |
We walked back to the pier and caught a tender back to the ship.
Goodbye Robinson Crusoe Island!!
The next four days are at sea before we reach Easter Island.
