The eight-person delegation was out on a mission to explore firsthand what this destination has to offer visitors so that the region can commence promoting interesting places in Region Two.
It was the perfect morning to visit the Lower Pomeroon region as it was on a brisk Monday morning and the busiest day of the week at Charity. This is usually the day when farmers living on the Pomeroon river would travel to Charity and do business by selling their produce in very large quantities which would then be transported to Anna Regina, Parika and as far as the Capital City of Georgetown. The morning was well seasoned with a mix of very busy traffic, food vendors, school children in their brightly coloured uniforms, coloured vegetables and provisions in huge amounts resting on the wharf which farmers use. The atmosphere is a classic reminder of the sweet feeling of country life.
A view of Charity’s Wharf
We awaited Keiron for a few minutes, our boat captain, very cool fellow: tall, slim, light-skinned, low voiced, smartly dressed, polite and very intelligent. As the crew prepared to enter the speed boat owned by Keiron, I observed intently the Pomeroon river which plays an important role in producing so much food for our Country. The speed boat was freshly painted in white (interior) and blue (exterior). The engine is a 175 Horse Power Yamaha and it was surprisingly very quiet for the speed it produced. We equipped ourselves with life-jackets after entering the speed boat and proceeded to Lower Pomeroon.
- Vilma Da Silva
Coincidentally Keiron’s Mother, Vilma, met us on the wharf at Charity and decided to go with us on the ride as we were nonetheless visiting her farm as one of the planned places to visit on our trip. She is a super friendly person with a glamourous smile, very chatty, about five feet tall, very plump, flamboyant voice and passionate about her farm. She had on one of those basket hats and her apparel was simple but elegant: flat shoes, black leggings, long sleeve blue & white shirt that graced her light-brown complexion and jet white eyes that steered sharply through the lens of her eye glasses. The journey was 18 minutes to her farm even though we stopped temporarily as Keiron explained to us how the canals are drafted to create linkages to different areas.
The Pomeroon River is the deepest river in Guyana with an average depth of 60 feet but some parts can go deeper than 90 feet. Vilma’s business is named Henvil Farm (we didn’t see any hens though (smiles)) and her home on the corner of the Pomeroon River is nothing short of spectacular. As we came out of the speed boat I couldn’t help but notice how well kept the compound was and the many beautiful trees which surrounded the front of her house and next to the wharf. We walked through her main entrance which had vines with flowers overhead and of course a welcome sign. By this point we felt her warm hospitality as she herself set out to give us a tour of her massive farm. Her house is towards the front of the compound but despite the fact that we didn’t go sightseeing inside of it the outside was very impressive with its vibrant vanilla ice cream colour and concrete curly steps with white metal rails. After passing her house we set out to the farm and the sight was a pleasure to our eyes. There were huge farm beds neatly laid out on both sides of the dam and covered a very lengthy trek which we had to cover by foot. The dam had canals on both sides which makes it easy to traverse the entire farm via boat. Vilma asked us if we want to go for a walk through her farm and after we happily said yes we proceeded. The atmosphere was extremely calm and the air was vivaciously fresh which made the farm all the more pleasant. There were countless coconut trees on both sides of the farm, oranges, five fingers, golden apples, bananas, tangerine, “white lady” guava, cherries, pomegranate and plum. We sampled as much of these fruits as we could since there was somehow an adrenaline rush to taste them fresh off the trees as they looked so ripe and made us feel as if we were in the garden of Eden.
Vilma told us that her coconuts produce 1 to 2 bunches of coconut per month all year round on her 88 acres’ farm which has been kissed by heaven and blessed with incredible fertility.
You will be very lucky if you get a chance to meet Vilma as she is usually very busy with her business activities on a daily basis. More than likely, her farm Manager will be there to take you around the farm. We took away some huge eddoes which they gave us to take back.
Adel’s Resort
As we continued on our expedition we next stopped at Adel’s Resort in Akawinni Creek which is a tributary off the Pomeroon River. This time we met a 60-acre Resort with a freshwater creek that is perfect for a good swim to cool down. We were met with some of the fiercest looking dogs at the wharf of the resort but after the caretaker gave us a little intro to them they immediately became our friends and guided us around the compound. As we stepped out of the boat we immediately (literally) felt the definition of the word “peace”! This location is very quiet (with the lone exception of the birds that navigate and feast off the fruits in the compound) and it has the potential to restore a lost mind!
Our adrenaline rush started again as we crossed over a colourful little bridge to enter the main building of the resort which was resourcefully constructed with simplicity but beautiful detailing. Our guide showed us the beautiful self-contained bedrooms in the lower and upper flat and the view of the creek from the upper flat was quite amazing.
View from Upper Flat
It took us about 15 minutes to travel from Henvil Farm to Adel’s Resort and it was time for some more savor for our tongues as we were pampered with some snacks brought from Lake Mainstay Resort which we demolished with some fresh coconut water. The compound is dressed beautifully with an abundance of flowering plants and fruit trees which we explored and enjoyed.
Roosters Coconut Farm
After that thrilling stop at Adel’s it was time for us to venture over to Roosters Coconut farm which is not far from each other. The language on this location was simple: COCONUTS! As we came off the boat the atmosphere was nothing short of striking. The landscape was beautiful with well-organized beds and neatly laid out coconut trees everywhere. There are also some charming little houses on the farm for maintenance workers and harvesters. We had the chance to see the best looking coconut trees and the most uniquely shaped tree which had a complete curled neck and was almost impossible to begin to imagine how that happened.
There were neatly laid out trenches which helps to irrigate the farms since coconut trees consume a lot of water. There were some coconut trees which were planted to produce coconuts 18 months afterwards. Others were planted and expected to produce 3 years after and some up to 5 years after. We discovered that the ones that would produce early were small nuts but the ones that would produce after 5 years were extremely large in size and the nuts contained a lot of water. The estate is used to obtain and sell bottled coconut water and the name of this brand is “Roosters Coconut Water”.
This is by far the largest coconut plantation in the Pomeroon district and the most profitable one. The well maintained complex is nothing short of amazing with its huge expanses and detailed layout. The cleanliness of the farm shows how hard-working the labourers are in making sure weed is kept away and also any foreign materials.
After sampling some of the sweetest coconut water we have ever had all our lives that was a grand ending to a fantastic day discovering this unique location of our beautiful Country!
Overhead of Rooster’s Coconut Farm