Page 13 - AHATA

Tuesday 10 January 2023 LOCAL
A10

Don’t forget to visit Aruba’s famous Red Anchor

At the south east coast indicate the way to Baby fully laden VLCC (Very cut the chain and let the “To All Seamen” on the
of the island, standing Beach. Once you reach Large Crude Carrier) anchor go to the bottom occasion of the closing
alone on a windswept the T-junction, it will be was seeking a mooring because they could not of the Lago Oil Refinery
and barren land stands right in front of you. at the 15-mile anchor- untangle them. ” on March 31, 1985.
a popular Aruba land- age, known as Bara, on
mark – a large anchor. About the Anchor the southern part of the How Did The Anchor Be- Through the Years
It overlooks the sea just Size island. This is the usual come a Landmark? Through the years the An-
beyond, watching over It will be hard to miss the shallow mooring location Sometime between 1980 chor was slowly weather-
the shipping lanes. It anchor, it’s huge! The an- for ships awaiting orders, and 1985, three gentle- ing from the wind and
stands there in memory chor that weighs 21,772 etc. The weather was men (Mr. Wim Martinus salt. As time passed, sad-
and in honor of all sea- kilos, is approximately 10 rough with strong cur- – the Harbormaster of ly the origin and purpose
men who have lost their feet 6 inches wide and rent. The normal proce- Aruba; Mr. August Gens- of the anchor slowly fad-
life at sea. 15 feet, 6 inches tall. dure is that they would er – the ex-Division Su- ed away from people’s
On the anchor there are walk out three shackles perintendent of Lago’s memories.
Where to Find the An- some numbers. The 4112 (about 90 feet) until the Laboratory; and Mr. Wil-
chor? and 4115, which are be- anchor touches the bot- lie Davis – Owner of Filtec After Charles Brouns Jr
The anchor is a “must lieved to be the serial tom while the chain must at Zeewijk in San Nico- died on September 15,
see” landmark when you numbers that refer to the rest on the bottom. Sub- las), were having a con- 2004, his friend Mr. Sam
visit Aruba. It is among “fluke” or horizontal and sequently, they will walk versation with Mr. Charlie Speziale, requested assis-
the most photographed vertical parts of the an- out some extra shackles Brouns Jr. at his famous tance from the manage-
historical landmarks for chor, respectively. The and when the ship starts Charlie’s Bar and Restau- ment of Valero Aruba
the island. You want to number 21772K refers to to swing or lean on one rant in San Nicolas. Char- Refinery to help main-
make sure you add this the weight of the anchor side, the anchor is prop- lie, who was a visionary tain the monument. The
stop on your itinerary in kilos. erly set. Because of the and had dreams for de- Valero Aruba Refinery,
when your visiting the This type of anchor rough weather, unfor- veloping the San Nicolas graciously sandblasted
south coast of Aruba. was manufactured tunately they did not area, told these gentle- and painted the anchor
The bright red anchor by Hoesch Dortmund get the time to walk out men that he would like and poured a concrete
against the backdrop Horde, at a foundry lo- the extra tackles and to come up with some- pad around it. On April
of the deep blue Carib- cated in Germany. because of the tension thing innovative for the 17, 2005, the anchor
bean sea and the azure exerted on the winch, it San Nicolas area to draw monument was rededi-
blue skies, make a great Where did the Anchor broke, and they lost the tourism to the area. cated “To All Seamen”
backdrop for your vaca- Come From? anchor and its chain.“ in a formal ceremony
tion pictures. There are a number of The “anchor”, which in memory of Charles
stories as to the origins of Story 2: at that time was being Brouns Jr.
The anchor is located at the anchor, which one “Mr. Curiel also said that stored at the Oranjestad
the entrance to Gate 6 do you think it was? (Un- at one time a small tank- harbor, was suggested Today, the anchor stands
to the former Lago Colo- fortunately the mystery er with a Korean crew, as an option. Charlie both as memorial to all
ny. It is on the outskirts of has never been solved, while lifting their anchor liked the idea! He then seaman who have lost
Seroe Colorado, on the so your imagination can also lifted another an- contacted the President their lives at sea, but also
south east point of the pick which one you think chor near the inner har- of Lago for permission to as a silent reminder that
island at the “T” junction it might be!) bor. When the ship asked acquire the anchor. He Seroe Colorado is part of
to Baby Beach. Story 1: for assistance, he went was granted permission San Nicolas and that San
Depending on where “According to Mr. Man- with his tugboat along and the anchor was then Nicolas is still a vibrant
you are staying on the is- uel M. Curiel, an ex- with a barge, to help. But relocated to its present and important part of
land, follow the signs that Lago Tug Captain, a eventually they had to location and dedicated the island of Aruba.

The Best Time to Visit
When your planning your
visit to the south end of
the island, you will want
to include in your itiner-
ary the many things to
see and do there. The
anchor will be just one
of these stops, (keep an
eye out for our future edi-
tions, we publish our rec-
ommendations!).

With that being said, I
have to say, if you enjoy
catching a sunrise, the
anchor is one of the best
places on the island to
catch the sunrise. But in
reality, anytime is a good
time to visit, depend-
ing on your personal
schedule.q