9 Isla Caja de Muertos Adventures you will Love
Visiting the south coast of Puerto Rico? Coffin Island? Here are 9 Isla Caja de Muertos adventures you must experience. And they are suitable for all ages.
Our family sailed to Caja de Muertos, while exploring Puerto Rico and we absolutely loved it. Yes, even the teens! Un uninhabited island with a legend and sharks – bring it on.
Also known as Coffin Island, this gem in the Caribbean Sea is along the south coast of Puerto Rico, 8 miles off the city of Ponce. This Nature Reserve is home to unique and protected plants and wildlife. It is very easy to reach by boat.
Visit our post featuring other amazing anchorages we loved, while sailing in Puerto Rico:
6 Amazing Anchorages Along the South Coast of Puerto Rico
9 Isla Caja de Muertos Adventures you will Love
1. Enjoy the world-famous Pelican Beach
Pelican Beach is a relatively small beach, on the northern, protected side of the island. Soft sand, crystal clear water, with small waves make it perfect for children as well.
We walked on the beach, but living on a boat, we prefer to not to drag sand aboard, so jumping straight off the boat to cool off has always been more fun than lounging on the beach.
2. Have a picnic at the shaded gazebos
Right next to Pelican beach are a few gazebos, providing much needed and appreciated shade. Tables and chairs will help keep sand off of the food.
If you happen to be with family, or a group of friends, there are enough gazebos to even do a small special occasion celebration – how cool would that be!
3. Hike the whimsical cactus trail
Surprisingly, Coffin Island receives a very small amount of rain year-round. Due to its dry climate, certain unique and endangered plants have called it home for hundreds of years.
The cactus trail hike leads up to the light house. It was my favorite adventure on the island. The kids enjoyed it as well, with a sufficient amount of complaining along the way.
With relatively normal to fast walking pace, it takes at least 30min to hike to the top of the hill.
Good to know for the hike:
- Bring a large water bottle.
- Wear comfortable sandals.
- Wear a hat and cover your arms and legs – there is little shade.
- Some areas of the trail are tricky, with very prickly cacti around you.
- Avoid the sunset hours, when the bugs are most annoying.
5. Find the pirate’s cave
The island has its own amazing pirates’ story, but to prove that it was real – there is a real pirate’s cave.
It is right off of the cacti-lined trail, leading up to the light house. Due to the lack of maintenance, there is very thick vegetation around the area of the cave, and judging by the remnants of partying in the light house, I am not sure what might be resting inside the cave.
We did not go inside, but walked right by it. It is still unique enough to make it on my list of 9 Isla Caja de Muertos adventures you will love.
4. Explore the Light House
The light house is a historic landmark, and a must-do Isla Caja de Muertos adventure. The actual light house is a fun goal to reach, after a hot and steep hike.
The lack of proper maintenance makes the light house a bit uninviting to explore inside. The interior has seen its fair share of partying. Plenty of broken bottles, graffiti and other unpleasant garbage is to be found inside the light house.
Of course, our teens thought it was cool.
What you must do is take in the magical views from the top of the hill, on the small veranda right off of the light house. Both sides of Coffin Island can be seen from the top and the view alone is worth the hike.
6. Check out the Museum Ruins
There once used to be a large museum on Isla Caja de Muertos. It is completely abandoned with some old, broken cases and debris left over for tourists to explore, until nature takes over.
We enjoyed walking the maze of old pink walls., looking for cool treasures. We only found a stuffed bird, a couple of posters and some rolls of toilet paper. But, hey, we explored.
7. Take a walk on the peer
As far as I know, the ferry from Salinas stopped operating during the Covid pandemic and no regular ferry service is currently being offered.
With no boats regularly disturbing the water, the peer is a favorite swimming spot for cool fish, sea turtles and nurse sharks. The water is so clear that you don’t even need to swim to see them.
8. Snorkel / Dive the reefs
There are a few coral reefs and rocks around the island. Snorkeling and diving the more protected rocks along the north side of the island is sure to please even picky audience.
Our own snorkeling adventure ended with some very unpleasant jellyfish stinging, so do wear long sleeves and perhaps long diving leggings when exploring the reef.
9. Watch and listen to birds
The pelicans are hard to miss and are an amazing site during sunset and in the morning, when they gather and dive for fish. But there are other birds to observe and listen to, while on the island.
Bring a pair of small binoculars and explore the unique wildlife.
The legend of Isla Caja de Muertos
As with many pirate stories, legends and truth have mingled together long time ago. There are a few such stories about Isla Caja de Muertos.
The one we choose to believe is that a pirate once fell in love with a beautiful woman and took her along on his adventures. Sadly, she was killed at sea, and he buried her body in the pirate’s cave, on the island.
As the years went by, the pirate would visit her beloved’s grave and leave treasures with her. Later her coffin was discovered and gave the name of the island.
Good to know, before you go
Here are a few useful tips, to ensure the Isla Caja de Muertos adventures only bring good memories:
- Isla Caja de Muertos is uninhabited, except the ghosts in the cave.
- No fresh water is available, bring enough
- There are no public restrooms or showers.
- No fishing on the island – it is a nature reserve
- No camp fires are allowed on the island
- Carry a first-aid kit.
- Try to visit on a weekday to avoid the weekend boaters.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to get to Isla Caja de Muertos?
Once the island stopped being actively maintained and the ferry stopped running, there is no regular transit to take visitors from Ponce, or Salinas.
Currently, the only way to visit the island is on a private boat tour, or a personal boat.
Please, do let me know if that has changed, and I will update with relevant and helpful information and links.
When is it best to visit Coffin Island?
If planning to spend one or more days at Isla Caja de Muertos, it is best to go during the week. Weekends always tend to bring private boats with many people escaping the busy towns.
The island is just 1.5 miles long and Pelican beach is quite small, so it can become crowded very quickly.
Also, the birds and wildlife are best observed without the additional party music around – and when they party in Puerto Rico, it is loud.
Where to anchor?
If arriving by a personal boat, anywhere right around the peer would be a suitable location for anchoring.
The closer you are to Pelican beach, the more likely it is to get some wrap-around swell, so you might want to avoid anchoring there.
There is plenty of space for many boats to anchor, the north side is very well protected and the sandy bottom provides great hold for the anchor.
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Conclusion
These 9 Isla Caja de Muertos adventures are sure to leave you with great memories and one-of-a-kind experience.
Speaking of unique experiences, do not miss our post on the best bio bays in the world – also in Puerto Rico!
How to Visit the Best Bio Bays in Puerto Rico, by Boat.
Whether you are visiting for the day of fun in the sun, or are able to stay a bit longer, Coffin Island is a magical gate into a world of pirates, treasures and legends.
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