Havana harbor from the air.

Havana harbor seemed to be entirely commercial.

The harbor entrance had some mooring buoys, but I'd guess that they are all issued to these little fishing boats.

The Pilar, Earnest Hemingway's boat, is on display just east of Havana. Notice that this boat is a "cruising model" with a small cockpit. Still, that roller on the transom must be for something.

This might be the fish that inspired putting a roller on the transom of the Pilar. It proves that you don't need a large cockpit "angler model" to land a large fish.

The Pilar is in covered "moorage," but the walkway around it is collapsing.

The small harbor where Hemingway kept the Pilar isn't very protected, there is no marina (or electricity), and scarce aids to navigation. On the other hand, it is fortified.

That might be a green day marker on the other side. The light on the near side was mangled and non-functioning. No other channel markers and a breaking surf. This is not a bar with current running. It's just shallow.

It does have a yacht club of sorts. Hemingway chose to do his drinking in Havana, a short cab ride away. It might have been this cab.

The wind was driving spray over the Malecon, as often happens. The entire northwest area of Cuba seemed to be windy and uninviting when we were there.

We hopped on a bus to go see what the south side of Cuba was like for boating.

The boat on the weighs far right looks like it might be a pleasure boat (the only one we saw). Or it might have been a pleasure boat. Every large harbor we visited seemed to cater only to derelicts.

Where we visited on the south coast there were small harbors, but most either too small or too shallow for gunkholing.

Just enough swell to be uncomfortable without a breakwater.

Close, but not quite.

This seemed to be the most common anchoring method. Drag it up the beach.

The larger harbors had unforgiving concrete piers clearly meant for commercial traffic. I don't think that I'll make a passage to Cuba. Good thing that land travel was a blast.