The watchtower
Red-domed.
Marycandelaria — CC BY-SA 4.0 · BhrandonG — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Marycandelaria — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Jemima Diaz — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Karla Santos — CC BY-SA 3.0
Fortín Solano is a small stone fort on a hilltop above the city of Puerto Cabello and its harbour. Thick walls of grey stone surround a watchtower with a red dome, and from the top you see the city, the port, the sea and the green mountains behind you. The fort was built around 1766 on the orders of Venezuela's governor José Solano y Bote on behalf of the King of Spain, to guard the important harbour together with the sea-level Castillo San Felipe. It is described as the last military building raised in Venezuela in the colonial era. It was declared a National Monument in 1965 and lies within San Esteban National Park. You drive up to the top, walk the walls and around the tower, and look down over the city and the harbour. The fort is about 1.5 km in a straight line southeast of central Puerto Cabello, reached by car on a climbing road. Late afternoon is best, when the heat eases. The UK advises against all but essential travel to Venezuela, so check current advice before you go.
Red-domed.
City and port.
Grey stone.
Cresta de Vigía, San Esteban National Park, south of Puerto Cabello, Carabobo State
By car up the hill road from town.
Late afternoon.