Old San Juan was a walled city. Walls, some 20 to 40 feet thick at their base, were built around the city from 1630 to 1790, to protect it from attack by sea. While much of the wall has been removed, parts remain, providing a historic connection to this old city.
We were in Puerto Rico to start a West Indies Cruise – a February escape from the Ohio River Valley winter. We had signed up for the included morning excursion- a guided tour of Old San Juan and the Castillo San Cristobal fort, but were unsure what to do with our afternoon. On the advice of our eldest daughter Caroline, who had spent 4 weeks visiting Puerto Rico over the last several years, we zeroed in on a walk on the Paseo del Morro. It is part of the the Old San Juan National Historic Site, along with the Castillo San Cristobal and Castillo San Felipe del Morro, and is a walkway that ambles at the base of the city wall on the western edge of Old San Juan, overlooking the Bay of San Juan. While on the morning tour we had visited a passage through the wall, the San Juan City Gate, that would give us access to the trail, seen as the red dot on the map below. The Paseo del Morro is the dotted trail just outside the wall.
After a lunch at the Barrachina restaurant, where it is claimed the Pina Colada was invented, we headed back to the San Juan City Gate. It is the only gate remaining of the original six gates that opened through the wall. Located just below the Governor’s residence, historically its function had been ceremonial, reserved for visiting dignitaries and officials. The other gates were for the passage of ordinary peoples and commerce.
The walkway through the gate, like many of the roads in Old San Juan, is made of old ballast stones that originated in Spain and were removed and repurposed when products from the Caribbean were loaded upon ships to be sent to Europe.
Not surprisingly, it was warm on this February afternoon and the trail was unshaded in its entirety. The terrain however is largely flat.
Once through the gate we had outstanding views of the walkway, the wall itself, and San Juan Bay.
As we turned right the beauty of the wall struck us. It is up to forty five feet high and topped with lookout towers and gunnery openings.
But from an artistic point of view, what grabs you are the textures and contrasts: the different colors of the stones, and the softening provided by the plants that have taken up residence in the cracks in the mortar.
Atop much of the wall is an element of park landscaping, with notable trees,
and the occasional bougainvillea that was in full flower.
With each turn you were treated to new views upon the wall.
We eventually got to a point where there was a grouping of Sea Grape growing at the base of the wall. It was a fun sighting for us as we grow it as a potted plant at home to add a little tropical ambience to our patio.
Other plants that we saw along the way included:
Yellow Butterfly Vine – its seed pods look like butterfly wings.
Yellow Merremia – also called Hogvine, it is found across tropical North America, South America, Africa, and Asia. Historically it had many uses in medicine.
Beach Bean – a member of the pea family, it is commonly found in tropical and subtropical coastal regions.
One of the fun things that happens when you travel to tropical places is that you see specimens that we utilize as houseplants at home growing in naturalized settings. Such was the case when we saw this Dracaena amongst the plants on the sea wall. It is also known as Mother-in-law’s tongue.
Perhaps due to jet lag, the 5 miles we walked on the AM tour, the heat of the day, the unrelenting sun, or the Pina Colada at lunch, we opted to cut our hike short, just before the stairway that climbs up to Castillo Sam Felipe del Morrow, the fort that protected the entry into San Juan Bay. Also, if one travels further on, the pavement ends and a graveled “nature walk” extends along the base of the northern aspect of the wall, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.
Upon doubling back one gets to appreciate other views onto the wall and the city of Old San Juan above it. The photo below shows Escuela de Artes Plásticas y Diseño de Puerto Rico, an art school that was founded in 1965, which is housed in a military barracks that dates to 1854.
This photo shows the red San Juan Gate through which we started our walk, with La Fortaleza above the wall to the right. La Fortaleza is a 16th century fortification that incorporated the residence of the island’s governor.
The Paseo continues southward heading toward the Cruise Pier, so we remained on the walkway. Soon it enters a a busier park like setting that hosted statuary – both modern and old styles.
Here the Paseo del Morrow meets up with the Paseo de la Princesa, which leads to the pier area.
In summary, our walk on the Paseo del Morro was the perfect compliment to our formal morning tour, engrossing us further into the history of Old San Juan, and giving us up close appreciation of the massive wall and the beautiful bay. We could not help but think that it is an underutilized, free of cost experience that many tourists would enjoy, whether for a gentle stroll or for a morning run. We have penciled in a return trip, this time with an extended stay in Puerto Rico, and a morning walk on the full Paseo will be part of that experience. That said, as our ship pulled out of San Juan Bay at dusk, I was able to capture this image that gives a broader feel for the immenseness of the wall, a section of the walkway, and Old San Juan and the Castillo San Felipe del Morro above.
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Photo credits to Peggy Juengling Burns and Patrick Burns.
Overview
Location – Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Parking – there was parking on the street and in a parking lot near the Paseo de la Princesa, where we ended our walk. That could be a good starting point as well.
Facilities – there are toilets at the Castillo San Felipe del Morro as well as on the esplanade near the Paseo de la Princesa.
Trail Conditions – the main Paseo is concrete but once it gets past the Castillo and transitions into the nature trail it is reported to be gravel. The trail is 1.5 miles out and back, but could be longer if one went up the stairs to the Castillo or ventured onto the nature trail.
Benches – many noted.
Kids – should do fine.
Dogs – prohibited.
Suggested Paired Hikes – none.
Links:
https://sanjuanpuertorico.com/paseo-del-morro-old-san-juan/
https://www.discoverpuertorico.com/profile/paseo-del-morro/12308