Hugo Maldonado Vera
Puerto Rico’s geography makes it the perfect place for Land Rovers: sandy beaches, tropical landscapes and the Cordillera Central mountain range that runs through the center of the island. The first Land Rovers arrived the early 1960s. Some found work in agriculture and others served in government agencies. Many of the island’s Land Rovers have remained in families, passed down between generations; my grandfather became the island’s Land Rover specialist and two of his Series IIs became the basis for my current Land Rover, a ’61 Dormobile 109”.
The Land Rover Series de Puerto Rico began in April 2010 at a meeting in the mountain town of Adjuntas. Among the enthusiasts at our first meeting were: Luis Toledo, Hugo Maldonado, Eduardo Cintrón, Angel Arroyo Sr., Angel Arroyo Jr., Ruco Jr., Edwin Negrón, Toñin Acevedo, Jim Caballo, Ricardo Gonzalez, Ariel Ramirez and Charlie Ortíz.
We begin with 10 Land Rover owners in 2010 and today, we have 80 Series Land Rover and Defender owners. Our group meets average 20 vehicles per event. We started by touring different parts of the island, but most of our events have been held in the island’s mountainous regions. Our travel rallies have included three-day camping events.
In celebration of our 15th anniversary, we traveled along scenic Route 143, La Carretera Panoràmica, a series of curvy roads with picturesque mountains views, passing through the towns of Adjuntas, Ponce, Jayuya and Villalba, ending in the village of Orocovis.
Our meeting point was in the town of Adjuntas, from which we drove toward Puerto Rico’s highest mountain, Cerro Punta (4,390 ft). The weather was spectacular, with intense fog covering the entire route. At midday, you could hardly see anything because of the mist. You felt like you were among the clouds the entire trip. This magical experience is a lesser-known but majestic part of the our island.
We stopped first at a chincorro, La Taverna Mavarilla, a typical village restaurant that features live music, great food and the joy of meeting villagers. There, they prepared a chicken asopao for us. We celebrated with glasses of pitorro, a traditional moonshine rum produced in Puerto Rico, known for its high alcohol content and unique, sometimes fruit-infused flavor. It’s a significant part of Puerto Rican culture, especially during holidays and celebrations.
We drove on to Mirador Villa O’Rourke for lunch: rice with pigeon peas or beans, root vegetables, roasted suckling pig, roasted chicken and other typical Puerto Rican lunch items. We arrived at our final stop around 3:00 p.m. at a local Puerto Rican business called La Gallina Escondida. There we concluded our tour. We enjoyed music, shared time with family and held a raffle for the items we received as sponsorship from Rovers North.
Forty Land Rovers made the trek, from Series, Discoverys and Defender L316s and L663s, and we all enjoyed a spectacular day. We look forward to continuing our adventures for many more years to come!
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