Les Isles Salut

I have never been so hard-hit by the outright absurdity and insanity of human cruelty when visiting the remains of one of France’s most cruel penal colonies on the remote and beautiful Isles Salut.   Up until the 1950s a total of 80,000 of prisoners were shipped across from France to suffer work camps, solitary confinement and other unspeakable acts of torture on these lush tropical islands off the northeast coast of South America.

Tufted capuchin monkeys

The islands are part of French Guiana which was colonised by the French in the 17^th century. For 100 years (1852 to 1953) they s formed part of a penal colony that included a detention centre on the mainland in Sant Laurent de Maroni, a prison and work camp on Isle Royale, solitary confinement cells on Isle Saint-Joseph and the tiny Devils Island, just ¼ of a square mile which was reserved for political prisoners.

Devils Island (from where Papillon escaped)

These three small volcanic islands are just 11 miles off the mainland, exposed to consistent swell and south westerly winds, strong currents and surrounded by sharp volcanic rocks with no beaches or natural harbours.  During the time of the prison the waters were also known for being shark infested as the small slaughterhouse would fill the water with blood and attract tiger sharks.  The temperatures soar between 30 and 40 degrees.

Prison cell on Isle Royale (looking over ruins of solitary confinement cells)

In preparation for our visit to the islands we re-watched the infamous film Papillon which follows the life of Henri Charrière, who was convicted of murder and spent years imprisoned and in solitary confinement on the islands until his dramatic escape on a make-shift coconut raft.  The film is gruelling enough, but to walk around the prison, and see first-hand the iron chains that were clamped around the prisoners ankles in their beds as well as the tiny cells where years of solitary silent dark confinement would take place was a truly shocking experience.

Today the remains of the prison are inhabited by beautiful wild creatures, including several families of tufted capuchin monkeys and red rumped acoutis (a kind of giant red guinea pig).  The waters are teeming with leather back turtles and the landing buoys for the visiting catamarans bringing in tourists from the mainland are a fine resting spot for the beautiful Cayenne tern.

Cayenne terns on the dock at Isle Royale

It is hard to imagine how so much cruelty could have been inflicted on the prisoners here midst all these natural wonders.  What is even more curious is that the prisoner’s guard’s houses have been transformed into holiday cottages, and we saw children in swimsuits run happily through the lawns between the remains of the guillotine structures and head down for a swim in the former convicts natural swimming pool made in the rocks.  Twenty years after the penal colony was finally shut down, in 1979 the Isles Salut were declared a national park.

Acouti in the former prison

We spent three nights anchored off the islands. We absolutely loved the wild jungle and its incredible wildlife, while we hated the torturous history. We also enjoyed the pommes frites and haricots verts - there is one French-run restaurant located at the top of the island.  Our visit to this extraordinary place has been an unforgettable introduction to French Guyana, beautiful and tragic at the same time.

Saecwen anchored off Isle Royale