An oasis of tranquillity, a place of nature at its best

LAST week the Pepperpot Magazine visited the very scenic tourism destination of Mainstay/Whyaka Village in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) to highlight the way of life of the locals.

The team started out the journey since midnight to get to Parika to board the ferry. The ferry ride itself takes almost three hours before it reaches Supenaam Stelling.

From Supenaam, it takes about half an hour to get to Anna Regina by vehicle; from there one takes the access road to Mainstay/Whyaka Village. The access road is just after the Anna Regina Police Station.

The access road is a long windy road where both sides are used for rice, cattle and cash crop farming.

The Mission starts when you go over the bridge. There is a toll gate, where payment is required upon entry.

There are also a few benabs for visitors.

There are no all-weather roads in this village which lead to Whyaka, Arouka Beach, Lake Tapacuma and Mainstay, the central point.

Mainstay/Whyaka is managed by a Village Council which comprises young professionals, all volunteers, who are gainfully employed.

All non-residents must leave the Mission at 16:30hrs, and permission must be sought before entering the village.

They have 24-hour security and the Toll Gate is also manned at all times.

Scattered along this vast land mass are 1,000 residents, whose houses are perched on hilltops, sandy banks and along small trails, in a nature stetting that is breathtakingly beautiful.

In Mainstay/Whyaka Village, there is the Lake Mainstay Resort which has a quarter-mile stretch of sand beach, a 16-acre compound of trees and 34 self-contained cabins that can accommodate up to 160 persons.

There are the Horoshi Restaurant, the Wabure Deck Bar and a lot of outdoor activities both on land and the water.

The resort is fenced off from the village, which is right outside, and they have their own section of the lake, which basically overlooks the entire Mainstay village, presenting a very picturesque view.

Whyaka Village is a few minutes’ drive from Lake Mainstay, and there is a sign which reads “The Cradle of the Village”.

There are small tracks leading to large size houses that are modern in design, and there is an abundance of trees, fruits, plants and flowers.

Whyaka is said to be the place the first settlers came to live way back in the 1960s, and it was a landing then. The locals used boats to get around.

This section has about 25 residents, who are mostly pineapple farmers.

They are the large producers of the ‘sweet loaf’ pineapples, said to be the sweetest in Guyana and the Caribbean.

In Whyaka, there is vast land space primarily used for pineapple farming on a large scale, and there are some houses side by side and also scattered.

Meanwhile, in Mainstay Mission, there is Princeville which is thickly populated with a mixture of people, being Indo, Afro, Amerindians and some mixed-race folk.

In this part of Mainstay, there is a Village Council office, a Health Post building which is being extended, a nursery and a primary school, a playground/community centre, a Resource centre building/ICT hub, many shops, a guest house and the lake area which has a changing room, washroom facilities, benabs, sitting area with swings, wooden benches and a deck.

It is a large village which depends heavily on tourism and pineapple farming, although some people are self-employed and others have small grocery shops and snackettes.

Some people work outside the village, and there are some skilled professionals as well as folk who are multi-talented and do many things for work.

Mainstay isn’t a traditional Amerindian village. Being so close to the Essequibo Coast, the residents are quite modern in their way of life. Still, they hold onto their roots and traditions, which come alive, especially during September which is designated Amerindian Heritage Month.

Some people would make local wines from fruits grown in the village, and the people eat what they grow. They enjoy a healthy life with fresh fruits, vegetables and freshly caught fish from the lake.

Mainstay/Whyaka is a lovely oasis, a place that feels right, a tranquil getaway for that perfect mini-vacation or weekend away to soothe the mind, body and spirit.