Boca de la Sierpe."[340-2]

Having reached that land which he saw in that direction and believed was
an island, he saw near that cape two small islands in the middle of
another channel which is made by that cape which he called Cabo de Lapa
and another cape of the Trinidad which he called Cabo Boto, because of
being thick and blunt,--the one island he named El Caracol, the other El
Delfin.[340-3] It is only five leagues in this strait between the Point
of Paria and Cape Boto of Trinidad, and the said islands are in the
middle of the strait. The impetus of the great river Yuyapari and the
tempestuous waves of the sea make the entrance and exit by this strait
greatly dangerous, and because the Admiral experienced this difficulty
and also danger, he called that difficult entrance Boca del Drago[340-4]
and thus it is called to this day. He went along the coast of the
mainland of Paria,[340-5] which he believed to be an island, and named it
Isla de Gracia, towards the west in search of a harbor. From the point of
the Arenal, which is one cape of Trinidad as has been said, and is
towards the south, as far as the other Cape Boto, which is of the same
island and is towards the sea, the Admiral says it is 26 large leagues,
and this part appears to be the width of the island, and these two said
capes are north and south. There were great currents, the one against the
other; there came many showers as it was the rainy season, as aforesaid.
The Isla de Gracia is, as has been said, mainland. The Admiral says that
it is a very high land and all full of trees which reach to the sea; this
is because the gulf being surrounded by land, there is no surf and no
waves which break on the land as where the shores are uncovered. He says
that, being at the point or end of it, he saw an island of very high
land to the north-east, which might be 26 leagues from there. He named it
"Belaforma," because it must have looked very well from a distance, yet
all this is the mainland, which, as the ships changed their position from
one side to the other within the gulf enclosed by land, some inlets
appeared as if they separated lands which might be detached, and these
the Admiral called islands; for such was his opinion.[341-1]

He navigated Sunday, August 5, five leagues from the point of the Cape of
Lapa, which is the eastern end of the island of Gracia. He saw very good
harbors adjacent to each other, and almost all this sea he says is a
harbor, becaus