Mainstay Lake

Mainstay Lake is a lake in the Pomeroon-Supenaam Region of Guyana, near the Atlantic coast, northwest of the mouth of the Essequibo River, 12 mi (19 km) north of Adventure. There is a 0.5 mi (0.80 km) stretch of white sand at the edge of the lake.

Mainstay Lake
Mainstay Lake Show map of Guyana Mainstay Lake Show map of South America
Location	South America
Coordinates	07°13′59″N 58°32′19″W / 7.23306°N 58.53861°W / 7.23306; -58.53861
Basin countries	Guyana
Max. length	193 mi (311 km)
Max. width	53 mi (85 km)
Surface area	7,540 sq mi (19,500 km^2)
Average depth	283 ft (86 m)

Economic activity

A resort has been built next to the lake, a seven miles from the region’s administrative hub at Anna Regina, or through the resort on a twenty-minute flight from Georgetown to the resort’s airstrip. Mainstay Lake Resort hosts an annual regatta as well as a regular Easter Car and Bike Show.^[1] The resort was closed for seven months in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[2][3]

A pineapple processing facility was established in Mainstay/Whyaka in 2002, an initiative of the National Agricultural Research Institute (NARI) and Amazon Caribbean Ltd (AMCAR).^[4] Due to declining pineapple farming in the area, AMCAR closed the facility in 2014;^[5] there were talks of reopening in 2019.^[6]

Settlement

Whyaka or Whyak is a thirteen square-mile Amerindian community^[7] of mostly Arawak people. Arawaks were the first to inhabit the Mainstay area who called it ‘Quacabuka’ meaning ‘in-between'.^[4] The village has a population of 576^[8] and features a primary school (once known as St. Vincent Anglican School) and a nursery school, a health centre, a community centre, a ballfield, a chicken farm, a pine factory, a heritage park.^[4] Secondary schooling is done in Anna Regina or Cotton Field.^[4] The toshao is Milton Fredericks.^[9] The location of the Mainstay Village is 07°14′09″N 58°32′25″W / 7.23583°N 58.54028°W / 7.23583; -58.54028.^[10]

References

1. "Paltry tourism investment, marketing leaves Mainstay's potential unrealized". Stabroek News. 2018-05-11. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
2. "Hard-hit Mainstay Resort to reopen today". Stabroek News. 2020-11-06. Retrieved 2021-09-01.
3. "Mainstay resort on road to recovery following COVID-19 setback". Stabroek News. 2021-01-18. Retrieved 2021-09-01.
4. "Lake Mainstay". Stabroek News. 2014-10-05. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
5. "Mainstay/Whyaka ends collaboration with Amcar for organic pineapples". Stabroek News. 2014-10-30. Retrieved 2021-09-01.
6. "Talks to resume on resuscitating the pineapple industry in Region 2". Stabroek News. 2019-06-08. Retrieved 2021-09-01.
7. "Indigenous Villages | Ministry of Amerindian Affairs". Retrieved 2021-01-05.
8. "Publications – Bureau of Statistics – Guyana". 10 April 2019. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
9. "Cotton Field, Mainstay Lake get new nursery schools". Stabroek News. 2019-04-01. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
10. Hollowell, Tom; Gillespie, Lynn J.; Funk, V.A.; Kelloff, Carol L. (2003). "Smithsonian Plant Collections, Guyana: 1989 - 1991, Lynn J. Gillespie". Contributions from the United States National Herbarium. 44: 1–104. ISSN 0097-1618. JSTOR 23493216.

 

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