Where Did Lehi Land?

The winds and currents from the south coast of the Arabian Peninsula ends, miraculously, at the 30º south latitude along the Chilean coast at an area now called the Bay of Coquimbo, which is exactly centered at 29.88°S, in the semi-arid region of Chile. At this point, the winds and sea currents slow to almost nothing, making landfall a simple manner. And the bay itself is a large, halfmoon inlet that provides safe harbor for ships, even today.

Situated 7 miles southwest of La Serena, Coquimbo Bay is among the best sheltered coves in Chile. And La Serena, itself is referred to as the Mediterranean of South America, and weather-wise is much like San Diego, California was at one time, an undiscovered paradise. This port at Coquimbo benefits from the natural protection of the bay and provides ideal mooring in "quiet waters" which is the original meaning of Coquimbo.

Coquimbo, as the site of First Landing, fits all the requirements of scripture. It is located right on the divisional area between the desert and the fertile valleys, with the bay itself once a garden spot. While southern Chile is always wet, the central part, (north and south of the 30º South Latitude) is dry with some rain, while northern Chile is the driest desert in the world.

At Coquimbo is the Mediterranean Climate, the place where grains and fruits grow, and a bay that is within a feeble current (Humboldt or Peruvian Current) along the coast where the winds and sea currents slow from over 25 miles an hour to Zero, then north of it, picks back up again to as high as 25 miles an hour where the current bounces off the Peruvian bulge and sweeps upward and west across the Pacific.

The shore water here is shallow and the land beyond the bay is terraced upward. While today this area is less than ideal, it was once the garden spot of the Mediterranean climate. The province of Coquimbo covers an area where the farmer and the miner meet. Here rain falls sometimes if not often and there are several rivers flowing through fertile valleys. Behind the sea-facing barrier there are gardens and orchards, where melons, peaches, reddish pineapples, grapes, pears, cucumbers and cabbage grow. The bay itself offers another and equally amazing contrast. It is a wide semicircle of blue water locked in the arms of the mountains, sentinelled by red rocks at the two ends. In the evening everything is softened into a series of pastel shades that have a lot of charm.

Coquimbo Bay Today

While Nephi does not wax poetic about their site of First Landing, he does describe it sufficiently to understand that it was 1) a beautiful spot, 2) had enormous natural resources, 3) had the climate in which his Jerusalem seeds grew abundantly, and 4) possessed fertile soils. All of this matches Coquimbo and the valley beyond the bay where a ship "driven forth before the wind" from the south coast of Arabia would have easily arrived.