Sometimes you have to take Guide Book recommendations with a little scepticism. It is all up to our own individual perceptions and experiences. But I am getting ahead of myself.
It all started when the humans were trying to decide whether or not to visiting Havana City. Transportation, accommodation, food and ‘of course’ me (their ever faithful canine) had to be planned for and budgeted for. After spending time in Santiago de Cuba, Cienfuegos and Trinidad did they really need to see another Cuba city? Everything else had been day trips, this was going to be, at the very least, an over night excursion and many miles of traveling.
It is times like this I know I have trained them well. They decided that the long journey, expense and leaving me locked up with strangers was not worth it. The compromise was to instead visit the Sierra del Escambray Mountain range. Nothing like another city, this was meant to be a hiking adventure in the rain forest with waterfalls and pools to swim in. It was also a tip we could all do in a day as a family.
Our cruising guide (published in 2013) recommended a visit to the Gran Parque Topes de Collantes. The drive there was meant to be scenic and the hiking great. There was meant to be a trail that lead to a waterfall and a great pool for swimming at it’s base. There was to be a small charge for park access, between 3-6 CUC. We negotiated with our contact at the Marina, Kismany, for a taxi and driver for the day at 40 CUC. He recommended the section of the Park called Parque EL NICHO, as it had multiple waterfalls and pools and we were sure to like that.
So off we went, escaping the city and heading off into the Cuban countryside. Once you get out of the sprawling suburbs of Cienfuegos you head into the rich agricultural lands below the mountains. Centuries of erosion have deposed rich soils onto this plain. A profusion of fruit and vegetables grow at the lower altitudes. In the foot hills before the mountains the land is turned over to grazing. This is where you will find Cuba’s true Cowboys. Although the horse and cart is used extensively in the city, it rules the road out here. They out number cars 4:1.
The impressive chain of the Sierra del Escambray Mountains is forever rising up in the back ground. As we started our approach and gaining altitude we finally got a reprieve from the heat. The roads became steep and winding with a multitude of wash outs. Our driver picked his way carefully, stopping at view points so we could get snap shots back to the coast. The car started to over heat, so we gave it a little rest break while we inspected one of the multitude of tiny home stead shacks and gardens along the mountain roads.
Once back underway we found the entrance to the Parque EL NICHO in a high altitude valley. We were a little ‘taken aback’ that the entrance fee for the hike was 9 CUC each. A little bit of a jump from the Cruising Guides suggestion. We had traveled too far not to go in. They knew they had a captured audience. There was a restaurant at the start of the hike, this should have set off warning bells for us, but you do not see it until you have cleared the pay station and started well down the hike. I will say that the trails were well marked and maintained. Not really the rain forest adventure we had expected. It was a short hike to the first pool. Crystal clear it did beckon us in for swim. A group of youths were enjoying jumping off the rocks into the pool, so we left them to their fun and continued on. The first waterfall was just around the corner from the river pool. Water cascaded down fern covered rocks. It was very pretty. There were a few shallow pools we could have sat in, but we could hear more people coming up the trail, so we decide to continue on. A steep stairwell cut into the rocky hill side made short work of a steep accent. At the top was another waterfall and a group of shaded pools. A few couples, seeking some solitude up here, were already enjoying the waters.
I did not care, and was in there in a flash. The humans got chatting with a couple from Scotland who were doing a land based tour of the island. Before they had completed their list of ‘best stops so far’ the crowds started piling in. The once quiet pool was quickly filled with screaming kids and the trails filled with gawking tourists. We made our excuses and hoped to find a quieter spot further up the trail. Unfortunately it ended only a short accent higher. We stopped and had some sandwiches in peace. We followed a different decent path, hoping to find a nice quieter pool. There were a few along a river that ran parallel to the trail, but we carried on until we came out at the first pool again. Here we had another swim, but the park was quickly getting very crowded.
Bus load after bus load of tourists were making there way up the trail. More and more people were piling into the waters. This was not any of our ideas of fun. Maybe because we were spoiled by the tropical rain forests of the volcanic Eastern Caribbean Islands and the solitude you can find there. We had hoped we would find some hiking, similar to that we found in Dominica, but instead we found ourselves sandwiched between locals who had brought out the whole family and a picnic lunch and the tourists clogging up the trails and snapping pictures.
We made a hasty retreat. We had the driver still for the day, so we tried to make the best of it. In a brave attempt at Spanish the humans determined that the driver did not have any where else he could suggest to go hiking. He could only make restaurant suggestions. In true tourist flourish we asked to be taken to the least touristy one he knew, which turned out to be a short walk down the valley. Situated in a lovely flower garden the place usually catered to the taxi and coach drivers. For 6 CUC/ each the humans got a fruit plate appetizer, a couple of fried fish fillets, a couple of roast pork fillets, plantain chips, a plate of tomatoes and cucumbers and a huge bowl of pork fried spicy rice. The servings were so huge I got lots.
Having the lovely meal in the beautiful mountain valley cheered the humans and they felt ready for the hair raising decent ahead back down the mountains through the foot hills and across the farms to Cienfuegos. I hope the humans have seen enough of the mainland for now, because we need to get going again. The sailing season is running out fast and we still have all the Cays between here and the Yucatan Channel to visit before we head off to Mexico next. We heard the Cays between here and Cay Largo are some of the most beautiful.
There is always somewhere else to be.
end:
Photos, charts and information once we got internet. Use link below:
Review of Southern Cuba Part 2 -including the pictures you missed
