Manabao and La Cieniga; the base of Pico Duarte

Manabao and La Cieniga; the base of Pico Duarte

Manabao is a short drive up the valley from Jarabacoa. We chose to take the gua gua there, the pickup truck that takes goods and residents back and forth in more remote parts of the country. The 20 kilometer drive took us 4 hours. Two hours we spent standing on the street waiting for the truck to fill and begin the journey. The bed of the truck was loaded and reloaded until goods and luggage were stacked up much higher than the cab. Next, the driver stopped once or twice for the next 5 blocks to do a woman passenger’s grocery shopping. It took us another hour to actually get to the edge of town and start the drive up through the valley. My ass was completely numb from sitting on the edge of the truck bed, but the view on the way up didn’t disappoint. I got plenty of time to see the sights and snap some photos; the truck crept up the inclines and stopped frequently to let passengers off at intermediate villages.

A volunteer named Jen lives in Manabao, and Tamara had agreed to watch her cabin and feed her cat while she was gone for a visit to the USA. The cab was really simple; a latrine, running water in the kitchen, electricity all day, a compost pile outside the back door, and its best feature was being perched on the hill side and offering a great view of the valley. I set up my hammock and filled up the rum in the Mamajuana. I was ready for 5 days of relaxing, reading, writing, and hiking. Tamara and I passed some of the days at a swimming hole in a river nearby and I took some morning runs up the trails behind the cabin.

A Peace Corps volunteer group was training in the town on a water project and it was interesting to meet some of the volunteers and see the project’s progress. One day, Tamara and I headed further up the valley to the town of La Cieniga, entrance to the national park that holds the Caribbean’s highest peak; Pico Duarte. A volunteer there named Peter showed us around the park a little bit. Tamara’s and my old house mates from San Francisco were there to start the three day hike to the summit the following day. After viewing the mountain top from a newly built private hilltop cabin with Peter, Tamara and I followed the new trail for a few kilometers up the river to a swimming hole and had lunch there. I’ve never walked through as many spider webs as I did on the seldom used trail there.

My experience in Manabao was very amiable as well as La Cieniga and the national park. It was so good for my mental health to be in a secluded cabin in the woods for 5 days. The folks in that mountain town were the friendliest and helpful I’ve yet to meet, more than once farmers stopped with their livestock to pose for my photos. Tamara and I cooked some delicious food there as well since Jen’s cabin was well equipped with sharp knives, good pans, and a collection of seasonings which we added to. Most of the food that we brought from Tamara’s old house we either ate, or left there as a thanks to Jen for the use of such a great place. Here I experienced the coldest nights and hardest rains, while the brilliance of the green surroundings made my vision look like it was in the saturation setting on my camera.