"Las Delicias Trail" tour, Las Terrazas

"Las Delicias Trail" tour, Las Terrazas

Walking along paths in the middle of evergreen forests with lush vegetation, bordering rivers and waterfalls with crystal-clear waters is to be sure that beautiful sites really exist and that human efforts to protect the natural environment persist. The Las Terrazas Community, located in the Province of Artemisa, is the ideal place for these tours, which is why we have designed a series of tours through various trails in this place for your enjoyment.

**Path Las Delicias: 3 km route that borders the hill of Las Delicias until reaching the viewpoint of the San Juan Valley. From this site located 330 meters above sea level, you can see the picturesque Community Las Terrazas, while enjoying a picnic enlivened by the singing of birds. Finally, you descend 1,500 meters to the Buenavista Coffee Plantation to learn about its history as well as the coffee development that took place in the region in the first half of the 19th century.

Values of the Area

The Sendero Las Delicias: Located in the Sierra del Rosario, the first Biosphere Reserve declared for Cuba in 1985, it has a variety of geological and plant formations and a wide diversity of natural, historical and cultural resources scattered throughout its territory. It is located in the easternmost part of the Guaniguanico Mountain Range, in the Sierra del Rosario, in the province of Artemisa, sub-district of Montañas de Guaniguanico. The area occupies part of the Los Palacios Basin, which is filled by Cenozoic sediments of marine alluvial origin, a product of the erosion of the mountains located to the north, and separated from the Sierra del Rosario structural-facial zone by the Pinar del Rio fault. It presents earthy, carbonate and carbonated rocks of 7 formations, ranging in age from the Mesozoic to the recent past. There are two main geomorphological domains: the low mountains and the medium wavy high plains.

The reserve presents a high variety of ecosystems and habitats, which condition its flora and fauna. The flora is made up of 889 plant organisms, grouped into 608 upper plants (trees, shrubs and herbaceous) and 281 lower plants (fungi, mosses and lichens), with 11% endemism, although there are areas that reach up to 34%; while the fauna presents very high endemism in particular groups, such as mollusks, which can reach 40%. Amphibians and reptiles exceed 80% endemism.

These endemics of the flora are mostly of national distribution, although 17 of them represent pine species, among which the male pine (Pinus caribaea), a forest species of multiple economic interest, stands out. The endemic and monotypic Phyllomelia (Rubiacea) genus of the pine forest has only been documented worldwide for Cajálbana and Sierra del Rosario. Eleven percent of the endemics are mainly shrubs. Sierra del Rosario has several plant formations: evergreen, semi-deciduous, pine, quabales, mogote complex and secondary vegetation.

Of the fauna, the most studied groups are amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. Ninety species of mollusks belonging to 26 families have been reported in different localities of two forest ecosystems. 16 species of amphibians, with 81.7% of endemism, have been grouped into one order and four families. So far, 33 species of reptiles have been reported, of which 27 are endemic, with 81.8% of endemism, grouped in 2 orders and one suborder, belonging to 10 families. There are 117 species of birds reported, in 17 orders and 30 families, 12 of which are endemic. Among the mammals, bats stand out with 11 species, and 2 native representatives of the order Rodentia.

Itinerary

• Reception and welcome cocktail with brief explanation of the Project.
• Walk through the hill of Las Delicias until you reach the viewpoint of the San Juan Valley.
• Descend to the Buenavista coffee plantation to learn about its history
• Picnic lunch depending on the chosen modality.

Departures

This tour starts at Hotel Moka located in Las terraces, but it can be done from other destinations:

• Cayo Levisa
• Pinar del Río
• Soroa
• Viñales
• Havana
• Shipyard

Details of the excursion

• The excursion is made in the company of a local guide.
• Difficulty Level: Medium-Low
• Duration: 3 hrs
• Minimum Quantity: 2 Pax

Variants

You will be able to select the different variants:

• Collective or Private Tour
• Tour with or without Picnic: PICNIC: 1 Ham and/or Cheese Sandwich, 1 National Production Drinks, 1 Water and 1 Jam
• Tour departing from various destinations depending on the type of transport.