laguna del diablo, dominican republic, escape, hike, adventure, fog, layers View More

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When we were in el El Valle we saw a great big house at the top of the hill. That, and a rumor of a lake called “Laguna del Diablo” got us searching for a road, which we eventually found close to Playa Rincon. We started up that road but eventually it got really bad, too bad for our car Izzy to keep going up without some major damage, so we took a break to open a coconut, and that’s when a pick-up truck full of workers came down the hill after the end of their shift. As I moved the car out of the way, Gabriel made small talk with them, asking if they knew where the lake was, etc.. Within a few minutes, we had the number of one of the workers who was going to take us on a personally guided hike to the lake the next day. WOOHOO! So we came back up and Victor and his son took us on a hike through what’s yet to be the most virgin part of the Dominican Republic I’ve seen so far. There are some roads up there, but most of them are pretty new, including the Ruta de Jengibre, which you’ll find on google as “Carretera La Loma Atravesada” as the project is to eventually connect Playa Rincon to Playa El Valle. So far though, what you’ll find up there are mostly local farmers who live off the land and rarely need to go anywhere. The land is farmed in part, and completely virgin in others. It’s paradise. We got there very early in the morning and when we finally had a view of the lake, it was covered in fog (pictured above) But as we got closer to it, and the sun came up over the hills, the fog burned off to reveal a rather large and beautiful lake. We were alone, Gabriel, Victor, his son, and I, save for a few fisherman trying to catch their sunday lunch. Our voices echoed on the walls of the hills opposite us, carried by the reflective stillness of the lake. The birds chirping away. Of course, we’d come a long way, and it was warm, so a swim was inevitable. But Gaby had to take it a step… Continue Reading

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The Bridges of Samaná are three bridges built between two small islands in the bay of Samaná, and the mainland just outside of the town of Samaná (also, but less commonly knows as Santa Bàrbara) Where Do the Bridges of Samana Go? There are multiple theories as to how they got there, some believe it has to do with drug cartels, but the most widely accepted theory has to do with Joaquín Balaguer, president for most of the 60’s and 70’s  investing in the area hoping for it to be the next tourism hub on the island. It seems the plan was to have pedestrian bridges connecting the islands, and leading to a restaurant on the last one. Only the shell of the restaurant remains: While it’s a great spot for gazing across the beautiful bay over at the North shore of the south side of the island…. not much of Balaguer’s plan still stands. It seems none of the construction has been touched since his presidential term ended in ’78, and it doesn’t really seem like it was ever finished either. Samaná, in fact, never took off as a tourism hub. Not that the area is lacking in eye candy, quite on the contrary, the nature surrounding the area is some of the most gorgeous that can be found around the island, AND it’s centrally located as far as the rest of the Samaná peninsula goes… The real mystery behind the bridges of Samaná isn’t where they go, it’s why they don’t go anywhere. Why is there nothing on those islands? Why is Samaná so “boring?” Well, there is this one all inclusive resort, Bahia Principe – through which you have to walk if you’d like to get to the bridges – and it kind of sucks up all the tourism. All-inclusive tourists are brought, through SAFE transportation to SAFE (and very disingenuous) parts of town, where they can buy SAFE (and tacky) souvenirs, before being SAFELY transported back to their SAFE haven for that evening’s game of poolside bingo. I’m not even joking, about any of this. There’s a sign at the entrance of the bridges advising tourists that the resort takes no responsibility for what happens beyond this point, if they BRAVELY choose to venture out to the desert… Continue Reading