Enjoying the nature of the protected area "Puerto Escondido".

Greetings friends and nature lovers. Last Friday I had the joy of visiting for the first time one of the most beautiful natural sites in western Cuba. It is the protected area of "Puerto Escondido", located in the north of the eastern portion of the province of Mayabeque, and represents a paradisiacal place for all those lovers of natural spaces; in which the hills, rivers, sea, caves, and the lush greenery of the vegetation, make up a mosaic of impressive landscape elements.

I found the opportunity to visit this site thanks to an offer of an excursion suggested to me by some friends, which I enthusiastically accepted. That day, when we arrived at the site, we were welcomed by the people in charge of attending to the hikers, and after giving us a talk about the general characteristics of the place, they guided us to the first point of interest of the site: the Cueva de los Pájaros (Birds' Cave). This cave is a natural cavity open to the sea, wide, in whose roof a great number of swallows nest. It is elaborated by natural processes in ancient limestone rocks, as a result of the dissolution of the same by slightly acidified waters, in a process of dissolution of carbonate rocks.

After spending a short time in this place, and having as next options to go diving, or to bathe in the river, I chose to take a hiking route to the top of the viewpoint of the place, to enjoy the beautiful panoramic views of the landscapes of the area. After a short walk, and upon reaching the top, I was amazed at the beauty of the scenery, and I was there for a few minutes alone admiring such a natural wonder. From there I could observe the beauty of the intense blue tones of the sea; of the coastal cliff heights with caves in their walls and covered with lush vegetation, divided by the Escondido River at the bottom of the valley in a fluvial-marine surface where the river flows into the sea. From there, the view even reached into the distance, allowing to observe the mountains of the interior of the province to the south.

After this stop, I descended to venture into the next activity, which consisted of a boat trip down the river until I reached a path through the forest to a small lagoon. The journey along the river was wonderful, as I observed the steep surfaces of the elevations cut by the river course, and touched its calm waters with my hands.

When we reached the other side, we went into the forest to reach the small lagoon, while we were observing the mangrove vegetation formations, which also harbor a diverse fauna.

After observing the small lagoon, we went back to the installation at the mouth of the river, where we enjoyed a pleasant swim in the waters of the river. And so ended that excursion, which although short, was enough to completely disconnect me from the city routines and connect me with the wonders of nature and the gifts it offers to all of us who honor and love it.

All images are my own, captured with the camera of my Samsung Galaxy A7 cell phone.

Translated at DeepL
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