Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
million years ago. The tourist office, perched on the edge of a cliff at 1450m, offers
breathtaking views, north and east, of completely untouched national park. The cliff itself
is a 600m drop.
The tourist office has information (in Spanish) on the various flora and fauna in the
area, and a number of short nature walks have small signs identifying the various plants.
Serious birdwatchers scoff that this is a poor birdwatching location, but for the casual
tourist the views make it worth the drive.
Pelempito sits on the south side of the Sierra de Bahoruco. The turn-off is about 12km
east of Pedernales. Shortly after the turn-off to Bahía de Las Águilas, you'll cross a small
bridge. Immediately after, you turn left on a dirt road that swings around to the paved road
north to Hoyo de Pelempito (it actually ends up being same road that leads to Bahía de
Las Águilas but you'll take the opposite direction). Around 14km later, you'll come to a
ranger station
(admission RD$100; 9am-4:30pm)
. From here, the paved highway-like road
continues for 6km, turning into a rutted dirt track for the last 7km. Rains frequently des-
troy this part of the road, so you'll need a 4WD or a very high vehicle.
WORTH A TRIP
THE POLO ORGANIC COFFEE FESTIVAL
Started in 2004, the
Festival de Café Orgánico de Polo
(Festicafé; 809-682-3386;
www.festicafe.org)
is held on the first weekend in June in the small town of Polo, nestled on the south
slopes of the Sierra de Bahoruco. From Friday to Sunday local coffee-growers celebrate the end of the
coffee-harvesting season. There's live merengue and
bachata
(Dominican music) in the evenings, and
during the day stands sell coffee and typical southwestern arts and crafts. There's a 'coffee parade,'
and lots of (decaffeinated) games for the kids. The organizers also lead hiking trips to remote coffee
plantations in the mountains.
There's no real hotel in town, but during the festival the organizers can put you up in a spare room
in someone's house - be sure to call several weeks ahead, as rooms fill up fast. Even if the festival's
not on, various shops around town sell the coffee packaged to go - it's excellent if you take your caf-
feine seriously and worth the side trip if you have wheels.
From Barahona, drive 12km west to Cabral and look for the marked southbound turn-off in the
middle of town (there's a flashing traffic light). From there it's about a 20km (30-minute) drive to
Polo.
