Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
1915, features 12
bateyes
(ancient ball courts) walled by
slabs etched with petroglyphs,
including the
Mujer de Caguana
- a female fertility figure with
legs outspread. Taíno ceramics
and other artifacts are displayed
in a tiny museum here.
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Map E3
• Carretera 111 Km 12.3, Utuado • 787
894 7325 • Open 8:30am-4:20pm • Adm
El Grito de Lares
The island's movement for
independence from Spain was
initiated in September 1868 when
about 600 islanders gathered at
an estate near Lares to launch
an insurrection and announce a
provincial government. The
rebellion - The Cry of Lares - was
quickly suppressed by Spanish
authorities. Nonetheless, Spain
subsequently granted Puerto Rico
liberal reforms that included
representation in the Spanish
Cortes (parliament).
&
Playa de Jobos
Prime surf washes ashore at
this windswept beach favored by
surfers. Its laid-back appeal is
enhanced by its many simple
seafood restaurants and bars.
You can watch surfers pass by
the rugged limestone headland,
Punta Jacinto, where spray blasts
from a blowhole. The snorkeling
is good in sheltered coves, and
horseback rides on the beach
add further thrills.
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Map C1
*
Bosque Estatal de
%
Karst Country
Covering a sixth of the
island, this distinctive landscape
of sheer-sided
mogotes
(rock
formations) and plunging canyons
is the remnant of a great lime-
stone plateau that rose from the
sea in the Jurassic era and has
since been worn away by water.
The region is stippled with free-
standing formations rising 985 ft
(300 m) or more, and riddled with
caverns and sinkholes.
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Map E3
^
Parque Ceremonial
Guajataca
This 6-sq mile (15-sq km)
preserve is laced with close to
28 miles (44 km) of trails that
weave through karst terrain.
Before you begin your hike, pick
up a map at the ranger station,
from where a short trail leads
to a
mirador
(lookout tower).
Follow the more challenging
8-mile (13-km) Sendero Cabralla
to Lago de Guajataca, a peaceful
Indígena Caguana
A great starting point for learning
about the island's indigenous
culture, Caguana was one of the
most important Taíno ceremonial
sites in the Caribbean. The site,
which was first excavated in
Bateye
at Parque Ceremonial Indígena Caguana
68
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