t Through the lush, mogote-punctuated Valle de Viñales
A unique landscape awaits visitors to the Viñales Valley. With caves, murals, and hot springs, there is plenty to experience in the valley, besides the bizarre mogotes.
t Through the lush, mogote-punctuated Valle de Viñales
Experience Cuba
t The Iglesia del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús is a pretty church, with a distinctive blue door, in the town of Viñales.
Resembling sugar loaves, mogotes are gigantic karst formations, characteristic of the valley. They are like stone sentinels keeping watch over the corn and tobacco fields, the red earth with majestic royal palm trees, and the farmhouses with roofs of palm leaves. According to legend, centuries ago a group of Spanish sailors who were approaching the coast thought the profile of the mogotes they glimpsed in the fog looked like a church organ. Hence the name Sierra de los Órganos, given to the network of hills in this area.
The mogotes are all that remains of what was once a limestone plateau. Over a period lasting millions of years, underground aquifers eroded the softer limestone, giving rise to large caverns whose ceilings later collapsed, forming the hollow mogotes, with their vast internal caverns. Take a tour of the caves via the Centro de Visitantes (tel: 48 796 144).
Painter González used cracks in the rock to create special effects of light and color in his mural.
Picture Perfect
For the best panoramic vistas of the iconic mogotes, head to the mirador (lookout) beside the Hotel Los Jazmines. Sunrise and sunset are particularly rewarding times to snap that striking shot.