Site Report: Vinales

Visits

• 2024-01-27: In our "Support for the Cuban people", we continued to Vinales in an ancient Ford station wagon collectivo taxi. It was extremely uncomfortable, and the two hour drive took nearly four hours. We were stopped twice by the police to check documentation, and then we made an unscheduled stop at some tobacco farm where we were given a tour and some light pressure to buy honey, cigars, and rum (with tastings). I payed about 10 times the going rate for some honey. Once we arrived in Vinales, we drove around the entire town looking for the Casa Particular of some people in the taxi. I had enough of the taxi ride, and it seems like every house in Vinales is a Casa Particular. So, we just got out of the taxi on the spot and stayed at the nearest open residence. We then ate some "tacos" at a local restaurant. After lunch, we asked a taxi driver about going somewhere to do a hike, and we were astounded when he gave us some WALKING directions to a nearby place called Cueva de la Vaca. We walked to the cave, and after that we drank a coconut at a farm en route. Later that night, we walked to the center of town to eat in another restaurant followed by watching some live music in a bar.
• 2024-01-28: In "Support for the Cuban people" we had a nice breakfast in our Casa Particular. Then, we met a bird guide named Francisco and a driver who took us in a 1952 Chevy to go look for some birds just out of town. I highly recommend Francisco for birding, he was really fun to hang around with. [email protected]. We were unable to find the Cuban Grassquit as it seems that every last one of them has been captured for cages. We saw a bunch of Cuban Bullfinch in cages as well, so those are probably en route to extinction as well... After the birding trip, we were dropped off in town where we ate some pizza in a local restaurant. Then we rented some bicycles through our Casa Particular and rode around Vinales. We stopped at an art studio where Barbara bought a small painting. I bought a bottle of rum from a shop near the studio. Then we went into a valley with a large mural and attended a pig roast at some farm. Everyone was super welcoming, and a guy at the party rolled a cigar on the spot for me. I felt light-headed for a full day after smoking that cigar.

Species Seen

Lifelists

• North America
• World

Trips

• Cuba