Viñales Valley

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

UNESCO World Heritage Site
Viñales Valley
Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List

Type	Cultural
Criteria	iv
Reference	840
UNESCO region	Latin America and the Caribbean
Inscription history
Inscription	1999 (23rd Session)

Viñales Valley (Spanish: ''Valle de Viñales'') is a karstic depression in Cuba. The valley has an area of 132 km² (51 sq mi) and is located in the Sierra de los Órganos mountains (part of Guaniguanico range), just north of Viñalesm in the Pinar del Río Province.

Overview

Manuel Rivera-Ortiz: Tobacco Harvesting, Viñales Valley, Cuba 2002

Tobacco and other crops are cultivated on the bottom of the valley, mostly by traditional agriculture techniques. Many caves dot the surrounding hillfaces (Cueva del Indio, Cueva de José Miguel).

The conspicuous cliffs rising like islands from the bottom of the valley are called mogotes.

Viñales is a major tourist destination offering mainly hiking and rock climbing. The local climbing scene has started to take off in the last few years with many new routes being discovered resulting in an increase in local tourism.^[1]

Conservation

Many endemic plants and animals are specific to this valley. Flora found in the region include Bombax emarginatum, Mountain Palm (Gaussia princeps), Ekmanianthe actinophilla, and Microcycas calocoma. Fauna includes Bee Hummingbird (Mellisuga helenae, zunzún), Cuban Trogon (Priotelus temnurus), Cuban Tody (Todus multicolor), Cuban Solitaire (Myadestes elisabeth) and Cuban Grassquit (Tiaris canorus).^[2]

The Valle de Vinales is a wonderful tourist destination. It is one of the lushest parts of Cuba.

Photo gallery

Palenque de los Cimarrones
Viñales Valley
Fog over Viñales Valley
Viñales Valley
Viñales Valley
Viñales Valley
Viñales Valley
Mural in Viñales Valley

References

↑ High Sports. "Article on Cuban Climbing". Retrieved 2008-04-07. (English)
↑ Radio Habana. "Parque Nacional Viñales". Archived from the original on 2007-10-05. Retrieved 2007-10-10. (Spanish)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Viñales Valley.

UNESCO Viñales Valley webpage
Main website for rock climbing in Cuba, especially Vinales.
Calzadilla, Erasmo (2009-06-18). "Dago’s Life in Viñales, Cuba". Havana Times.

v t e Protected areas of Cuba

National parks	Alejandro de Humboldt Caguanes Ciénaga de Zapata Desembarco del Granma Guanahacabibes Jardines de la Reina Sierra Cristal Turquino Viñales

World heritage sites	Alejandro de Humboldt Camagüey Cienfuegos Desembarco del Granma Old Havana San Pedro de la Roca South-East Coffee Plantations Trinidad Valley de los Ingenios Viñales Valley

Biosphere reserves	Baconao Buena Vista Ciénaga de Zapata Cuchillas del Toa Guanahacabibes Sierra del Rosario

v t e World Heritage Sites in Cuba

Alejandro de Humboldt National Park Historic Centre of Camagüey Urban Historic Centre of Cienfuegos Archaeological Landscape of the First Coffee Plantations in the South-East of Cuba Desembarco del Granma National Park Old Havana and its Fortifications San Pedro de la Roca Castle, Santiago de Cuba Trinidad and the Valley de los Ingenios Viñales Valley

Coordinates: 22°37′0″N 83°43′0″W / 22.61667°N 83.71667°W / 22.61667; -83.71667 (Viñales Valley)

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.