Jarabacoa Things to Do

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My family and I are currently visiting the Dominican Republic. None of us know any Spanish at all, except for Hola (hello). I have my brand new English to Spanish book in hand. The kids are saying we're on a great adventure. We arrived in Santo Domingo and spent a few days there. The Colonial Zone is fantastic. There are lots of places to eat and lots of architecture to see. We went to Columbus park and saw the statue of Christopher Columbus. We were on a photo walk and took quite a few pics. We decided to take some advise from a friend here and took off for Jarabacoa. Jarabacoa is beautiful. There are mountains all around and it's much cooler here than in Santo Domingo. We went horseback riding near the river and then saw a place called Rancho 2 Rios. They had horseback riding as well, but we didn't know it at the time. The property is beautiful. There is a large pool and a jacuzzi. We decided to stay the night. The rooms are large and very nice. The kids love it because they show movies at night on a large flat screen tv outside. At breakfast we were asking what there is to do and as they were going through a great list of possibles they said something about gold panning. My husband perked up. This was something he's been wanting to do for a while. Now the kids are all jazzed up about finding gold and striking it rich. We were given the number of the Jarabacoa Gold Company. They told us about an all day trip to Manabao, in the mountains. We all had a great time looking for and finding some gold.We also were told a lot of history about the Taino indians and Christopher Columbus. The kids were hanging on every word.When it was lunch time we were taken to a very small village. There were Dominican ladies standing outside in a outdoor kitchen making our lunch. We all had a great time and have so many great pictures to share. Here are a few. We'll let you know how the rest of the trip pans out. Next step Samana.

Explore the middle of the island of the Dominican Republic. I got to know a guy doing gold panning. Was really great !! Going all day to the river panning for gold and REALLY found a lot of gold you can keep. BIG fun and a great experience.

www.jarabacoagold.webs.com

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Jarabacoa Gold Company is the only ones who offer this type of excursion. They offer 1/2 day and full day Gold panning trips to the creeks and streams around Jarabacoa. We went on a full day excursion to Manaboa, near the base of Pico Duarte, although they have several sites in which they take guests. We had a great time, great food, great views that most people don't get to see and I found a little over a half gram of Gold flake that day. Be sure and take water and insect repellent as one of the sites we panned there were a few bugs. All and all well worth the time and money. They also can help you with white water rafting, hiking, horseback riding and lodging.

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Rancho Baiguate offers lots of fun activities. I went horseback riding to the Jimenoa and the Baiguate Waterfall, white water rafting on the Yaque del Norte River, and did the Ropes Course. All the guides and staff were really fun, friendly and helpful. For the horseback riding, you have local boys riding with you on the back of your horse, some as young as 8 years old! It's a wonder how he saw over my head!

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The waterfall, Salto de Jimenoa, is located a few kilometers outside Jarabacoa. There is a parking lot at the entrance, and from the parking lot you must take a 20-25 minutes walk to reach the fall. Most of the walk is along the river, so it's a really nice walk.

When you get to the waterfall, it is possible to take a swim in the second pool after the fall – it’s prohibited to swim in the first pool. At the fall, there is a very small track or path going up – its nearly hidden – and from the top you can have a small glance of the fall from above. BUT I don’t think it’s a part of the official track system and it’s a difficult track – therefore I will not recommend doing it.

There used to be a restaurant at the waterfall (El Salto Restaurant), but it was closed - and it looked like it has been closed for some time. Remember to bring you own food and drinks (water if it’s a hot day).

There are four falls in the area of Jarabacoa, and Salto de Jimenoa is not the highest fall - but the only one I have visited...

Admission fee:
In 2006, the entrance fee to the waterfall area was 20 peso, and you must also pay a few pesos to use the parking lot.

La Confluencia is a place where 2 rivers meet: Yaque del Norte (the longest river of the country) and Jimenoa. As a child I remember it to "swim" and play and have fun with other kids on the Jimemoa river side, as it was the less deep one. If you're going there, take precautions if you want to swim by the deep part, sort of in the middle of the "intersection", because the currents there can become strong enough to cause accidents (and they have).

This is *the* place for trekking, rafting on the Yaque del Norte river (the longest on the country and the Caribbean) and canyoning. They also offer a tour to the Baiguate and Jimenoa waterfalls on horse back or on jeep and excursions to Pico Duarte, the highest mountain in the Antilles.

If you feel like spending the night there, you can choose between their own hotel or Hotel Pinar Dorado. Rancho Baiguate also has a buffet restaurant and their a la carte El Rancho.