Las Terrazas - Cuba's Eco Village

Las Tarrazas is Cuba's first and only eco village which started off as a coffee plantation land refurbishment project in the late 60's. This area was the site of Cuba's earliest coffee farms and the ruins of these facilities can still be seen today while hiking among the surrounding UNESCO biosphere reserve. 

After massive deforestation the land was susceptible to deadly land slides and soil erosion causing water contamination during the heavy rain seasons. The first thing that was done was to asses the contours of the land, map the drainage lines, and terrace the land accordingly. 

Above you see during dry season the line formed by the water-way which runs through lowest centre point of the terraced land. Banana circles are planted among major water drain points.

Most of the hill side is planted with now mature trees for erosion protection.

The houses are lovely and usually set up on concrete stilts with well planted under ways and banks. 

Among the grassed areas of Las Tarrazas one can find goats tethered to stakes to control grazing. Chickens and ducks seem to like hanging out among the gardens.











Below is the entrance to El Romero, which is Las Terrazas's veggie restaurant. They seem to be following sound eco-friendly practices and provide interesting information about how they grow and supply their place.

We stayed on the at the Rio San Juan campsite that comes with little bungalow teepees that can be rented out for around 25$. We ended up just hammock camping underneath for far cheaper although it was a bit cold on the second night with no sleeping bags. There is a wonderful swimming hole with water cascading over the rocks into a deep enough area for diving. 

If you ever want to go, there is a way to easily hike into Las Terrazas from the main highway. Just north of the main entrance road marked with a 'Welcome to Las Terrazas' sign there are a few farm houses along a dirt road. It's easy to see with a GPS map a trail going from that road into the camping area Rio San Juan with the swimming hole. Nice hike in rewarded with a cool swim followed by a 2km walk from the campsite to the main village. Seems to me the ideal way to start your visit. 

I saw these all over Cuba near farms and factories. They are about 4 stories tall and the the base area of a normal sized house. My first guess says a water collection and storage tanks used to gravity feed water to wherever it needs to go. 

Next stop - Guatemala !!!