Marvel at how flowering cacti and dry forests along the highway from Oviedo to Pedernales are replaced in less than half an hour with tropical pine forests when turning north inland into the Bahoruco Mountain Range, with its heights of more than 6,500 feet (2,000+ meters). The rest stop built by the government is situated at a height of 3,845 feet (1,165 meters) with an observatory that features several mountain trails. The natural depression, bordered by heights of up to 5,940 feet (1,800 meters), entails a 2,300-foot (700-meters) drop. Temperatures here range from 32°F (0°C) in the morning to 77°F or 25°C at noontime.

   Lovely white-sanded beach enroute to Pedernales, just one kilometer before Bahía de las Aguilas. There is a revamped airfield, across from the beach.

   Accessed primarily by boat or by jetting down an angular road aboard a rugged 4 SUV vehicle, this area is in striking contrast to the abundant greenery of the Bahoruco Mountain Range although both are located

within the same Jaragua National Park. The protected beach of Bahia de las Aguilas surprises everyone with its crystalclear waters. It is best to drive there or take the boat trip in the afternoon to avoid the too hot mid-day sun. There are no palm trees on these white sands, where turtles nestle beside tranquil waters and a dry forest, exemplifying the flora and fauna that has existed even before the Spanish settlers arrived. It is part of the Jaragua-Bahoruco-Enriquillo Biosphere Reserve that was added to UNESCO’s World Network of Biosphere Reserves in November 2002.

    Check out Dona Chava’s small rustic boutique hotel or other basic accommodations. Local restaurants serve delicious freshly-caught small lobsters, crab and conch.

   Popular stops on the way back to Santo Domingo from Barahona are Baní and San Cristóbal. Stopover in Baní for purchasing Dominican sweets on the highway, visiting the museum of Cuban history hero Máximo Gómez, or the Salinas dunes and windsurfing area. San Cristóbal is home to the Pomier Caves, the most important in the Caribbean.

   Scuba diving off the coast of Pedernales is considered tops in the Caribbean, but there are no dive shops, so divers need to bring their own filled tanks and guides.

   While Barahona is a busy city, it has yet to awaken to the tourist trade, and thus its shops still primarily only cater to local needs.

   Given the active nature of this destination, not much should be expected from the night time activities that are limited to the discos that play Latin and Dominican music and beer bars in the cities of Barahona and Pedernales. For the most part restaurant dining and quiet mingling to restore forces for the next day are in order.