Pico Duarte is the highest peak in the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

, on the island of

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ; es, La Española; Latin and french: Hispaniola; ht, Ispayola; tnq, Ayiti or Quisqueya) is an island in the Caribbean that is part of the Greater Antilles. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and th ...

and in all the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean ...

. At above sea level, it gives the Dominican Republic the 16th-highest maximum elevation of any island in the world. Additionally, it is only northeast of the region's lowest point, Lake Enriquillo, in the Cordillera Central range, also the largest in the country and island. The Cordillera Central extends from the plains between San Cristóbal and

Baní Baní is a capital town of the Peravia Province, Dominican Republic. It is the commercial and manufacturing center in the southern region of Valdesia. The town is located 65 km south of the capital city Santo Domingo. Baní is the headquarte ...

to the northwestern peninsula of

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and s ...

, where it is known as the Massif du Nord. The highest elevations of the Cordillera Central are found in the Pico Duarte and Valle Nuevo

massif In geology, a massif ( or ) is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole. The term also refers to a ...

History

The first reported climb was made in 1851 by a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

who was British

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throu ...

: Sir Robert Hermann Schomburgk. He named the mountain "Monte Tina" and estimated its height at . In 1912, Father Miguel Fuertes dismissed Schomburgk's calculations after climbing La Rucilla and judging it to be the tallest summit of the island. A year later, Swedish botanist Erik Leonard Ekman sided with Schomburgk's estimate, and called the sister summits "Pelona Grande" and "Pelona Chica" ("Big Bald One" and "Small Bald One", respectively). During the Rafael Trujillo Molina regime, the taller of the two was called "Pico Trujillo". After the dictator's death, it was renamed Pico Duarte, in honor of Juan Pablo Duarte, one of the Dominican Republic's founding fathers. At the summit is an east-facing bronze

bust Bust commonly refers to: * A woman's breasts * Bust (sculpture), of head and shoulders * An arrest Bust may also refer to: Places * Bust, Bas-Rhin, a city in France *Lashkargah, Afghanistan, known as Bust historically Media * ''Bust'' (magazin ...

of Duarte atop a stone pedestal, next to a flagpole that flies the Dominican flag and a

cross A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a s ...

Geography

The mountain's elevation was debated for decades, up until the mid-1990s, when it was still held to be high. In 2003, it was measured by a researcher using GPS technology, and it was found to be tall. The official elevation as recorded by Dominican government agencies is , a measurement that has been confirmed by several groups of hikers using personal GPS consoles (the most recent verified one in January 2005). In 2021 a team of researchers using GSSM technology found that it's altitude is of 3,101.1 meters with a margin of error of 0.3 meters. It is only a few meters taller than La Pelona, its twin, which stands at , and from which it is separated by a

col In geomorphology, a col is the lowest point on a mountain ridge between two peaks.Whittow, John (1984). ''Dictionary of Physical Geography''. London: Penguin, 1984, p. 103. . It may also be called a gap. Particularly rugged and forbidding co ...

between summits that is approximately wide, and is officially named ''Valle del Baíto'', but unofficially called ''Valle de Lilís''. The col's mean elevation is .

Ecology

The area has a

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...

that very few would associate as typical of a Caribbean island, with cool temperatures all year round, going several degrees below freezing during winter nights. The mountain and the surrounding landscape are covered in ''pino de cuaba'' ('' Pinus occidentalis'') forests. The pines frequently host the

epiphyte An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...

s ''guajaca'' ('' Tillandsia'' spp.) and the

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson ha ...

'' Dendropemon pycnophyllus''. Some areas, like the Valle de Lilís, are treeless meadows of tussock-like ''pajones'' (''

Danthonia ''Danthonia'' is a genus of Eurasian, North African, and American plants in the grass family. Members of this genus are sometimes referred to as oatgrass, but that common name is not restricted to this genus. Other common names include heathgrass ...

domingensis''). The

understory In forestry and ecology, understory (American English), or understorey (Commonwealth English), also known as underbrush or undergrowth, includes plant life growing beneath the forest canopy without penetrating it to any great extent, but abo ...

is composed of

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from tree ...

such as ''

Lyonia heptamera ''Lyonia'' may refer to: * '' Lyonia (brachiopod)'', a fossil genus of brachiopods in the family Monticuliferidae * ''Lyonia (plant)'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Ericaceae * Lyonia (journal) ''Lyonia'' was an electronic, peer-revie ...

'', '' Myrica picardae'', ''

Myrsine coriacea ''Myrsine'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Primulaceae. It was formerly placed in the family Myrsinaceae before this was merged into the Primulaceae. It is found nearly worldwide, primarily in tropical and subtropical areas. It con ...

'', '' Ilex tuerkheimii'', ''

Garrya fadyenii ''Garrya fadyenii'' is a species of flowering shrub known by the common name Fadyen's silktassel. It is native to the West Indies, specifically Jamaica, Hispaniola, and the former Cuban provinces of Oriente and Santa Clara (Las Villas). It grow ...

'' and '' Baccharis myrsinites''. All of these species are adapted to the acidic

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former ...

of the area. Pinus occidentalis on Pico Duarte

Reptiles in the area include the endemic '' Panolopus marcanoi''. Birds seen in the area include the endemic Hispaniolan palm crow (''Corvus palmarum palmarum''), Antillean siskin (''Carduelis dominicensis''), rufous-throated solitaire (''Myadestes genibarbis''), Hispaniolan crossbill (''Loxia megaplaga'') (abundance directly related to the Hispaniolan pine cone crop), and

Hispaniolan trogon The Hispaniolan trogon (''Priotelus roseigaster'') is a species of bird in the family Trogonidae. It is endemic to Hispaniola (both Haiti and the Dominican Republic) in the Caribbean. It is one of the only two trogon species found in the Caribbea ...

(''Priotelus roseigaster''); at lower elevations the

Hispaniolan amazon The Hispaniolan amazon or Hispaniolan parrot (''Amazona ventralis''), colloquially known as cuca, is a species of Amazon parrot in the family Psittacidae. It is endemic to Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), and has been introduced t ...

(''Amazona ventralis''), scaly-naped pigeon (''Patagioenas squamosa'') and

golden swallow The golden swallow (''Tachycineta euchrysea'') is a swallow endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (split between the Dominican Republic and Haiti) and was once native to Jamaica, but is now extirpated there. It is restricted to is ...

(''Tachycineta euchrysea'') can be seen. There are two extant mammals endemic to Hispaniola whose remaining range includes the broadleaf forests of lower elevations: the primarily nocturnal Hispaniolan solenodon (''Solenodon paradoxus'') and the

Hispaniolan hutia The Hispaniolan hutia (''Plagiodontia aedium'') is a small, endangered, rat-like mammal endemic to forests on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (split between Haiti and the Dominican Republic). It lives in burrows or trees, and is active at nigh ...

(''Plagiodontia aedium''). Both are rarely seen, with the latter considered Endangered.

Wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species i ...

s, descendants of animals introduced to the island during the colonial period, have been reported. A

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...

in 2003 altered the landscape of a large section of the eastern side of the mountain. As of 2008, the hillside of charred trees is now a new-growth forest. While thousands of charred trees are still standing, a large variety of indigenous grasses and small plants are now growing.

Climbing information

There is a system of trails leading up to the summit, with trailheads at several locations (see topo map for their final stretches to the summit). The easiest access is from the town of La Ciénaga, near Jarabacoa. The trail is to the summit, with a total elevation change of , and a shelter away from the summit at La Comparticion. Tourist-friendly travel agencies can help arrange trips from this trailhead, using mules in their employ to help lug food, sleeping bags and supplies for the overnight stay in the shelter.A comprehensive guide for Pico Duarte
A few fresh water springs labeled "potable" are along the trail, but water filters or purifying tablets are recommended. The majority of hikers travel by this route. A trailhead northwest of the town of San Juan de la Maguana is the starting point for four-day (three-night) trips that end at the Ciénaga trailhead (or, for an extra day of hiking, back at the starting location), which are run entirely by local Dominicans who cook the food provided, and help campers along the way. Each night is spent in shelters, and due to the distance traveled, riding by mule-back is strongly encouraged. Far off the beaten path, it is highly unlikely that anyone else can be seen on the trail until the merge with the trail from La Ciénaga. According to Dominican Park Service representatives in La Cienaga, while approximately 1,000 hikers visit Pico Duarte during each of the months of December and January; only about 10 to 15 people a day hike the mountain during off-season months.

References

* Dod, A. S. (1992). ''Endangered and Endemic Birds of the Dominican Republic''. Cypress House * Marcano, J. E.. ''República Dominicana: Sus regiones – Cordillera Central''

* Schubert, A.; Pérez, R. (1998). ''Hacia el Techo del Caribe: Caminatas al Pico Duarte''. Kiskeya Alternative.

External links

Climbing Pico Duarte, The Tallest Mountain in the West Indies
2012 travelogue in three parts at ''Uncommon Caribbean'' website. {{Authority control

Duarte Duarte may refer to: * Duarte (surname), person's surname (or composed surname) and given name * Duarte, California, United States * Duarte Province, Dominican Republic * Pico Duarte, mountain in the Dominican Republic See also

* * {{disambigu ...

Geography of Hispaniola Mountains of the Caribbean Highest points of countries