Desembarco del Granma National Park
Desembarco del Granma is a national park in the southeastern part of Cuba in the province of Granma. The name of the park can be translated into Russian as "Landing from the Granma". Granma is the yacht on which Raul Castro, Che Guevara and 79 other associates arrived in Cuba to organize the revolution. The park was established in 1986 and has an area of 261 km2.
The lands of the national park are a unique geological and geomorphological area with a large number of sea terraces, cliffs, as well as impressive karst cliffs. Desembarco del Granma has been preserved almost in its original form, near the shore there is one of the largest limestone terrace systems in the world, called the Escalera de los Hijantes (Staircase of the Giants). The upper point of the terraces is at a height of 360 meters and gradually 8 steps on the ground and 12 steps under water goes to a depth of 180 meters. There is lush vegetation on the steps of the terraces. Due to the sea currents under water, visibility reaches 40 meters, which makes these places very attractive for divers. The underwater world impresses with its bizarre formations of coral and algae, caves and grottos inhabited by a large number of tropical fish, manatees and turtles.
Desembarco del Granma has an extremely rich flora. 512 varieties of plants have been recorded here, while over 200 of them do not grow anywhere else. There are few animals - only 13 mammals, 44 species of retilia, seven amphibians and 110 species of birds. Among them, it is worth noting the protected Caribbean manatee, the blue-quail pigeon, as well as the sunsunito hummingbird, which, at 63 mm in size, is the smallest bird in the world. In the sea, among the corals, you can see various turtles: olive, Ridley turtle, Hawksbill.
Hundreds of years ago, the Tainu Indians conducted their rituals in the park, the remains of which were found here. At the moment, approximately 900 people live in the park, who are direct descendants of the Tainu Indians. Desembarco del Granma is a little-known tourist destination. According to recent estimates, no more than a thousand tourists visit the park every year, including Cubans themselves.
