Travel Guide Santa Cruz De Cana

At the foot of Cerro Pirre (1,615 m), Santa Cruz de Cana, or simply Cana, is a scientific station managed by the NGO Ancon. It is one of the most isolated places in the country, considered one of the ten best spots in the world for bird watching. There are also many insects and mammals. In addition to the howler and spider monkeys that roam around the station, some people have seen jaguars roaming the grassy airstrip! Not far from the station, a path leads to an old locomotive eaten by the jungle. Connecting Cana to Boca de Cupe, it carried gold from the Espíritu Santo mine. In 1665, vast gold deposits were discovered and more than 20,000 people lived here in the early 18th century. The Spanish settlers eventually abandoned Cana in 1727 due to tropical diseases and recurrent pirate attacks. The jungle then took over for a century before an Anglo-French company revived mining for a few decades, which was finally abandoned in the early 20th century.