GEOGRAPHY 15 



lier about 225 meters high. It is separated from the mainland by 

 salt marshes. 



Monte Isabel de Torres rises steeply almost from the water's edge 

 at Puerto Plata on the north coast to an altitude of 815 meters above 

 sea level and is a conspicuous landmark, usually swathed in clouds. 

 In the area surrounding Puerto Plata the mountains lie back from 

 the shore, and the area between them and the sea is hilly and rolling. 

 This region was repeatedly traversed by Dr. W. L. Abbott in the 

 course of his natural history investigations. Several archeologi- 

 cal specimens were collected by him from caves located in these 

 mountains. 



Samana Peninsula has rugged but not very high mountains. It 

 projects about 50 kilometers eastward from the northeast corner of 

 the main island mass. Its average width from north to south is less 

 than 12 kilometers. The west end of Samana Peninsula is separated 

 from the mainland by a flat swampy area, the Gran Estero, which 

 is in process of being closed, partly by uplift of the land and partly 

 by filling in with silt brought down by the Rio Yuna. 



The Cibao Valley, lying between the northern and central 

 mountains, extends from Manzanillo Bay and Monte Cristi east- 

 ward to Samana Bay, a distance of about 225 kilometers. It ranges 

 in width from about 15 to 45 kilometers. In the vicinity of Santiago 

 this great valley is divided by a low, hilly watershed into two nearly 

 equal parts. 



The western half of the Cibao Valley is drained by the Rio Yaque 

 del Norte, which flows northwestward into Manzanillo Bay. Most 

 of the country here is rolling and open, and the streams in it are 

 deeply intrenched below the general level. The greater part of the 

 w^est end of the Cibao Valley is occupied by the broad delta and 

 flood plain of Rio Yaque ; farther upstream the flood plain narrows 

 and finally disappears. 



The eastern half of the Cibao Valley is drained by the Rio Yuna, 

 which flows eastward into Samana Bay, and its principal tributary, 

 Rio Camu. The eastern part of the Cibao Valley includes the fertile 

 " Vega Real " which extends from the swampy lands at the head of 

 Samana Bay nearly to Santiago. The Vega Real is among the most 

 impressively fertile districts in the world. Its nearly level plains 

 yield large crops of cacao, tobacco, and bananas, and its grassy 

 savannas afford excellent pasturage. It is traversed by the 

 Ferrocarril de Santiago y Samana, of interest principally because 

 of the fact that it reaches neitlier Santiago nor Samana. This is in 

 part due to the sparse Dominican population characteristic even of 

 this most attractive portion of the Republic. 



At the time of the discovery the vega (meadow) which extends 

 from the valley of the Yaque del Norte in the north to the valley of 



