36 GEOLOGICAL RECONNAISSANCE OF THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC. 



above sea level, from which Manzanillo Bay and El Morro de Monte 

 Cristi are visible in the distance. Just beyond this ridge the trail forks, 

 one branch leading to Dajabon and the other southeastward along a steep 

 ridge between deep valleys. 



Near El Carrizal there is an even-topped pine-clad ridge about 713 meters 

 above sea level. The pines are tall and spindling. One tree 63.5 centi- 

 meters in diameter was measured, but few are as much as 45 centimeters 

 through. The ridge widens to a gently rolling upland at an altitude of 

 about 715 meters, the highest point registered by the barometer east of 

 Restauracion. The country is open, the soil is deep, and there are no rock 

 outcrops. The trail here is broader and more work has apparently been 

 done on it than in most other mountain districts in this country, possibly 

 on account of the military importance of a road so near the Haitian 

 boundary. 



From El Carrizal the trail descends to Restauracion at an altitude of 

 about 650 meters above sea level. Restauracion, although it is one of the 

 larger towns in the region and contains a small detachment of the Guardia 

 Nacional, presents a poverty-stricken appearance and shows few signs of 

 activity. 



The country between Restauracion and Joca is more mountainous than 

 that to the north and east. After crossing Rio Neita, a small stream near 

 Restauracion, the trail gradually rises toward the southeast to a ridge about 

 755 meters above sea level. The country here is rugged and is covered 

 with the usual small pines and grass. Below the ridge, and perhaps 15 

 kilometers from Restauracion, is La Cruz, a solitary house among the 

 pines. From the top of the next rise, which affords extensive vistas south- 

 westward into Haiti (see PI. XVI, B), the trail winds down into the valley 

 of Rio Guayajayuco to a gravel-covered bench at an altitude of about 

 500 meters above sea level. 



Rio Guayajayuco or Artibonito, here a swift stream about 18 meters 

 wide flowing in a steep-walled sandstone gorge, is crossed near the small 

 settlement of Guayajayuco. From Guayajayuco the trail leads over steep 

 hills for 9 or 10 kilometers, follows the bed of Rio Guayajayuco for about 

 one kilometer, and then ascends to the grassy bench upon which stands the 

 little settlement of El Amacey. 



At El Amacey begins the steep ascent of Loma Vieja. The trail climbs 

 some 650 meters above the river to an altitude of approximately 1,035 

 meters above sea level, but Loma Vieja still towers above the trail, its 

 summit lost in the mists. The vegetation is mostly shrubbery inter- 

 spersed with a few small pines. An abundance of filmy, greenish-gray 

 hanging moss gives it a ghostly appearance. 



The trail follows narrow ridges on the flanks of Loma Vieja for two or 

 three kilometers, then plunges down into the valley of Rio Joca, a swift 



