Castro's Guerrilla Headquarters in Cuba open to visitors

Always one of my favorite sites to visit in Cuba, the Sierra Maestra – the rugged mountain chain in eastern Cuba – was the base for Fidel Castro's guerrilla war to topple the Batista regime.

Castro's headquarters, La Comandancia de la Plata, has been open to visitors on and off for two decades. However, photography was never permitted and cameras had to be left behind before setting out on the guided hike. Finally, photography restrictions at La Comandancia de la Plata have been lifted. You can now photograph freely for a CUC5 fee.

Last December, I revisited La Comandancia de la Plata for the first time since my motorcycle journey in 1996 (see Mi Moto Fidel: Motorcycling Through Castro's Cuba [2]).

Preserved as a museum, La Comandancia is reached by a ridgetop trail from Alto de Naranjo, high above Santo Domingo, where you must register and hire a guide at the Centro de Visitantes. Visits cost CUC20 per person. You'd be wise to hire a jeep-taxi (CUC5) for the breathtaking first-gear ascent from Santo Domingo to Alto de Naranjo; this five-kilometer drive is not for the faint of heart, and not all rental cars have the power to make the ascent, which is inclined 40 degrees in places!

The camp occupies a large forest clearing atop the crest, reached only by a three-kilometer-long tortuous narrow track that for most of the way is a scramble over rocks and mud. The 16 wooden structures are set well apart and were well hidden beneath foliage to conceal them from air attacks. Castro's own cabin was built against the side of a ravine, with an escape route into the creek. It consisted of a bedroom with double bed for Fidel and Celia Sánchez, plus an office, a kitchen, and a deck, where Castro received visitors. You can also see the rustic hospital (run by Che Guevara, who was a qualified doctor), guest house, a simple museum displaying revolutionary relics, plus the field telephones and radio transmitters of Radio Rebelde, high above the camp.

For further information, buy Moon Cuba [3]

Copyright © Christopher P. Baker