Iguana Mama - Mountain Biking, Hiking & Ecological Adventures

It's easy to get to - thanks to low cost charter flights - and it's cheap when you're there. The crime rate is low, the food's good, the climate's perfect the beaches superb and the scenery stunning. And, what's more, the locals love cycling.

Stop for a breather in some village or other and somebody is bound to bring a chair out onto the pavement for you to sit down - if someone else has not already invited you into their home!

The Dominican Republic - two-thirds of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, which was Christopher Columbus' landfall - is a third world country that's rich in culture, colour and all-round good vibes.

It's full of surprises too. The highlands rise to well over 10,000 feet and you'll find landscapes which, save for the odd palm tree or ten could be in the gentler uplands of the European Alps, complete with pine trees and lush meadows. They are farmers here, with sizeable herds of dairy cattle; they also grow a huge range of fruit and veg and produce highly lauded rum.

But tourism is now the name of the game - though development in this likeable country is being sensibly controlled.

"Sustainable tourism" is the catchphrase, a principle closely adhered to by Tricia Thorndike, boss of the Iguana Mama Mountain Bike Center, in the little coastal resort town of Cabarete. It's a gadget-filled shop (tel: 001 809 571 0908) which also runs packaged MTB tours all over the island.

Determined to put a lot back into the society which provides the infrastructure to attract the visiting bike riders on whom her business depends, Trish, with her enthusiastic team, has been busy setting up a much-needed local library, as well as supporting the local high school and paying for a bright local girl to go through college in the States. They also help out local cyclists who, strapped for cash, often ride bikes which are held together with little more than chewing gum and a prayer.

And there's plenty of cycling for them to take part in - with events ranging from a full mountain bike programme to BMX and a major international tour for the road racing fraternity.

It's a great place to tour as well. Though some of the road surfaces on the island leave a lot to be desired, I enjoyed a glorious 30 mile descent on my visit, down a beautifully engineered stretch which wound its way down from the mountains in a series of exhilarating swoops and sweeping turns.

The north coast resort of Cabarete, within easy reach of the island's international airport of Puerta Plata, though quiet a haul from the bustling capital city of Santo Domingo (with its 1.5 million population) makes a great base for touring the island. Besides being the home of Iguana Mama, who will be happy to rent you top model Cannondale mountain bike or arrange a full itinerary, it's got a range of good hotels.

Try Caracol (tel: 001 809 571 0680) with its pool and good restaurant; the Nanny Estates luxury two-bedroom apartments (tel: 001 809 571 0744), with private pool and tennis court; the secluded Las Orquideas (tel: 001 809 571 0787), also boasting its own pool; or the Cabarete Beach (tel: 001 809 571 0755), ideally located right in the centre of town.

Should you like the place well enough to want to stay - as a number of American mountain bikers have already chosen to do - Hans Peter Nanny, a genial Swiss entrepreneur who speaks four languages and owns two of the best restaurants, Tropicoco and Chez Cabarete, has started a consulting business (tel: 001 809 571 0839) for people interested in taking up residency on the island. Trish Thorndike worked in Colorado as a ski instructor before she herself made that move: "I then went off backpacking in places like Asia, the South Pacific and Central and South America before I discovered mountain biking and the ideal place to do it - as well as finding myself a husband and a great lifestyle!"

Now employing a staff of 15 - a mix of locals, fellow Americans, and Brits - Iguana Mama was set up a year ago and has been going from strength to strength ever since.

"We approached 10 mountain bike companies to help us with our mountain bike tours programme but only Cannondale responded. They have been enormously supportive and helped set up a promotional tour of the island by their MTB trials rider and stuntman, Libor Karas, whose amazing displays got cycling onto nationwide TV and helped make it even more popular."