Travel Guide Parque Nacional Braulio Carrillo

Braulio Carrillo was the name of thethird president of the Republic of Costa Rica; it is now the name of a huge national park located northeast of San José. It is the closest to the capital, but one of the least known, because most of the time you just pass through it on your way to Limón on Highway 32. Moreover, if the sky is low, the prospect of going to see beyond the fog barrier doesn't even cross your mind. One is content to look at the ferns and the incredible leaves of the gunneras (the "poor man's umbrella", under which a whole family could protect itself from the rain) which descend towards the road. Too bad, because this park is very interesting. There are two areas in the park: Quebrada González and the Barva volcano. The ascent of the Barva volcano is so rewarding that the difficulties are quickly forgotten once you have reached its summit. Beware, the access to the volcano is not through Highway 32, but through Heredia, San José de la Montaña and the Sacramento entrance station, located in the southwest of the park.Braulio Carillo was founded in 1978 to face the risks of degradation of cloudforests and rainforests caused by the construction of the highway - which allowed the opening up of the Caribbean region of the country - and to reinforce the natural barrier that protects the Central Valley. Currently, 47,600 ha, 90% of which is primary forest, are protected, covering a sufficiently large and varied area between low-lying valleys and mountains (up to 2,900 m at Barva volcano), to allow for the development of at least five types of habitat according to the Holdridge classification. In this incredible ecosystem, almost half of the flora of Costa Rica has been recorded. The Zurquí tunnel marks the transition between the Pacific and Atlantic sides. The main entrance to the park is about 20 km from the tunnel exit. From there, 3 short paths allow to penetrate the forest and to finally discover the ceibo, the immense tree which dominates the tropical rain forest. El Ceibo, barely 1 km long, offers a view of the Sucio river which has its source in the Irazu volcano; Las Palmas, about 1.6 km long, is perfect for bird watching; and finally, the Botarrama trail, 2.5 km long, is slightly uneven but quite passable.