The Rio Macho Forest Reserve was created on January 23rd, 1964 to protect forested areas in the southern Talamanca Mountain region near Tapanti National Park and Chirripo National Park. Is Costa Rica’s largest protected area, composed of 13 different units for a total of over 200,000 acres, which is also part of the La Amistad Biosphere designated by UNESCO, where is located the Villa Mills Experimental Biological Station, at the premises formerly occupied by the CATIE.
Rio Macho Forest Reserve in conjunction with other Protected Areas like Chirripó National Park and Tapantí National Park, form the largest latitudinal biological corridor of the country where there are as many mountain high forests, moors, bogs, cloud forests and fauna associated with these ecosystems, much of it endangered.
Thanks to its three different life zones blended together: Premontane Rain forest, Low montane rain forest and montane rain forest, is the natural habitat to an immense variety of animals such as tapir (Tapirus bairdii), puma (Puma concolor), jaguar (Panthera onca), collared peccary (Pecari tajacu), wild rabbits (Sylvilagus dicei), squirrels (Sciurus sp.) mice bats, etc. Similarly, visitors can find some salamanders of the Bolitoglossa and Oedipina genus and frogs of the Hylidae, Leptodactylidae, Ranidae Centrolenidae families, amongst Caecilidae family, lizards such as the common lizard (Sceloporus malachiticus) and the caiman lizard (Mesaspis monticola); of snakes can appoint the Godman’s pit viper (Cerrophidion goodmani), the Side-striped palm viper (Bothriechis side) and some non-poisonous.
In birds, one of the most representative of the highlands is the Resplendent Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno) who lives here year round, as well as other species such as the Black-faced Solitaire (Myadestes melanops), the Sooty Robin or Sooty Thrush (Turdus nigrescens), the Swallow-tailed Kite (Elanoides forficatus), the Rufous-collared Sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis), the Black-billed Nightingale-thrush (Catharus gracilirostris), the Sooty-capped Bush-Tanager (Chlorospingus pileatus), the Collared Redstart (Myioborus torquatus), the Blue-and-white Swallow (Pygochelidon cyanoleuca), the Golden-browed Chlorophonia (Chlorophonia Callophrys) ,trogons, hummingbirds, woodpeckers, the unique silky flycatcher and the peg-billed finch, all of which are endemic, found only in this part of the world.
Some of the plant species include oaks, the cipresillo (querquis costaricensis), mountain needle and blueberry, all endemic to this area. Also, visitors can find hundreds of species of bromeliads, lichen moss, ferns and a  multitude of orchids and colorful flowers such as “guesneracias”. These forests are also characterized by a high incidence of epiphytic plants. The wild avocados, cedrillos and wild blackberries found in the area are one of the main sources of food for the Resplendent Quetzal, besides the oak forest and trees contribute highly to clean the air, though the fixation and storage of carbon and liberation of oxygen.
This is also an area of rivers, where the Savegre River plays a very important role, as host of a large population of Rainbow Trouts (Salmo gairdneri) and a supply of potable water through rural aqueducts.
Temperatures range from 0°C to 17°C, being January the coldest month, with minimum temperatures below zero and highs around 20°C, and the hottest month is April. The dry season lasts from December to April, being February and March the driest months. The rainy season lasts from May to November with September and October as the wettest. The average annual rainfall is around 2000mm.
Other nearby Costa Rica National Parks includes the Tapanti National Park, Chirripo National Park, Cerro Las Vueltas Biological Reserve, Los Quetzales National Park (Former Los Santos Forest Reserve), Cataratas Cerro Redondo Wildlife Refuge and Paramo Wildlife Refuge. There are no public park facilities at this wildlife refuge.
Getting to Rio Macho Forest Reserve:
Take the road from San Jose to Cartago, and take the exit for the Cerro de la Muerte, the Inter-American Highway, and at La Auxiliadora Sector, at Kilometer 92, where the community of Villa Mills is, turn left on an unpaved road leads to the community of Piedra Alta and Alto del Jaular. The Biological Station is at 1.8 km from the entrance. You can enter all types of vehicles throughout the year, with a distance of travel from San Jose of 2 hours, and one hour from San Isidro de Perez Zeledon.
By bus
Take a bus from the route San Jose – San Isidro de El General – Perez Zeledon which takes about 2 hours, making the stop at Villa Mills (MUSOC, 2222-2422 / TRACOPA, 2222-26-66). From here you can take taxi to Rio Macho Forest Reserve.
Location: between Tapanti and Chirripo National Parks, in Cartago province.
La Auxiliadora Sector GPS coordinates: 9.567953,-83.736736 (9°34’04.63″N, 83°44’12.25″W)
Size: 69,604ha (171,922 acres)
Altitude: from 2000m up to 3000m.
Pacific La Amistad Conservation Area (ACLA-P) Telephoe: +(506) 2771-4836 / 2771-3155
INFOTUR Tourist Information: 1192
Website: www.aclap.go.cr/rio_macho.php
Click here to view directions from Central Park, San Jose, Costa Rica TO Piedra Alta, Cartago, Costa Rica at Google Maps
Lankester Botanical Gardens is one of the most attractive places of the southeast of Cartago, where orchids are the main attraction. They were originally the private collection of Charles Lankester,  an English biologist who arrived to Costa Rica to work in coffee production. He established the garden in 1917, with the aim of preserving a collection of Central American native species. When he died the gardens were acquired by the North American Orchid Society and the English Stanley Smith Foundation, who, in 1973, passed it on to the University of Costa Rica (UCR), which administers it today. The gardens and forest are famed for their orchids with over 8000 on show, most of which are native to Mesoamerica. But there are also collections of bromeliads, bamboos, Cacti and succulents (plants with the ability to live for a certain period without water and at high temperatures) and a vast number of epiphytes, with around 3000 species of plants, mostly from Costa Rica and other Central American countries.
Particularly attractive are the heliconias, with their brightly colored flowers pollinated by hummingbirds, and similar species such as aves del paraíso, Marantaceae, Musaceae, gingers and Costus. Bromeliads are one of the plant groups that are best adapted to the Garden’s climatic conditions. Most of the members of this family are easily recognized by the arrangement of their leaves into a rosette and their colorful blossoms. There are around 200 native bromeliad species in Costa Rica and many of the trees in the Gardens are frequently covered with Tillandsia genus bromeliads.
With such a wealth of plants and blossoms, Lankester Gardens are highly attractive to birds and butterflies – over 100 species of birds have been recorded and the Gardens have been declared a refuge for migratory birds. The orchid blossoms are at their peak from February to April, but there is plenty to see throughout the year. The plant collections in conservatories come from botanical expeditions, donations and exchanges with botanical institutions  throughout the world. Most of the plants with reliable data as to origin have been collected and the associated information is added to the inventory and a database. They are also used as a basis for creating other reference collections such as flowers in liquid, dehydrated tissue for genetic material analysis, seeds, pollinaria, and other uses. The plant collections cultivated in conservatories are an essential resource for the Garden’s researchers and researchers from other institutions that work on joint projects. They also provide useful material for public display and other educational purposes.
The main pathway at the Lankester Botanical Gardens is universally accessible. There are wheelchairs available in the Garden’s reception area. The park also has a Garden Shop where you will find botanical literature, handcrafted goods, plants and souvenirs.
Getting to Lankester Botanical Gardens Park:
From San Jose take the highway to Cartago. Follow the signs to Paraiso de Cartago for about 4 km until you get to the Lankester Botanical Gardens. This distance can be traveled in about 30 minutes by car.
By bus
Take a bus from the route San Jose – Irazu Volcano,Cartago, which takes about 1 hour (Lumaca S.A., 2537-0347) and then take another bus Cartago – Jardines Lankester which takes about 25 minutes (Coopepar, 2574-6127). Ask the driver where to stop and then walk 800 meters to the entrance.
Location: 5km (3.7 miles) east of Cartago, on the road to Paraiso.
GPS Coordinates: 9.838597,-83.886236 (9°50’18.95″N, 83°53’10.45″W)
Size: 10.7ha (23 acres)
Schedule: from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Lankester Botanical Gardens Park Ranger station telephone: +(506) 2552-3247
Central Volcanic Cordillera Conservation Area (ACCVC) Telephone: +(506) 2268-1587 / 2268-8091
INFOTUR Tourist Information: 1192
Website: www.jbl.ucr.ac.cr
Facebook Profile: www.facebook.com/profile
Click here to view directions from Juan Santamaria International Airport (SJO), Alajuela, Costa Rica TO Paraiso, Cartago, Costa Rica at Google Maps
The ascent to the summit of the Irazú Volcano is definitely one of the most popular excursions near Cartago, with spectacular drive through fields of coffee, potatoes and cabbages, replaced by dairy farms at higher levels. Set in its own national park, the Irazú Volcano rises to 3432m (11,260ft), the highest of the volcanoes around the Central Valley.
The geological history of Irazú Volcano over the past tens of millions of years has been deduced by geologists, but the first written record we have of its volcanic activity only dates back to 1723 when the Spanish Governor of Costa Rica, Diego de la Haya Fernández, chronicled an eruption that began in February of that year. It was a spectacular eruption  that threw columns of smoke and ash into the air and sent chunks of incandescent rock rolling down the sides of the volcano, all accompanied by much noise and periodic seismic activity. Since then, there are accounts of a dozen other eruptions, some equally violent, others milder. The last series of events was from 1962 to 1965.
The summit has a complex of four craters, surrounded by swatches of dramatic volcanic ash. On top of Irazú you will find several deep craters in this barren windswept terrain that is reminiscent of a moonscape (like the Turrialba Volcano). Diego de la Haya crater – named after the Spanish governor – has a lake that is pea-green in color, tinted by minerals in the volcanic rock. A large adjacent crater is 300m (1080ft) deep, and another nearby crater is wide and shallow and covered with black volcanic ash, inviting comparisons with the surface of the moon. Irazú has erupted regularly over historical time. In August of 1962, Irazú began belching steam and by early 1963 it was producing such considerable amounts of ash and rock that people living and farming on the upper slopes had to be evacuated. The prevailing easterly winds eventually brought fallout of volcanic ash over much of the Central Valley, including the capital city of San José. It is said that the ash first began to settle on the city the same day in March of 1963 that the former U.S. President, John F. Kennedy, arrived in town to meet with the presidents of Central America and promote his regional economic development plan known as the Alliance for Progress – an ominous portent indeed. For the next two years, ash continued to drift down on the residents of San José and much of the rest of the valley making life very unpleasant and causing eye irritations and respiratory problems for many people. Finally, in March of 1965, this period of volcanic activity subsided and by 1966 a rock plug had solidified and blocked off the vent. Since that the Irazú Volcano has been fairly quiet, apart from its minor eruption in 1994, when some fumaroles activity occurred. Volcanologists speculate that Irazú Volcano has been erupting for over 500 years. It has recently entered a dormant phase to the great relief of farmers and property owners along the slopes.
The landscape of Irazú Volcano National Park is the only place in the Central Volcanic Range system that has Rainforest and Sub-Alpine Paramo – wind-swept, treeless plains situated from 10,827 to 13,124 feet. The vegetation around the peak is predictably stunted, with blackened dwarf oaks, ferns, lichens, cedar trees, interspersed with poor man’s umbrella plants and patches of scrubby grass add to the area’s otherworldly feel. Upon nearing the summit the destructive forces of volcanism begin to become more noticeable with the presence of scorched dead tree trunks that are still standing. The high elevation itself, being just above the tree line at this latitude, keeps the vegetation from growing very tall, but the periodic devastating effects of eruptions help to keep plant life rather sparse. In such an environment, wildlife is obviously scarce, but a few birds – the aptly named Volcano Junco, the Volcano Hummingbird, the Sooty Robin and Woodpeckers – manage to survive. You can also find coyotes, rabbits, weasels and armadillos
There is a ranger station 2km (1.25 miles) below the summit which has a restaurant with restrooms, a gift shop at the top in the parking area, a picnic site with tables, toilets and a mobile café, plus a small visitor’s center. Two trails lead from the car park to the summit. Good visibility is essential for a visit to Irazú Volcano, but don’t be deterred by an apparent shroud of fog – the summit is often above the clouds and bathed in splendid sunshine. On a clear day the views can be staggering and it is sometimes possible to see both the Caribbean and Pacific coasts. But don’t be fooled by the fact that Costa Rica is a tropical country; even here its cold at 3,400 meters with an average temperature on the summit of 7°C (45°F), overnight lows below freezing, so warm clothing is advisable. The wind chill on the summit can add to the sensation, too, so bring along several layers to assure comfort. The top of Irazú Volcano receives relatively little precipitation, with an annual average rainfall of just over two meters. The driest months are from December to April. The best time to view the craters is early in the morning, as cloud cover usually thickens after 10 a.m. Visitors during the dry season (December- April) are more likely to get clear views. A visit here is strictly a day trip, as there is no place to stay inside the park and camping is forbidden, but alternatively, visitors can book a full-day combo excursion that includes visits to Irazú, Lankester Botanical Gardens and the Orosi Valley.
Getting to Irazu Volcano National Park:
From San Jose, take the Pan-American Highway south to Cartago. Follow signs to the Irazu Volcano. There is a paved road that leads through the mountains and continues to the park where a small information center is located.
By bus
Take a bus from the route San Jose – Irazu Volcano, which takes about 1.5 hours (Buses Metrópoli, 2530-1064).
Location: 48km (30 miles) east of San Jose, in Cartago province.
GPS Coordinates: 9.978863,-83.835061 (9°58’37.20″N, 83°50’43.64″W)
Size: 2309ha (5705 acres)
Altitude: up to 3432m (11,260ft)
Schedule: from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Irazu Volcano National Park Ranger station Telephone: +(506) 2551-9398
Central Volcanic Cordillera Conservation Area (ACCVC) Telephone: +(506) 2268-1587 / 2268-8091
INFOTUR Tourist Information: 1192
Click here to view directions from Juan Santamaria International Airport (SJO), Alajuela, Costa Rica TO Irazú Volcano National Park in Cartago, Costa Rica at Google Maps
  
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