The Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge was created on February 16th, 1998, in order to protect and contribute to initiatives, programs and research to preserve and maintain the natural resources surrounding the Cerro Chompipe in Heredia.
Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge wants to help create awareness about the environmental protection importance, through the development and introduction of strategic educational programs to schools and visitors related to the investigations and research held by researchers at the refuge, enabling general and specific education to the country and its future generations, placing emphasis on the conservation of the countries and planets natural environments and resources.
With 57 hectars, the Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge has primarily and secondary cloud forests, which hosts many research projects of the varying disciplines, as well as university monitoring programs, located within the Central Volcanic Forest Reserve, at the south west borders of the Braulio Carrillo National Park.
The Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge is a rain forest with evergreen vegetation, with an abundance of epiphytes and mosses. It contains about 4000 different kinds of plants, among which stand out the Oak (Quercus costaricensis), Aguacatillo (Ocotea mollifolia), “Chile Muelo” (Drimys granadensis), “Arrayán blanco” (Weinmannia pinnata), “Lengua de Vaca” (Miconia tonduzii) and Poas Magnolia (Magnolia poasana). The topographical area consisting of hills and cliffs with various trails in which you can hike and appreciate the diverse types of trees, orchids, birds, springs and waterfalls.
Probably the most representative group of wildlife at Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge are birds, such as the Grey-breasted Wood-Wren (Henicorhina leucophrys), Sooty-capped Bush-Tanager(Chlorospingus pileatus), Common Bush-tanager (Chlorospingus ophthalmicus), Black-cheeked Warbler (Basileuterus melanogenys) and the Ruddy Treerunner (Margarornis rubiginosus). There are also other less common species such as the Collared Trogon (Trogon collaris), Black-faced Solitaire (Myadestes melanops), Golden-browed Chlorophonia (Chlorophonia callophrys), Tropical Kingbird (Tyrannus melancholicus), Brown Jay (Psilorhinus morio), Rufous-collared Sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis).
Similarly been reported several species of mammals such as the Brown-throated Sloth (Bradypus variegatus),Tayra (Eira barbara), Common Opossum (Didelphis marsupialis), Red Brocket (Mazama americana), Jaguarundi (Puma yagouaroundi), as well as Kinkajou (Potos flavus) and Variegated Squirrels (Sciurus variegatoides). Regarding to amphibians and reptiles, the sectors located on the  slopes of Cerro Chompipe, researchers have found some interesting species, including jungle-runners (Ameiva), as well as the endemic Holdridge’s Toad (Bufo holdridgei), which also is included in the official list of wildlife species with small populations.
The Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge has an average temperature of 23ºC (75ºF), receiving some 3000 mm (150 inches) of rain annual average, which is distributed unevenly throughout the year. The precipitations are scarce during the dry season which lasts from December to April and has an average minimum rainfall during the month of January. On the other hand, rainfall increased during the rainy season which covers the period from May to November, being October the wettest month.
The Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge’s staff will feel glad to welcome the visitors who want to take the adventure of hiking this beautiful area. Due to regular climate changes. it is recommend to always bring a rain coat and change of clothing, good hiking shoes, binoculars or a camera, water bottle and a plastic bag.
Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge offers the public a variety of activities to do such as ecotourism and educational activities, guided trails to waterfalls, Natural History Workshops (art with waste, art from the forest, open space classes about biodiversity and ecosystems, etc). Besides, with previous planning you can arrange activities for groups and special events such as weddings, company employee development and scouts training.
Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge has an administrative house, 6 rooms with capacity up to for 36 people, restrooms, showers with hot water, electricity and cell phone communication which can be limited due to weather conditions, as well as a dining area with fully equipped kitchen. Other nearby Costa Rica National Parks includes Jaguarundi Wildlife Refuge, La Paz Waterfall Gardens Nature Park and Wildlife Refuge and Braulio Carrillo National Park.
Getting to Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge:
From San Jose, take the highway to Heredia City. From Nacional University head north approximately 2 Km to San Rafael. From the NW corner of the towns main church, again head north for 5 km, past El Castillo country club and continue approximately 1 more kilometer. To your right look for a large wooden sign that says Refugio de Vida Silvestre Cerro  Dantas, and continue NE for another 3 km. At this point there are places where your car can be left. There is one 3.5 km from the refuge, if you plan to stay the whole day or to sleep. The next place, located 700 m closer to the refuge, is a public area ideal if staying just a couple of hours.
The refuge must inform that they are not responsible for cars left here, but generally is a safe place to park. If you visit with a 4WD vehicle and are an experienced driver, you can continue down the trail towards the refuge 1.25 km further to the first gate you see, or rather back before the first bridge is fine.
By bus:
Take a local bus from San Jose or Heredia to San Rafael (Buses Heredianos, 2222-8986), or take Ruta nº 424 bus from San José – Santo Domingo – San Pablo to San Rafael de Heredia (Transportes Rutas 407, 2261-8766). From San Rafael take another bus to Monte De La Cruz. You can catch this bus next to the big yellow church.
Take a bus from Heredia directly to Monte De Le Cruz. This bus stops next to the National University. These buses come every hour and are bright purple and have Monte De La Cruz written on its front. You can also take a bus from the university to San Rafael and then go on to Monte De La Cruz from there.
Location: 20 km NE of the National University in Heredia, Costa Rica.
Monte de La Cruz GPS Coordinates: 10.072475,-84.083064 (10°04’20.91″N, 84°04’59.03″W)
Size: 57 ha (141 acres)
Altitude: from 1500 to 2100 ( 4,920 to 6,800 feet) above sea level.
Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge Telephone: + (506) 2274-1997
Celphone: + (506) 88354-9271 / 8866-7380
Central Volcanic Cordillera Conservation Area (ACCVC) Telephone: +(506) 2268-1587 / 2268-8091
INFOTUR Tourist Information: 1192
Website: www.cerrodantas.co.cr
Click here to view directions from Juan Santamaria International Airport (SJO), Alajuela, Costa Rica TO Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge in Heredia, Costa Rica at Google Maps
The Jaguarundi Wildlife Refuge was created on August 18th, 1998, in order to protect primary and secondary rainforests in the mountains of the Central Volcanic Mountain Range, which is located just south of the Barva Volcano in Heredia.
The Jaguarundi Wildlife Refuge is a rain forest with evergreen vegetation, with an average height ranges from 20 m to 30 m (65ft to 98ft) and an abundance of epiphytes and mosses. Contains about 4000 different kinds of plants, among which stand out the “Chile Muelo” (Drimys granadensis), Oak (Quercus costaricensis), “Arrayán blanco” (Weinmannia pinnata), “Lengua de Vaca” (Miconia tonduzii), Aguacatillo (Ocotea mollifolia), “Tucuico” (Ardisia revoluta) and Poas Magnolia (Magnolia poasana).
Probably, the most representative group of wildlife at Jaguarundi Wildlife Refuge are birds, such as the Common Bush-tanager (Chlorospingus ophthalmicus), Sooty-capped Bush-Tanager (Chlorospingus pileatus), Grey-breasted Wood-Wren (Henicorhina leucophrys), Ruddy Treerunner (Margarornis rubiginosus) and the Black-cheeked Warbler (Basileuterus melanogenys), which are commonly observed form mixed flocks. There are also other less common species such as the Black-faced Solitaire (Myadestes melanops), Collared Trogon (Trogon collaris), Tropical Kingbird (Tyrannus melancholicus), Rufous-collared Sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis), Brown Jay (Psilorhinus morio) and the Golden-browed Chlorophonia (Chlorophonia callophrys), which by its songs and bright plumage are highly valued by local people.
Similarly, it have been reported several species of mammals such as the Tayra (Eira barbara), Brown-throated Sloth (Bradypus variegatus), Red Brocket (Mazama americana), Common Opossum (Didelphis marsupialis), Jaguarundi (Puma yagouaroundi), as well as Kinkajou (Potos flavus) and Variegated Squirrels (Sciurus variegatoides).
Regarding the herpetofauna (amphibians and reptiles), special mention is the sectors located on the slopes of Cerro Chompipe, where researchers have found some very interesting, including an endemic species: the Holdridge’s Toad (Bufo holdridgei), which also is included in the official list of wildlife species with small populations, as well as jungle-runners (Ameiva).
The Jaguarundi Wildlife Refuge has an average temperature of 23ºC (75ºF), receiving some 3000 mm (150 inches) of rain annual average, which is  distributed unevenly throughout the year. The precipitations are scarce during the dry season which lasts from December to April and has an average minimum rainfall during the month of January. On the other hand, rainfall increased during the rainy season which covers the period from May to November, being October the wettest month. During the rainy season presented an interim period during the month of July, when rains are less in comparison with the rest of the rainy season. This phenomenon is popularly known as San Juan Little Summer.
Other nearby Costa Rica parks includes Cerro Dantas National Wildlife Refuge, La Paz Waterfall Gardens Nature Park and Wildlife Refuge and Braulio Carrillo National Park.
Getting to Jaguarundi National Wildlife Refuge:
From San Jose, take the highway to Heredia City, and then follow to San Rafael de Heredia. Go about a mile and past the recreation center at Monte de la Cruz, until you reach the foot of Cerro Chompipe.
By bus:
Take a local bus from San Jose or Heredia to San Rafael (Buses Heredianos, 2222-8986), or take Ruta nº 424 bus from San José – Santo Domingo – San Pablo to San Rafael de Heredia (Transportes Rutas 407, 2261-8766). From San Rafael take another bus to Monte De La Cruz. You can catch this bus next to the big yellow church.
Take a bus from Heredia directly to Monte De Le Cruz. This bus stops next to the National University. These buses come every hour and are bright purple and have Monte De La Cruz written on its front. You can also take a bus from the university to San Rafael and then go on to Monte De La Cruz from there.
Location: near Monte de la Cruz recreation center, until you reach the foot of Chompipe Hill in Heredia, Costa Rica.
Monte de La Cruz GPS coordinates: 10.072475,-84.083064 (10°04’20.91″N, 84°04’59.03″W)
Size: ha ( acres)
Altitude: from 1500 to 2100 (6,500 feet) above sea level.
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 Jaguarundi Wildlife Refuge in Heredia, Costa Rica at Google Maps
When it was decided to construct a new highway from San José to Puerto Limón on the Caribbean coast via Guápiles, environmentalists were concerned that the virgin rain- and cloud-forest on the eastern watershed of the Central Valley would be under threat. It would be easy to imagine ribbon development of motels, sodas (similar like American diners), filling stations and settlement lining the road and running the environment. In 1978 it was therefore decided to set up the Braulio Carrillo National Park, named after one of the country’s  19th-century presidents.
The park includes a range of five altitudinal life zones and holds a tremendous variety of fauna and flora. The new highway effectively cuts the park in two, but gives an excellent opportunity to get a flavor of the area, with luxuriant vegetation draped with epiphytes and lianas visible through the mist, along with foaming waterfalls and vast tracts of Gunnera, which, with its massive leaves, is known as “the poor man’s umbrella.” As the road nears the Caribbean coastal plain, look out for the Rio Sucio Bridge (Dirty River Bridge). The view upstream shows the confluence of the Rio Sucio and the Rio Hondura, which is a crystal clear mountain stream. The Sucio, on the other hand, has its headwaters on the ash-covered slopes of the Irazú Volcano, turning the water a reddish brown.
Braulio Carrillo National Park contains 84% of primary forest and altitude-wise it ranges from 36m (118ft) at La Selva to 2906m (9535ft) at the summit of the Barva Volcano, the greatest altitudinal range of any Costa Rican national park. Rainfall and temperature correspondingly vary greatly. The range of wildlife is staggering. It is estimated that the forest contains around 6000 species of plants, with 600 trees, providing a habitat for more than 500 species of birds, including rarities such as the Resplendent Quetzal, King Vulture, most of the toucan family, the Bare-necked Umbrellabird, Flame-throated Warbler, Black-crowned Antpitta, Long-tailed Silky-flycatcher, (Ptilogonys caudatus), Golden-browed Chlorophonia (Chlorophonia callophrys) and a vast range of hummingbirds, trogons, eagles and parrots. Among the common mammals there are numerous felines such as Jaguar, Ocelot and Puma, and there are also Baird’s Tapir, Pacas, Raccoons, Peccaries and three types of monkeys. Butterflies abound inside the park and you would be unlucky not to see a Blue Morpho, a Magnificent Owl, a Zebra Longwings (Heliconius charithonia) and the Swallowtails. Hikers should beware of snakes because the park contains two of the most venomous: the Bushmaster or “Matabuey” (Lachesis) and the feared Fer-de-lance or Terciopelo snake (Bothrops asper).
For administrative purpose and because of its size, the Braulio Carrillo National Park is divided into two sections: the Quebrada González Sector and the Barva Volcano Sector (explaining that while many think that the Barva Volcano is an  independent National Park, this belongs to the Braulio Carrillo National Park).
The Quebrada González sector is the part of the park that is bisected by the Guápiles Highway. There are two ranger stations, the Zurquí station – just past the road tunnel of the same name – with an information center and three short trails, varying from 1 to 3km (0.6 to 1.9 miles) in length; and the Carrillo ranger station that is further 22km (14 miles) along the road, close to the toll booth in the center of the road. Here there are two further trails. One, named La Botella (the bottle) leads to waterfalls and a view down the Patria Canyon.
In the other hand, the Barva Volcano sector has to be approached from a different direction. The road from San José winds through coffee plantations and dairy farms to the village of Sacramento, where paved roads ends. From here there is a rough track to the station. A 3km (1.9 mile) trail leads up through deciduous forest and cloud forest to the summit of the Barva Volcano, which is extinct, but there is an impressive crater filled with a blue-green lake. Unlike the Poás and the Irazú volcanoes, the crater rim has epiphyte-laden cloud forest trees, with a range of highland forest birds, including those named above. For the really intrepid hiker there is a 30km (19 miles) trail from the top of the Barva Volcano to La Selva Biological Station, involving a descent of some 3000m (9843ft). This could take about four days and hiring a guide is strongly recommended.
Last but not least, if you’re already in the Braulio Carrillo National Park, it’s definitely worth visiting the Aerial Tram, located at the end of the protected area (towards Guápiles). This unique tram lets visitors travel in one of its twenty cable cars and to go through the forests’ canopy in order to spot flora and fauna that would otherwise be hidden from view. Visitors must realize that it isn’t a zoo, where animals will be spotted at all times, but even if tourists don’t see many creatures, the visit is still worth it. The Aerial Tram also offers a restaurant and a visitor’s center. (Tel. 2257-59-61 or fax 2257-60-53).
The Braulio Carrillo is one of the easiest parks to access from San José, but its tropical splendor and magnificence set it apart from the rest of the country. After only a thirty or forty minute drive from San José, you will encounter this amazing place, which reminds people of what ¾ of the country used to be like, only fifty years ago. Whenever you go to this park you will find that the vast majority of people are just passing through. Weather is  not a major consideration (March and April are slightly drier). You can expect afternoon shower year round and should always be ready for a downpour.
Getting to the Quebrada González Sector:
To the Quebrada González sector take the Guápiles Highway toward Limón from San José. This highway winds through the Park, and passes by two ranger stations; the Zurquí sector and the Carrillo (Quebrada Gonzalez).
By bus
Take a bus from the route San Jose – Guápiles – Parque Nacional Braulio Carrillo, which takes about 1.5 hours (Empresarios Guapileños, 2222-2727 /2222-0610). It is important to note that you must warn the driver that you are going to the park, because otherwise it will not stop. Visitors who don’t want to travel by bus, might take a cab (the approximate cost from San José is $40)
Getting to the Barva Volcano Sector:
To the Barva Volcano sector, drive through Heredia, then turn north and drive through Barva, San José de la Montaña, and Sacramento. The last 4 km to the ranger station is generally only accessible by hiking. The station is two miles (3 km) northeast of Sacramento on a jeep trail.
By bus
Take a bus from the route San Jose – Heredia, which takes about 45 minutes (Rapiditos Heredianos, 2233-8392 / Busetas Heredianas, 2261-7171 / Transportes Unidos La 400, 2222-8986) and then take another bus Heredia – Sacramento – Volcán Barva , which takes about 2 hours.
Quebrada Gonzalez Sector Location: 20km (12 miles) northeast of San José, going through the San José-Guápiles Highway.
Barva Volcano Sector Location: 21 km (13 miles) Northeast of San Jose, between Irazu and Poas Volcanoes in Heredia, Costa Rica.
Quebrada Gonzalez Sector GPS Coordinates: 10.066692,-84.005939 (10°04’00.09″N, 84°00’21.38″W)
Barva Volcano Sector GPS Coordinates: 10.119942,-84.122278 (10°07’11.79″N, 84°07’20.20″W)
Size: 46,000ha (113,666 acres)
Altitude: 36m (118ft) to 2906m (9535ft) at the summit of the Barva Volcano
Schedule: from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Braulio Carrillo National Park Ranger station telephone: +(506) 2268-1038 / 2268-1039
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 Braulio Carrillo National Park, Costa Rica at Google Maps
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