Braulio Carrillo

In distance of 20 kms from San Jose, following highway No. 32, in direction to Limon, immidiately behind Zurqui tunnel, the civilization finishes. Busy highway leads in the middle of volcanic mountaneous countryside, surrounded from both parts with inaccessible rain and foggy fields. National Park Braulio Carrillo, the greatest park in Costarica, is distant from capital city centre 30 minutes drive only, so it is in quickest way reachable national park of the country. Nevertheless, this fact does not mean, that the area would be overcrowded with tourists. The park has the extent of 470 square kilometres. The visitors can easily loose their way in dense forest and in the mountains, full of ravines. Even the aborigines have the trouble with right orientation inside this virgin forest. To tell the truth, the whole park is a network of powerful, often hard decayed volcanic mountains, which do not present its volcanic activity for hundreds of years. So, impenetrable intact primary forest was developped there in the course of many years.

Quite different biologic millieu was created there, from the reason of great height differences, numerous rivers in narrow precipices and many waterfalls. Step slopes of mountains are frequently covered with dense, emerald green tropical rain forest, including arboreous brackens and many sorts of palms, lianas and plants, which were settled in tree branches below compact crown curtain (veil). Inside forests´ depth, coloured orchids are gleaming. Braulio Carrillo is, first of all, a refuge for birds. All 400-500 sorts of birds, living in Costarica, are appearing in this park, including humming-birds and bright tufted quesals. The hens are fully coloured and reach of 35 cm greatness only. On the other hand, the cocks are even 1m long. Despite the fact that they are many-coloured, they are well modified to the life in jungle. So, the visitors have to pay great attention in order to distinguish them in all this plants´ network. But, their song could be discerned immeditaley. In past, the hunting of tufted quesals was strictly forbidden by Mayo tribes (clans). These birds were very sacred for them. The actual inhabitants of Central America take these birds for a symbol of freedom and independence.

Numerous tourist trails lead, from three main centres, in the mountains and into jungle. The paths are mostly wet and slippery, even during dry time period (since end of December till April). Anyway, each of them is offering still new impressive views up to the crowns of trees, closely covered with epifyts or down, into transparent mountain torrents, with numerous cascades and waterfalls, into abysses. In north-west part of park, Barva volcano is rising majestically. A road is leading upstairs, but at Puesto Barva station, the tourist path leads you to small lake, situated inside volcano crater, in a height of 2900 metres above sea level. As the special attraction, there is a drive with rope railway throughout stages pf rain forest. The route leads along east border of the park. Open cabin is passing two levels of crown veil (curtain). Rope railway crosses the valley, climbing after up the top of small mountain. During driving, the visitors are rising through thin low copse several metres above the earth. On its return way, the open cabins are floating in the height of 50 metres above the earth, in crowns of trees, where 60% of all plants and animal sorts of rain forest are living.

The visitors are accompanied with educated guides, who are able to explain all specialities of stages of rain forest and call attention to local animals, such as monkeys, snakes, ants of Atta  origin as well as many sorts of tropical birds. When in 1973, the local government presented the plan of new highway, leading to the town of Limon, which would cross untought rain forest, some local economical activists convinced the officials, that this area would be declared as protected territory. So, since 1978, the park reminds the visitors, how exactly Costarica looked like 50 years ago, when such virgin forests ecological systems covered more than three quarters of the country.

Text: Denisa Arvajová

Translation: ing. Jan Jonáš

Photo: wikipedia.com - Tim Ross, picasaweb.com - Jeramy, Daniela, Alain