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Tortuguero National Park


Tortuguero National ParkArea

31,187 hectares (77,063 acres) land sector
52,000 hectares (128,492 acres) marine sector

Max. Elevation

Lomas de Sierpe:
305 meters (1,000 feet)

Precipitation:

6000mm (240 inches) average

Location:

North west sector of the Province of Limon

Date of Creation:

13 November 1975

Tortuguero National Park was created to protect the four turtle species of the Caribbean sea who come to nest from July through October. These are: the green turtle (chelonian mydas), the giant leatherback turtle (dermochelys coriacea), the loggerhead turtle and the hawkbill turtle (eretmochelys imbricata).

This park is formed by an intricate network of canals and waterways joining lazy lagoons dotted here and there with a few peaks and low cinder cones, probably the remains of a small archipelago of volcanic origins such as Tortuguero Hill and the Lomas de Sierpe, which looms over 1,000 feet. These canals were once navigable to dugout canoes only, nowadays thanks to extensive works of engineering the canals can be navigated by bigger boats too. The wildlife is rich and diverse, with eleven different defined habitats like high rainforest, littoral woodland, slope forest, swamp forest, holillo forest, herbaceous swamp and herbaceous lagoon.

If turtle nesting is the focal point of attraction Tortuguero also offers great opportunities to see several species of land and freshwater turtles, caimans, crocodiles, snakes, and frogs (like the in-famous poison dart frogmonkeys, (howler, spider and capuchin), sloths, anteaters, kinkajus, peccaries, manaties,and tapirs.

In total, more than 400 species of trees, 2,200 species of plants, 60 species of amphibian and 400 species of birds have been identified here. Am I missing any one?

How to get there: Boats are available in Moin, schedule early morning departures only or from Cariari where a bus will take you to Pavona and/or Geest to catch your boat to Tortuguero. Naturair and Sansa provide a daily flight to the local airstrip.

Opening time: 8:00 am to 4:00 pm

Entrance fee: $ 7 - camping $ 2