Volcan poas is a very popular volcano near Alajuela Costa Rica, one of the main reasons people go see it is because its very easy to drive up the mountain and walk a very short paved road, with hardly an incline to see the top of the volcano. It has a massive crater, with an "idillic" lake. Th road up from Alaljuela winds past coffee fields, pastures, screened-in fern plantations, and near the summit, thick cloud forest. The Volcano's main crater is 1.5 Km acrossand 1,000 ft deep. It is one of the largest active craters in the world. The Volcano had a multicolored pit and smoke rises. People loose its sense of scale because a lack of vegetation within the crater. The summit is usually covered by mist, and many people who come up only see a bit of the crater. If you wait a while the clouds will disappear quickly and its easier to see. The earlier in the day you go the better.
The park itself "Parque Nacional Volcan Poas" protects "epiphyte-laden" cloud forest on the volcano's slopes and dwarf shrubs near the summit. There is one trail which leads just fifteen minutes off to the right where you can see Laguna Botos, it used to occupy to an extinct crater. Mammals are rare , but there are many birds, including insect sized hummingbirds. It is a great example of Ecotourism. There are many resorts nearby for people to stay, such as La Providencia Lodge, which has more trails for exploring cloud forests. As far as shopping there are many roadside stands on the way up to Poas that sell strawberry jam, cajeta, and biscoches. The Neotropica Foundation has a store in the visitors center of the park which sells plenty of souvenirs.
Fodor's 99 Costa Rica, editor Caragh Rockwood
No comments:
Post a Comment