El Yunque, Rio Grande
15.05.1993
The Caribbean National Forest located on the island of Puerto Rico, and commonly known as El Yunque (named after the Taíno Indian spirit Yuquiyú, and meaning "Forest of Clouds") is the only tropical forest in the United States National Forest System.
The forest is located on the slopes of the Sierra de Luquillo Mountains in Puerto Rico, and encompasses over 28,000 acres (113 km²) of land; making it the largest block of public land on the Island of Puerto Rico. The highest portion of the mountain rises 1074 meters (3494 ft) above sea level.
The forest covers lands of the municipalities of Canovanas, Las Piedras, Luquillo, Fajardo, Ceiba, Naguabo, and Rio Grande.
The forest region was set aside in 1876 by the Spanish Crown, and represents one of the oldest reserves in the Western Hemisphere. It is home to over 240 species of trees and plants, 26 of which are found nowhere else.
Typical yearly rainfall can be up to 240 inches (6 m) per year. More than 100 billion US gallons (380,000,000 m³) of rainwater fall on the forest per year.
El Yunque is composed of four different forest ecosystems
Tabonuco Forest
Palo Colorado Forest
Palma Sierra Forest
Dwarf Forest
Posted by airwolf09 14:45 Archived in Round the World | Puerto Rico
Now that I am back to the real world and slowly coming out of my post-vacation depression I wanted to take a moment to mention the breathtaking tour experience I had in El Yunque.
Like the beauty in the forest, it is hard for us to put into words what a remarkable time it was. We did not want to simply walk up the paved trail to the look out tower, we wanted to avoid the noisy tourists and learn about the plant and animal life, the history of the area, the ecosystem itself and how it works. We had high expectations and the almost 5 hrs. spent in the forest far exceeded them! Our tour guide was John Druitt founder of Tropic Tours and Transfers! His knowledge, easy going personality and willingness to answer our questions simply added to the experience.
Cheers!
15.05.2008 by jmh7979