Culebra Day Trip to El Yunque
For those looking for an adventurous day trip from Culebra, and as part of Blog Action Day’s focus on the environment, I thought I would draft a post on a very worthwhile excursion to the El Yunque Rainforest.
Amazingly, the El Yunque National Forest is the sole tropical rain forest in the U.S. National Forest System and it draws some 600,000 visitors from all over the world. According the USDA Forest Service website, “El Yunque’s relatively small 28, 000 acre size belies its importance. It differs significantly from all the other U.S. National Forests because of its year-round tropical climate and immense biodiversity.”
Within the El Yunque National Forest the rugged Luquillo Mountains rise to 3,533 ft. above sea level and the steep slopes can sometimes receive rainfall of over 200 inches (508 centimeters). The forest has an average temperature of 73° F (21° C), and seasonal changes are almost imperceptible. Due to the environmental preservation efforts within El Yunque, the rain forest is noted for its biodiversity. According to the website, “it is “home” to thousands of native plants including 150 fern species, 240 tree species (88 of these are endemic or rare and 23 are exclusively found in this forest). The El Yunque National Forest has no large wildlife species, but hundreds of smaller animals abound in this gentle forest, many of which exist nowhere else on the planet!”
To get to El Yunque from Culebra take the early ferry (or fly) to Fajardo and then follow PR # 3 for approximately 15.7 kilometers/9.8 miles (through Fajardo and past the communities of Luquillo and Fortuna) until you see the sign for “Palmer-El Yunque” on your left. Turn left at the traffic signal and follow the road through the village of Palmer until you see the sign for PR Road # 191. (Hint: there is a restaurant called “Noname”, painted a bright-turquoise on the corner!) Turn left on PR # 191 and follow it for approximately 4 kilometers/2 miles until you see the El Yunque National Forest sign. The entrance to the El Portal Rain Forest Center is on your right-hand side just after you enter the forest (directions takne from El Yunque website). For more directions and a map please refer to the “About Us” page on the El Yunque website.
