LA AMISTAD INTERNATIONAL PARK

The immense, by far inaccessible area of ​​La Amistad is the largest nature reserve in Costa Rica. It is a paradise for scientists and a challenge for the real hiker. Nearly 200,000 hectares of the Cordillera de Talamanca belong to the park, which is considered one of the largest untouched tropical forests in the world. In 1982, the park and a piece around it were declared a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO, and are now on the World Heritage List. The area is connected to a similar nature reserve in Panama, hence the name La Amistad (the friendship). The great biodiversity of La Amistad is related to the great differences in altitude, climate and topography. The vegetation varies from very humid forest and rainforest to cloud forest. This large isolated area is home to a rich fauna, including the endangered jaguar, puma, jaguarundi and ocelot, as well as the country's largest concentration of tapirs and more than 250 species of amphibians and reptiles. There are about 400 bird species, including the quetzal and various parakeet species. The park headquarters is located in Progreso, 30 km northeast of San Vito. There is also an information office of La Amistad in San Isidro