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Arenal Volcano National Park |
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Costa Rica, with its beautiful mountains, and sea beaches is a treasure trove of natural beauty. The diverse land forms of Costa Rica make it a must visit for nature lovers. The combination of its topography, climate and altitude gives it a unique characteristic. The Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), of the Costa Rican government has divided the natural regions of Costa Rica into several National Parks and natural reserves. The Arenal Volcano National Park is one such national park situated in the central part of the country forming the Arenal Tilaran Conservation Area.
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The Arenal Tilaran Conservation Area protects 8 of the 12 life zones of Costa Rica. The conservation area also has 16 protected reserves in between the Tilaran Mountain ranges and the Guanacaste mountain ranges. The park is located around the Arenal Volcano which has a perfectly conical shape. This volcano was supposed to have been dormant till a major eruption took place in 1968. In its vicinity is the lake Arenal, which houses the largest hydroelectricity project of Costa Rica. The Arenal Volcano National Park also contains another volcano named Cerro Chato, which has a lagoon in its crater. The presence of the crater in the Cerro Chato is probably due to its being inactive for about 3500 years.
The Arenal Volcano National Park covers an area of about 12,016 hectares of land. The park can be accessed directly from La Fortuna. But, it can also be accessed from the northern shore of Lake Arena. The Canadian International Development Agency and World Wildlife Fund Canada is making the local communities participate in ecotourism and in this way is helping them protect the buffer zones. Because of the initiatives taken by these two organizations, several trails, visitors’ sites and look out points have also been developed within the park. The entrance to the park is about 3.5 kilometers east of Lake Arenal and 2.5 kilometers west of Tabacon. The ranger's station is situated about 1.5 kilometers inside the park. There are numerous hiking trails like the Las Heliconias Trail, Los Miradores Trail, the four-km-long Lava Trail and the Chato Trail. Besides these, there are various trails at the Arenal Observatory Lodge. Hiking very close to the volcanoes can be dangerous and tourists should give heed to previous warnings. The Arenal Volcano national Park also offers opportunities of bird watching and seeing howler monkeys.
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