Costa Rica is rich in volcanic activity, possessing several living, steaming volcanoes you can explore with our Costa Rica Vacation package. Volcanoes provide ample resources for human diversion and recreation as well - lakes and rivers for fishing, swimming and boating; rushing rapids for exciting world-class rafting and kayaking; and an abundance of clean air for horseback riding, hiking, camping and mountain biking.

Arenal Volcano National Park

Short trails (3.4 km & 2 km) go through some young secondary forests and old lava from previous eruptions. The Park Rangers are keeping a sharp eye on the volcanic activity and will tell you which trails or opened  or not and will not hesitate to evacuate the Park if they feel it's unsafe for visitors. So no worries about safety.

Barva Volcano

Barva's dormancy has allowed the majestic highland forest to cover its misty summit, and thus, the associated wildlife is more abundant here than at the two aforementioned volcanoes. At 2906 meters above sea level at its highest point, Barva reaches 200 meters higher than Poás, yet does not approach the timberline as Irazú does at another 500 meters in elevation.

From the ranger station at the entrance to this sector of Braulio Carrillo National Park, there is a fairly flat 1.5-kilometer trail to the Laguna Barva, a rainwater filled lake inside a long-inactive crater. For the really intrepid (and well-prepared) hiker, there is a trail which descends down an elevational transect from the top of the volcano to a mere 35 meters above sea level at La Selva Biological Station -- in other words, an almost 3,000 meter drop in 60 kilometers of trail.

Poas Volcano

Like the other volcanoes in the Central Volcanic Cordillera, the silhouette of Poás Volcano as seen from the Central Valley gives no hint of the power and pent-up fury below the surface. But once at the summit and standing on the crater's rim, it becomes easier to understand the forces that have shaped this region of the planet.

With a diameter of 1.5 km., the active crater is reportedly the widest of any volcano in the world. If it is clear enough to see to the bottom of the 300-meter deep crater, you will surely observe some type of activity ranging from fumaroles to bubbling emissions on the surface of the small rain-filled lake to actual geyser-type eruptions, but it is constantly changing. During the early 1990s, there was enough geyser activity to cause the lake to lose its water by the end of the dry season (April/May); this resulted in increased gaseous emanations that forced the park to close on a few occasions.

Looking to the left of the crater you can see the deleterious effects of the volcanic gases that cause a localized form of acid rain. For several kilometers downwind from the crater the vegetation is brown and dying. On exceptionally clear days you can see the top of Arenal Volcano (60 km. distant) by looking in this direction. If you keep your eye on it long enough, you may be able to see the cloud of ash that accompanies an eruption.

A few meters back down the trail from the active crater overlook, a 1.5 km. trail leads off to Lake Botos, a densely forested dormant crater filled with rain water. A portion of this trail goes through an eerie-looking section of stunted forest. The trunks and branches of the small trees here are gnarled and twisted from the harsh climatic conditions in exposed areas at high elevations. At the Lake Botos overlook you'll be near the highest point in the park which is 2,704 meters.

At this elevation wildlife is not particularly abundant, but there is usually a fair amount of bird activity. Some of the more common species are the Fiery-throated Hummingbird, Sooty-capped Bush-Tanager, Slaty Flowerpiercer, Mountain Eleania, Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush, and Black-and-yellow Silky-Flycatcher. 

Irazu Volcano

At 3,432 meters above sea level, Irazú Volcano is the highest point in the Central Volcanic Cordillera. The gently sloping southern flank with its patchwork pattern of potatoes, cabbages, and other vegetable crops, replaced by bucolic dairy farms at higher elevations, belies the violent past of this sleeping behemoth that looms above the city of Cartago. 

Upon nearing the summit the destructive forces of volcanism begin to become more noticeable with the presence of scorched dead tree trunks that are still standing. On top of Irazú you will find several deep craters in this barren windswept terrain that is reminiscent of a moonscape. The high elevation itself, being just above the tree line at this latitude, keeps the vegetation from growing very tall, but the periodic devastating effects of eruptions help to keep plant life rather sparse. Among the few species of birds that live in this habitat are the aptly named Volcano Junco and Volcano Hummingbird.