Poas Volcano National Park

Poas Volcano National Park is one of the most active volcanoes in Costa Rica

Eruptive history of the Poas Volcano:

Poas Volcano main crater is 290 meters (951 ft) deep and is quite active with frequent small geyser eruptions, the last major eruptions Were During 1952 and 1954. There are one more crater that make up part of the park, the Botos crater.
Botos lagoon is a beautiful crater with a green water lake with a diameter of 371 meters (1,200 ft).
The Botos crater has not erupted for 7,400 years acerca. Well-marked trails will take you to see the inactive crater, which is a beautiful scenery to take photographs.
Over the last decade there have been a number of Indications that the volcano is building up slowly towards a new eruption.
In January 2009 there was a earthquake of 6.1-magnitude, the Poas Volcano was near to the epicenter. At least 14 people killed.

The Volcano had a eruptive activity in 2009, involving minor phreatic eruptions and landslides Within the northern active crater, phreatic eruptions can produce ash fall, lahars and pyroclastic products.Among the Poas Volcano volcanic activity it involves the formation of acid rain and by wind affects some communities located near the volcano. It could also pose a risk to park visitors and facilities near the volcano, if at any time the activity of the volcano reached the power of the eruption of 1910, which produced toxic gases and expulsion of material.

Flora:

Around the main crater and Botos lagoon, it is possible to observe abundate forest with twisted dwarf shrubs. Which is slow growing, with thin and stiff foliage, they are able to withstand temperature changes and the action of the volcanic materials as it is acid rain.

Among the abundant vegetation stand out: the epiphytes, the bush blossoms and orchids.
In the area of the visitor center, you can see the presence of high forest with trees such as orange blossom bush, chilemuelo, white cypress, cypress parrot, candelillo and tree ferns.

Fauna:

The presence of wildlife decreased significantly with hunting and deforestation, especially before the park was created in 1971. Currently in the park you can find mammals such as rabbits, coyotes, opossums, raccoons, squirrels, cats, skunks , spins, lazy pig. But in the higher parts of the national park it is not easy to observe mammals except squirrels, which are often sighted in the area of the viewpoint and the Botos lagoon. (It is not recommended to touch them, please keep a safe distance.)

In the park experts have identified more than 78 species of birds, among which predominate throated hummingbird fire, yigüirro, the kettle, the mozotillo, the quetzal, hawks, green toucanets, woodpeckers, among others. Also among the reptiles can be found several species of iguanas, amphibians like frogs, salamanders and toads, which are much more frequent around the Botos lagoon.

Weather:

December to February are the months when it is colder. The temperature ranges between 8 and 11 ° C, with rainfall between 4000 and 5000 mm. The National Park has annual rainfall between 2400 and 5000 mm, temperatures remain between 12 and 15 ° C.

How to get from San Jose to Volcan Poas? Well you can take a public bus to take you to the city of Alajuela, from the bus station where the bus stops running from San Jose, you must walk 200 meters to the south, there take the bus that leaves at 09 : 00am to Poas Volcano. The same bus returns at 2:00 pm from the volcano.

Or if you prefer you can take one of our daily tours to Poas Volcano, which include pick up service to and from the hotel where you are staying within the area of San Jose.