Poas Volcano National Park

Poas Volcano is among the most active Costa Rica volcanoes and records of its continuing activity have been dated back to 1828. You will find the view of this Costa Rica volcano absolutely spectacular and the fact that it is so close to San Jose makes it a perfect one day tour that is definitely recommended. Poas National Park was created in 1971 and it has an approximate area of 16000 acres. This Costa Rica volcano also has the uniqueness of being among one of the three volcanoes in the continent that can be reached by road and its crater is among the largest in the world. Poas Volcano belongs to the strato volcano clasification with almost a mile long diameter and 984 feet deePoas Volcano Costa Ricap crater which is constantly bubbling and steaming with geyser-like eruptions.

At Poas Volcano National Park there are four different types of natural habitats, the stunted or dwarf forest which is the more predominant of the four habitats and the one to be found around the crater, habitats of little or no vegetation at all, arayan areas, and cloud forest areas. Among the flora that can be found at Poas National Park are mosses, lichens, bromeliads, cypress, small cedar, and small cypress. The fauna of Poas Volcano is not as plethoric as it is on other Costa Rica National Parks, but it is still amazing. Sooty robins, quetzals, emerald toucanet, marmots, shrews (one of the smallest mammal of the world), bats, around 79 bird species overall are part of Poas Volcano National Park wonders.

The average temperature at Poas Volcano ranges from 45 F to 70 F. It can get cold, so it is recommended to go prepared with a good jacket and long pants. This beautiful Costa Rica National Park receives an annual fall of 140 inches of rain, so be prepared for rain also. During the dry season (December to April), especially during the early morning, is probably the best time of the year to visit Poas Volcano National Park. It usually gets cloudy later during the day and the crater cannot be seen. But don’t despair if you cannot make it during the early morning and the view is cloudy, Poas is a windy region so while you look around the well marked trails of the cloud forest and stunted forest the view of the crater could clear.