Maggi

My husband is not a hiker, and we will have only 1/2 day to explore outside of Old San Juan. From what I've read El Yunque is not to be missed. Can we enjoy El Yunque from a rental car, or do you have to do some hiking? How difficult is the driving in Puerto Rico? This will be our first visit and just a short one on our way back from St. John. We would appreciate help from any Puerto Rico experts. Thanks.

Maggi

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lilipad

Hi,
Thre north side of El Yunque is made for people who asren't avid hikers. There are several well marked short (about 1/2 mile) trails that are completely paved. You can see a falls also from the roadside and the views are lovely. If you don't hike a little, you'll not see the rainforest canopy, but the views from the road are lovely. If you only have 1/2 a day, I'd recommend going with an organised tour group from San Juan. You can look them up in any guide books, or let me know and I can check my books, but we didn't use them as we rented a car.

MFletch

El Yunque is not to be missed, whether by car or on foot. While it is better on foot of course you will be able to see quite a bit on the roads. It is hilly but the trails are well marked.It's easy to get there by car but from my observations the drivers are pretty much out for themselves, not following some of the typical road courtesies such as slow cars to the right, stop signs and signals. Roads are abit torn up in some sections but the main roads are well marked.
Guess what I's saying is, take a tour but don't miss El Yunque.

Maggi

Lilipad, an organized tour is a possibility, but I have to admit I'm not big on tours. How was the driving? MFletch, we've driven in Costa Rica, which was has the most challenging road conditions we've ever seen. Perhaps we can manage San Juan?

MFletch

El Yunque is about an hour east and it is all suburban traffic. Having said that, 2-3 time there were people on Passo Finos ( horses) included in traffic conditions. It is very doable should you be aware and have experience. As I noted earlier, El Yunque is wonderfull and should not be missed.

jczinn

We just returned from PR and spent a full day at El Yunque. I'll preface by saying that we are hikers and birders so we found plenty to occupy us for an entire day, but even for the casual nature lover, it should not be missed. As trails go these are most civilized (nearly all paved!) and mostly easy "walks", not hikes. I would recommend going on your own, not a tour, and leaving as early in the day as possible to avoid the crowds. We arrived at about 7:30 and didn't really see another soul until after 9:30 or so, it was wonderful. Later in the day it was difficult to park at some of the more popular trailheads, although still not really what I'd call "crowded" by some US National Park standards.

As for driving, if you've driven in Costa Rica, then Puerto Rico will be a breeze ;-) We drove over 500 miles around the island and found no problems, great roads, not like the pot-hole ridden roads in Costa Rica! The main hwy to El Yunque is a fine multilane highway and the road you drive up from that highway is well paved and beautiful. Don't hesitate!

Make sure you stop at El Portal Visitor Center, the trail behind the center is easy and had the most birds of any trail; however it is not a great trail for views.

May

My husband and I will be in PR on 3/16 and we would like to see El Yunque. I will be 21 weeks pregnant when we're there. Is this something we should (and can) do now or should we wait for a return trip to PR? We are both in decent shape but would like to make sure allocating part of our trip there makes sense. How far/long to get to the rainforest canopy that lilipad mentions? Also, how far a drive from the Ritz Carlton is El Yunque? Thank you!

Maggi

Jczinn, what kinds of birds were you able to see? Thanks for the tip on paved trails. Maybe I'll even be able to talk DH into doing some of them. You aren't kidding about Costa Rica's washboard roads. The one from Jaco to Manuel Antonio we were only able to go about 5 miles an hour.

MIG

May,

We took our kids when they were 3 and 4 years old and they were able to do one of the longer hikes to a nice waterfall. They were pretty pooped at the end, but I would think you could do it.

If you're not feeling up to it, just do one of the shorter hikes. You get into pretty thick rainforest really fast.

I'd say about an hour from the RC.

Maggi, we saw some Puerto Rican parrots just outside of El Yunque. They are endangered so it's pretty rare to see them.

jczinn

Maggi, during our trip we saw all of Puerto Rico's endemic birds EXCEPT the parrot (not for lack of trying!) In El Yunque we saw some great birds: Puerto Rican Tody, Puerto Rican Lizard Cuckoo, two different hummingbirds, flycatchers, warblers...if you are at all interested in birdwatching you will love it. But of course bring binoculars!

The best trail for birds was also the one you come to first, and quite easy (although this one isn't paved.) Its a short loop behind the El Portal visitor's center. We went there last, on our way out so it was late in the day and swarming with birds. Unfortunately the visitor center doesn't open until 9, so if you arrive early in the morning you can't get to this trail until later.

I'll have a web page up soon on my website with photos of our trip and the birds especially. (www.jczinn.com)

Maggi

What time of day was that visitor center loop "swarming" with birds? My favorite is the hummingbird - hoping to see a variety of those on our trip to St. John and PR. Can you post a link to your website when it's up?

jczinn

maggi, we were at the visitor center trail from about 3:30-5:30, in fact we were the last folks out of the parking lot as they were closing. But I have a feeling there are a lot of birds there all day long. The very first bird we saw as we pulled up in the morning was a hummingbird.

you can see my puerto rico photos at
http://www.jczinn.com/puertorico/pr.htm

quite a few of the bird photos were taken at El Yunque, including the Puerto Rican Tody, Red-legged Thrush, and Lizard-Cuckoo.

Alaine

I will be in Fajardo for four days with my cousin & her teenage nieces. We'd love to see El Yunque. We are not renting a car, but could arrange transport there through the hotel. I'm not all that wild about tours; I'm a nature lover, and really like to explore on my own. Once you get to El Yunque, can you get around the park without a vehicle? Thanks! This is our first trip to the island, and I can't wait.

MIG

Alaine, it's a somewhat long road into the park and not all the trails start at the same place. I'd recommend renting a car just for the day - it'll be easier to get around. You should be able to find a place to rent in Fajardo.

If you are a real nature lover, you might consider doing a nightime kayak tour of the bioluminescent bay in Las Croabas. We went with Mark from Caribe Kayak (www.pinacolada.net/caribekayak), it was the highlight of our trip. I think he will even pick you up at your hotel. Make sure to bring some SERIOUS bug repellent.

Maggi

Jczinn, those are not photos, they are works of art. I'm humbled, and jealous. Thanks for sharing them with us.
Maggi

Alaine

MIG, Thanks. This is a great forum!

rex

topping... or my own future reference...

anyone have anything more current to add? (all travel info is inherently "perishable&quot..

thanks in advance... and...

Best wishes,

Rex
(from the Europe forum)

highflyer

Great thread, thanks Rex!

rex

Yes, it is a good thread, isn't it?

The more I have read, the more confused I am about a (private) tour guide versus do-it-yourself, and making use of the park rangers and visitors center.

There is some good info on tripadvisor.com - - anyone here have more current input?