Hitoy-Cerere Biological Reserve

Hitoy-Cerere covers around a hundred square kilometres of steep rainforest in the Talamanca foothills behind the Caribbean coast, and it receives among the highest rainfall of any protected area in Costa Rica, well over four metres a year, which is both what makes it so rich and why almost nobody goes: the forest is dense and hard-going, rivers rise fast, and the access road is poor. Names come from the Bribri language, hitoy meaning woolly with moss and cerere clear waters. Trails from the ranger station run to waterfalls and river pools. Jaguars, tapirs and a long list of birds and amphibians are present and rarely seen.

What you actually see

• The wet forest - the dense moss-hung rainforest of the reserve.
• Rivers and waterfalls - the watercourses the trails follow.
• The ranger station - the single access point and its short trails.
• Amphibians and insects - the abundant small fauna of a very wet forest.

When to go

February to April and September to October are the least wet windows on the Caribbean side; there is no true dry season here. Rivers rise quickly after rain and trails can become impassable.

Honest expectations

Rain is near constant and trails are steep, muddy and slippery. The access road needs four-wheel drive and can be impassable. Facilities are a basic ranger station. Mammal sightings are effectively nil; the reward is the forest itself.

Nearby

Cahuita lies east on the coast; the Talamanca range rises south.