Yoro

Yoro is an ordinary highland market town with an extraordinary tradition attached: residents say that once or twice a year, after a heavy storm, live fish are found on the ground in the fields outside town, and the Lluvia de Peces festival celebrates it. Explanations have been offered - waterspouts, subterranean streams flushed to the surface - and none has been confirmed by systematic study. What is documented is the tradition itself, which is old, and the festival, which is real.

The main sights

• The festival - the Lluvia de Peces celebration, held after the first heavy rains.
• The fields - the ground outside town where the fish are said to appear.
• The market town - a working highland centre with a Sunday market.
• The hill country - the Yoro range and pine forest around the valley.

When to go

The festival follows the first big storms, usually between May and July, and the date moves. November to April is the drier season for the roads. Sunday is market day.

Practical notes

The phenomenon is not scientifically documented and no researcher has recorded an event under controlled conditions; treat it as a tradition rather than an established fact. The town has little else for visitors. Mountain roads in are long and rough.

Nearby

El Progreso is north towards the coast, and Lake Yojoa is west.

Key facts