Location: 20 km (13 miles) from the city of Siquirres, in Brisas de Pacuarito town, in the limit between the provinces of Cartago and Limón, Costa Rica.
Siquirres GPS Coordinates: 10.09475,-83.510267 (10°05’41.10″N, 83°30’36.96″W)
Size: 11,994 ha (29,500 acres)
Altitude: from 110 m to 1,617 m (5,300in) at Cerro Tigre
Schedule: from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Subregional office of the Area of Conservation in Siquirres Telephone: +506 2768-8603
Caribbean La Amistad Conservation Area (ACLA-C) Telephone: +506 2795-1446
INFOTUR Tourist Information: 1192
Barbilla National Park Costa Rica was created first as a biological reserve on March 16th 1982, to protect forests and wet tropical lowland rainforests of the Caribbean slope of the Talamanca Mountain Range, declared a national park on January 14th, 1998. Its part of the Talamanca – La Amistad Biosphere Reserve declared by UNESCO in 1982 in order to 
protect important ecological systems in the country.
The park is also home to the Cabécar, the second largest indigenous group in Costa Rica, which has a rich culture and history. Their main livelihood is hunting and fishing, along with the planting of bananas, yucca and grains. In fact, it is located next to the Chirripo Indigenous Reservation, which continues to give the traditional modest existence.
The main objective of the Barbilla National Park is to provide protection for a large area of Tropical Rain Forest in pristine condition, where there is a great diversity, due to its physiographic and climatic characteristics, as well as suitable conditions for the establishment of a wide number of flora and fauna such as pumas, jaguars, ocelots, tolomucos (Eira barbara), tapirs, monkeys and lots of bird species, many of them endangered. Rare species of birds like the heron can also be observed here, making the park popular for birdwatchers.
The park also protects Dantas River Basin, the Dos Ramas Sector, Ayil Lagoon and Cerro Tigre, being its highest point. The Barbilla National Park is almost entirely covered in lowland tropical rainforest comprising species such as the banak (Virola sebifera) and the palm (Astrocaryum alatum).
The area is very wet with a large number of rivers which rise there and flow into the Pacuare River, sheltering a large primary tropical wet forest and tropical very wet forest, making the park’s territory an important water resource of vital interest to supply potable water to neighboring communities and animals.
This is one of the least visited of Costa Rica’s national parks, therefore, has the distinction of being both relatively intact and ecologically rich. Rugged hiking trails roughly following the Dantas and Barbilla rivers are the main attraction in the park. The area is very ravine with rain fall averages of 3,500 mm to 4,00 mm anually (140in to 180in), which makes it necessary to maintain the forest cover to prevent the rapid erosion caused by heavy rains.
The Park has the Barbilla Biological Station administered by the National Biodiversity Institute, as well as an administrative building with potable water, sanitary services, electricity and a system of radio communication, located in Brisas de Pacuarito town, which research efforts are focused on classification of species and insect parataxonomy.
Located some 20 kilometers from the city of Siquirres, the park is difficult to access. For this reason, and because necessary facilities are not available, visits are only recommended for those 
accustomed to hiking under this conditions and should be led by local guides. Other nearby parks include Pacuare River Forest Reserve and La Amistad International Park.
Getting to Barbilla National Park:
From San Jose take the Guapiles-Limon road (road #32), passing through the Zurqui tunnel and the Braulio Carrillo mountains. It is likely that you will encounter fog and rain. Please drive with your lights on. After the mountains the road to Limon is practically straight with no hills. Take the Siquirres turn-off. The main entrance is located 3 km (2 miles) from the city of Siquirres. After turning off the highway, follow a rough dirt road for 17 km (10 miles) to the town of Brisas de Pacuarito. A 4 wheel drive vehicle is recommended. The park has very few services, with limited navigational road signs, and it is advised to bring a local guide with you.
Please note that if you have not left San Jose by 2 pm you will be driving part of the way at night. We do not recommend this for first time travelers driving in Costa Rica. Roads do not have lines, and rain can be bad and there are potholes and people walking/cycling that you might not see very well.
By bus
Take a bus from the route San Jose – Siquirres, which takes about 1.5 hours (Transportes Caribeños, +506 2222-0610 / +506 2221-7990 / +506 2768-9484). From here you can rent a car and drive or take a taxi to Barbilla National Park, which is about 20 minutes.
By plane:
You can also take a flight from the Juan Santamaria Airport to the Siquirres or Barra del Parismina airports, either with Sansa, TravelAir or Aerobell Airlines, all with daily flights. From here you can rent a car and drive or take a taxi to Barbilla National Park, which takes about 15 minutes.
unexplored area of rain forest. This area belongs to La Amistad Caribbean Conservation Area of the Minister of Environment and Energy, which was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1993.
incognitum and trees full of the colonial nests of Montezuma and Chestnut-headed Oropendolas, large members of the oriole family with bright yellow tails, can be found nesting in the valley from January to August. Nest trees are easy to spot since they sport dozens of meter-long hanging pouch nests that the birds so expertly weave. Also there are big forest trees which make the canopy function. These trees are javillos, espavels, aguacatillos, ojoches and guayabones. More than 380 species of plants are known but this number grows more each day.
established to protect the flora and fauna of the area, especially those in danger of extinction, such as the spectacular manatee. It consists of 65% rainforest habitat, with the remainder being marine habitat, making it one of the most beautiful areas in Costa Rica.
National Park, Hitoy Cerere Biological Reserve and Aviarios del Caribe National Wildlife Refuge.
reefs against sedimentation which deteriorates gradually and various marine ecosystems, which no doubt are true natural Costa Rican jewels.
joining the two ranger stations. Animal life abounds, with the possibility of seeing Raccoons, Sloths, Coatis, Armadillos, Agoutis and both Howler and White-faced Monkeys. The bird-watching is excellent, with Rufous, Green Ibis, Kingfisher, parrots and spectacular toucans amongst many others. The small rivers running into the reserve are home to a variety of herons. The vegetation is also interesting and includes the Breadfruit tree or Artocarpus altilis, believed to have been introduced to the area in 1793 by Captain Bligh. It can reach 20m (60ft) in height and its glossy leaves are often over a meter in length. The tree gets its name from its fruit, which can be cooked to give a bread-like substance that is rich in carbohydrate. All parts of the tree yield latex, which is used for boat caulking. Another tree found in the area is the cawi or sangregao. The Miskito word gave its name to Cahuita, which translates as “the headland of cawi trees”.
area, as other beaches of the park have strong currents or are protected turtle nesting areas. Other nearby parks include Hitoy Cerere Biological Reserve, Aviarios del Caribe National Wildlife Refuge and Gandoca-Manzanillo National Wildlife Refuge.
palm forests of the central Caribbean coastal region. It is located at the mouth of the Limoncito River, just south of the Limon port in Costa Rica.
Location: between Tortuguero canals and the Caribbean Sea, about 25 km north of the Atlantic port city of Limon, Costa Rica.
it to critical levels.
sector, in the same river, are the most important populations of manatees (Trichechus manatus) and garfish (Belone belone).
status as a protected area later. Definitely, a boat trip along the San Juan River, which forms the border to Nicaragua, shows the contrast between the two countries, with thick forest to the Nicaraguan side and much farmland on the Costa Rican side. However, there is plenty of rainforest species similar in range to those at Tortuguero. The reserve is mostly comprised of the San Juan River delta which drains in Nicaragua Lake. The Colorado River is the main distributary on the Costa Rican side and it is at the mouth of this river that people finds the village of Barra del Colorado, divided into Barra Norte on the river’s north side and Barra Sur to the south. The airstrip is at Barra Sur.
Manatee pasting under the water.
Dr. Archie Carr (born on June 16th, 1909 in Mobile Alabama), who set up the Caribbean Conservation Corporation in the same area in 1955.
endangered or threatened lists merely because particular populations appeared to be doing well.
forest with herbaceous communities, swamps and abundant rivers, lakes and canals.
including the bullet ants, whose bites can cause an unbearable pain for 24 hours, army ants are swarming with more than one million ants to attack their prey, and the most remarkable, cutting leaves ants, often long lines seen across the forest carrying bits of leaves to their colony for the fungus which they feed. Similarly, the humid atmosphere, it attracts insects that are not welcome, so the visitor must be well protected with some kind of insect repellent. Similarly, it is recommended fresh clothing, capes and umbrellas.
Other nearby national parks include the Dr. Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge, Barra del Colorado National Wildlife Refuge and the Corredor Fronterizo Costa Rica – Nicaragua National Wildlife Refuge
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