Pacuare River

The Pacuare River, or the Río Pacuare, in Costa Rica has its source in the Cordillera de Talamanca and flows approximately 108 km to the Caribbean. It is a popular location for white water rafting, whitewater kayaking and riverboarding has been named one of the top 10 river trips in the world by National Geographic. The rainforests that surround the river are breathtaking and they are home to exotic species such as jaguars, monkeys, ocelots, and a very large number of birds. Also it was considered one of the 5 most nice rivers to practice rafting.

The Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad - Costa Rica's state-owned electricity agency - suggested in 1996 the possibility of building a hydroelectric dam on the river. This plan was finally rejected in 2005 due to concerns about the pollution and other impacts on tourism and the ecology of the river and its surroundings. In this plan, the 97% of the votes said no to the dam.

River Sections

The Pacuare River is divided into approximately four sections. Starting from the top the three commonly run sections are known as The Upper Upper, The Upper and The Lower. The final section is hardly rafted or kayaked and isn't commonly named.

The Upper Upper Section -This run is approximately convert|16|mi|km long and contains numerous class II and III rapids. This section is commonly run due to the logistics necessary to reach the put-in. This section can be rafted and kayaked.

The Upper Section - This more technical section consists of approximately ten miles of whitewater including multiple class IV and V rapids as well as waterfalls. The take-out for this section is Finca La Cruz. This section is most commonly run in creeking style whitewater kayaks.

The Lower Section - This is the section of class III and IV whitewater that the Pacuare River is most known for. Flowing approximately 23 miles (and dropping approximately 1200 feet) from Finca La Cruz to the town of Siquirres. The run can be done in a single day trip or as long as a three day trip. The highlights of this section include the whitewater rapids and the waterfalls that flow into the river in the Huacas River Gorge. The rapids include Upper and Lower Huacas (class IV), Double Drop (class III), Cimerones (class IV) as well as multiple others.

History

The first known river running of the Pacuare was done by Michael Cane in 1975. In 1978 Cane started Costa Rica Expeditions to run commercial trips on the river.

Between 1980 and 1983 Rafiel Gayo, a previous employee of Cane at Costa Rica Expeditions, gathered four rafts and started the company Rios Tropicalas.

Adventuras Naturalas joined the list of commercial rafting companies on the Pacuare River in the mid 1980s.

1986 saw Tico's River Adventures started in Turrialba, the closest city to the Pacuare River.

In 1998 the nearby Reventazon River was dammed pushing more people to all the local rafting companies to shift focus to primarily the Pacuare River.

Flora and Fauna

Large cats have been spotted near the river but as always these animals are elusive. A Black Panther was spotted approximately 2km from the river in 1986. Jaguars have been spotted near the Haucas River Gorge.

Anteaters are common as well as raccoons, river otters, iguanas, Capuchin monkeys, and sloths. Howler monkeys are found on the lower sections after the Dos Montanas canyon.

There are five different but common snakes are found in the area. The poisonous ones include the Coral snake, the Bush Master, Fer-de-Lance. The Laura and Sopy Lota (long black snake that eats poisonous snakes) are also common in the area.

The Blue Morpho is the most popular butterfly of the area.

The Chestnut-mandibled Toucan is most commonly seen when it is raining or foggy on the river. Parakeets can sometimes been seen after the Dos Montanas canyon. Other common birds of the area are the Orependula (Oriel), King Fisher, Tiger and Blue Heron, Hawks, Osprey, King Vulture, Sun Bird and Snowy Egret.

Most of the river corridor is first generation rain forest and has never been touched. Common trees of the area include the Sabe tree, the national tree of Guatemala, as well as the red Indiana Desnudo (Naked Indian tree).

After Dos Montanas, the Heart of Palm, coconut palm and banana trees become very prominent.

External links

* [http://www.wikicostarica.com:16080/index.php/Pacuare_River Video of Pacuare River]
* [http://www.greenfrogadventures.com/about-costa-rica/Pacuare-River.php Green Frog Adventures - Pacuare River]

Rafting on the Pacuare river can be a dangerous sport, but often tourists hire experienced guides.