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About a half hour east of San Juan is the Caribbean
National Forest, better
known as El Yunque. (Take Route
3 east. Turn right on Route 191 at the town of Palmer.)
The 28,000-acre reserve, the only tropical rain forest under U.S.
jurisdiction, sprawls across the Luquillo mountain range. El Yunque
has four distinct types of forest, more than 200 species of trees
and an abundance of exotic flowers. There is also unique wildlife,
such as the Puerto Rican parrot and the coquí–a
small, singing tree frog. A new visitors center, with information
booths, recently opened up here.
Several mountain peaks and waterfalls can be reached by well-marked
trails. The large La Coca Falls are right on the main road. La Mina
Falls, a short walk down the Big Tree Trail, are more secluded and
a great place for a swim or snack. El Toro Peak is the largest in
the forest. Spectacular lookouts can also be found along the El
Yunque Trail. An information center is right on the main road.
The balneario at nearby
Luquillo can also be visited in a day from San Juan
(five miles further east on Route 3). The palm-lined, flat beach
has some of the whitest sand on the Island, and the calm water,
protected by coral reefs, is perfect for bathing. The row of simple
restaurants beyond its entrance on Route 3 offers inexpensive, delicious
local cooking and seafood. The strip is festive on weekends.
The Luquillo-Río Grande area has several golf courses, and
horseback riding is available at Hacienda Carabalí (see Sun
and Surf). Across Route 3 from El Yunque is he 600–room Westin
Río Mar Beach Resort & Country Club. While
this area can be seen in a day from the capital, several lodging
options are available.
Fajardo is five miles beyond
Luquillo. El Conquistador Resort &
Country Club, overlooking Las Croabas fishing village,
is one of the Caribbean's most popular and posh resorts. Several
fine restaurants, a circular casino and a shopping area are open
to non-guests. Beautiful beaches, mangrove swamps, coral reefs and
a dry forest fill Las Cabezas de San Juan
Nature Reserve (on Route 987, north of Fajardo). Visitors
roam a series of trails and boardwalks. A restored lighthouse has
an observation deck and information center (call 722-5882 for reservations).
The Seven Seas balneario is
also on Route 987.
Fajardo is a major boating center, with a wide range of rentals
and charters available. Several sailing and snorkeling trips leave
from the Villa Marina Yacht Harbor
to explore the offshore coral reefs and cays. Puerta
del Rey Marina is the largest in the Caribbean. A reliable
boat operator is the Fajardo Tours Traveler
Catamaran (863-2821).
Ferry boats and airplanes leave Fajardo to nearby Vieques
and Culebra, two of the Caribbean's
most undeveloped islands that each have spectacular, uncrowded beaches.
The islands can also be reached by airplane from San Juan.
Vieques is the larger, more
developed and livelier of the two. The U.S. Navy owns two-thirds–the
eastern and western ends–of the four-by-21 mile island. Several
fine beaches are located on the property, which is open to the public
except when maneuvers or bombing practice are underway. In 2000,
the length of such training was cut in half by presidential order
and plans are underway to give one-half of Navy land to the U.S.
government.
The main town is Isabela Segunda. A popular beach is the wide,
arcing Sun Bay, which has picnic areas. A strip of restaurants and
guest houses line nearby Esperanza, a beach town with the best night
life. Mosquito Bay is filled with bioluminescent organisms that
make its water glow at night. Tours are available in kayaks or non-polluting,
electric boats. It's best seen during times of little moonlight.
Culebra is even more laid back
than Vieques. Several guest houses are located in the main town
of Dewey. Other lodging options, mostly villas and private homes,
are available elsewhere. Most provide transportation to the easily-reached
and scenic Flamenco Beach. Jeep rentals are also available. Culebra
offers fabulous sites to snorkel and scuba dive. The secluded Zuni
beach is well worth the trip, even though roads are bad and a Jeep
is required. Rare leatherback turtles nest on the island from March
to June.
Route 3 runs along the coast south of Fajardo, passing through
Ceiba, the fishing community
of Naguabo and a series of sugarcane
fields to Humacao. While the
ride is pleasant, those traveling directly to Humacao from San Juan
can get there quicker by taking Highway 52 to Route 30.
The Palmas Del Mar Resort
has a nice beach, golf course, restaurants and a casino. An equestrian
center and marina offer horseback riding and boat rentals. Visitors
can rent hotel rooms or condominium units. Punta
Santiago (on Route 3) has a public beach and campground.
Route 3 continues to rarely-visited southeast Puerto Rico, a landscape
of diverse and dramatic scenery, with towering bamboo vegetation,
lush mountains and beautiful beaches.
Yabucoa is the eastern starting
point of the Panoramic Route,
a tangle of narrow country roads running through the Island’s
central mountain range to the west coast. It can be picked up at
Route 184, which passes Lake Patillas
and the Carite Forest Reserve.
Further south on Route 3 is Maunabo,
a quaint seaside village with a few guesthouses and restaurants.
There is a historic lighthouse in town, with a nice beach and restaurant
nearby. The villages of Patillas
and Arroyo, which has a campground,
public beach, and trolley tour service, are further along Route
3. Guayama has a fine plaza, on which lies the Casa
Cautiño, an 1887 home that
is now a museum and cultural center.
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