Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
getation along the way. It's probably the most popular trail in the park. The trailhead is at
Km 10.4 on Hwy 191.
La Coca Trail HIKING
If getting off the beaten path is your bag, try this deceptively challenging trail. Wilder and
less maintained than some of the more popular forest rambles, this 1.8-mile (one way)
hike descends through thick tabonuco forest and enormous ferns and crosses several rocky
streams. You'll get muddy and have to do some scrambling, but the rewards of private wa-
terfalls and dipping pools more than make up for it. Long pants are recommended and good
shoes are a must, and most folks take three to four hours for this out-and-back trek because
of the slippery terrain and tempting swimming.
The trailhead is just up the road past the falls of the same name - just before the YokahĂș
Tower - and there is a small parking lot here.
La Coca made its mark on El Yunque history when a US college professor disappeared
here for 12 days in 1997, claiming after his rescue that he got off the trail and was lost. The
Forest Service, which had enlisted a search party of 60 volunteers and aircraft, was hardly
amused.
LA MINA TRAIL
The forest's newest trail was opened in 1992 as an extension of the Big Tree Trail, al-
though it can be done in isolation from its starting point at the Palo Colorado Visitors
Center. The trail heads downhill through palo colorado forest to La Mina Falls and an
old mine tunnel. Mostly paved, it's an easy though often slippery 0.7-mile walk
down, but a bit of a hike back up. The payoff here is the photo-worthy falls, which
drop 35ft into a perfect natural swimming pool.
Mt Britton Trail HIKING
If you are short on time and want to feel as if you have really 'summited,' take the 0.8-mile,
45-minute climb up through the midlevel types of vegetation into the cloud forest that sur-
rounds this peak, which is named after a famous botanist who worked here. This is a con-
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