Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
drivers are famously erratic. Riders should stick to the wider link roads such as Rte 15
between Cayey and Guayama and listen to local advice.
RUTA PANORÁMICA
Traveling the Ruta Panorámica can be a fun detour or a maddening frustration. Here,
distances suddenly become mysteriously elongated as the island appears to double in
size and you crawl along the curving lines of the map at a snail's pace. Drives that
would take 20 minutes on the coast turn into two- to three-hour road trips. Only a
few brief glimpses of the faraway ocean remind you that you haven't disappeared in-
to the Amazonian jungle. First-timers beware: this is no Sunday-afternoon dawdle.
Maneuvering through dense rainforest and sleepy mountain villages, the Ruta's road-
sides are populated by posses of stray dogs, escaped chickens, horse-riding
jíbaros
(country people) and - most chillingly - the burnt-out wrecks of hundreds of aban-
doned cars. The latter should be enough to remind wannabe speed-freaks to steer
carefully at all times (at no more than 25mph). Unfortunately, the locals aren't al-
ways so fastidious, often taking the precarious hills and tricky chicanes at 35mph or
more. Drive defensively and be on your guard, and remember to sound your horn
around blind corners.
Bosque Estatal de Carite
Less than an hour south of San Juan, the
Bosque Estatal de Carite (Carite Forest
Reserve; 747-4545;Rte184Km27.5; 7am-3:30pmMon-Fri)
was created in 1935
to protect the watersheds of various local rivers from erosion and urbanization. Measuring
6000 acres in area, the mountain reserve is easily accessed from the San Juan metro area. It
can get crowded on weekends and during the summer when
sanjuaneros
come here to en-
joy the 72°F temperatures, green shade, and dozens of
lechonerías
(restaurants specializing
in smoky, spit-roasted suckling pig) that line Hwy 184 as it approaches the northern forest
entrance. The forest is one of the first points of interest you will hit if you are traversing the
Ruta Panorámica east to west.
As with most Puerto Rican forest reserves, facilities are spartan and ranger stations are
often unmanned. If you are intending to stay here you'll have to make arrangements in ad-
vance, and bring water, insect repellent and food; no supplies are sold inside. The only way
to enter the forest is by car. From the north, take Hwy 52 to the Cayey Este exit to Hwy
