One hour and twenty minutes away from San José city, there is a great cloud forest hike waiting for you. This cloud forest hike is in a zone in Costa Rica where you usually don’t hear or read much about it. Near Cartago city center, down the road that takes you to the Pacific coastline. You can find in the middle of the cloud forest the “Cerro de la Muerte” (Death Hill in English).
This area’s temperatures are nothing like what you would expect when you think about a Costa Rica vacation. Experiencing temperatures below 12 degrees is something normal around this area. This is why it has this name. Back when the roads weren’t fully developed, people from the South Pacific Region that wanted to go to San José had to cross these mountains, and some of them couldn’t make it.
Where is the Cerro de la Muerte?
This cloud forest is between San José and Cartago provinces, just half an hour from Cartago city center. Just follow the Interamerican Highway. This highway is the only route through the mountains.
Around this area, there is an important National Park named “Parque Nacional Los Quetzales.” This is also the beginning of the longest and highest mountain range in Costa Rica, the “Cordillera de Talamanca.” This mountain range has the famous “Cerro Chirripó,” the highest mountain in Costa Rica at 3,820 m.
What places can you find nearby?
There are several places around this cloud forest where you can find excellent trails or good spots for a picnic. These places are usually very visited during the weekend by locals. Here are some excellent options:
Laguna de Don Manuel: This is an excellent place for camping. There is a small lagoon next to it and 5Km of trails perfect for making a short hike. You can also find small cabanas with grills, perfect to spend the whole day.
Los Quetzales National Park: This National Park is one of the best places to do birdwatching in Costa Rica. This area is the habitat of the famous Resplendent Quetzal. So, with some luck, you will be able to see one of the hidden gems of Costa Rica’s cloud forest.
Tapantí National Park: The National Park has four trails, a great viewpoint, and the “El Salto” Waterfall. If you are in the mood for a long walk, this is a great option! The ticket entrance for foreigners is $10 and $5 for kids under 13 years old.
Iyok Ami: This is a private place owned by a local family. There are around 7-8Km of trails in this place. These trails also include viewpoints, waterfalls, and rivers. The entrance fee is 3,000 colones or $5. At Iyok Ami, you can also find some rooms that work similarly to a Hostel and a small kitchen that offers great breakfasts, lunch, and dinners.
Deciding to go to Iyok Ami
During the whole week, I was planning with Javier (a friend since kindergarten) to do a hike during the weekend. After doing some research, we noticed we were going a lot lately to Bajos del Toro and Poás Volcano’s surroundings. So we wanted to change for once. We wanted to take a hike in Costa Rica’s cloud forest, so we headed east from San José. Some days before, one of us read an article in a local newspaper mentioning a place close to “Cerro de la Muerte.” The name of this place was Iyok Ami.
Iyok Ami as I already mentioned, is a private place owned by a local family in the middle of the cloud forest. I called this place to get more information and to book our spots for next Sunday morning.
We arrived at Iyok Ami around 8:30 am. The main parking lot was already full! So, I recommend getting earlier, at least on weekends. Since our car was 4×4, we were able to park in the second parking lot.
Starting our cloud forest hike
After parking, we went to the main cabin of Iyok Ami (there are other three smaller cabins). Once we entered the cabin, we smelled something delicious coming from the kitchen. Someone was cooking Gallo Pinto for breakfast! As we started to check the place and its incredible view, we met Bedrich.
Bedrich Sruta is one of the owners and the administrator of Iyok Ami. As he started telling us about the trails, we immediately noticed a great passion for the outdoors and nature! He had a map of all the trails and main attractions from this place. After we took a photo of the map, we grabbed our things and headed to the first trail’s starting point.
The trails are straightforward to follow, so feel free you won’t get lost here. As we started walking downhill, we noticed different flora from what we usually see. There was a lot more moss, and everything looked wet even though it wasn’t raining. Then we remembered this is one of the zones that rain the most in Costa Rica. And as we started recognizing that, guess what? Yep, it started raining. But we were well prepared with raincoats.
The true meaning of Mother Earth
While walking through the trails of Iyok Ami we understood the meaning of its name. “Mother Earth” in the Bribri language (one of Costa Rica’s indigenous cultures). We were privileged walking in a virgin cloud forest that will likely remain like that forever. As you walk the trails, you can feel a different energy and at the same time recharge from it.
Related Post: Waterfall Town of Bajos del Toro
After one hour of walking and enjoying the trails, we passed a couple of really cool natural tunnels. After crossing the tunnels, we found a river that Bedrich told us. This river was going to guide us to a small but beautiful waterfall. We follow the river through the canyon and saw a big tree in the canyon’s middle with the waterfall at the end. The water was too cold to get into the waterfall (outside, the temperature was around 10 degrees Celcius), but we sure took some excellent photos from the tree.
Once we continued the trail, we started crossing the river several times (small river, no worries). Each time we saw the river, I would get into the river to cross it easier. There are a lot of slippery rocks, so I recommend doing this to avoid missteps.
Looking for the Resplendent Quetzal
We are no big birdwatching enthusiasts, but when you hear that this place is home to the famous Quetzal, you should keep an eye on the trees as you walk. This bird is considered one of the most beautiful birds in America.
Besides the great number of bird species, you can also find tapirs, coatis, and a good variety of butterflies. We didn’t have much luck with the Quetzal, but we did see some different birds we usually don’t see in San José.
After nearly 3 hours of walking in the trails, we headed back to the main cabin of Iyok Ami. When you are going back, you go uphill, so save some energy. The virgin forest will recharge you but unfortunately won’t lift you back to the main cabin.
Iyok Ami Recap:
- Location: Cerro de la Muerte, Cartago. (Drive there)
- Difficulty: Moderate most part, a bit difficult on your way back.
- Access: Any car
- Contact: Bedrich +506 8408-0048
- Cost: 3,000 colones ($5)
- Parking: Yes
- More info about the place: Iyok Ami
- Hidden Gem Score: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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