Area Info Monteverde
As the mist parts, visitors are greeted with towering emerald green trees, hanging orchids and more than 100 species of mammals. Like any cloud forest, Monteverde rests high on a mountain side, cloaked in fog for much of the day and rich with a diversity of plant and animal life.
Water vapor from the ocean sweeps up the mountainside, gathers, and cools, forming a blanket of clouds. The mist hovers watering the vines and hanging flowers, which in turn give nourishment to the ancient trees.
The Monteverde Biological cloud Forest Reserve is home to 2,500 plant species, 400 different species of birds, and 100 species of mammals. From swinging monkeys to brightly painted frogs and, the most sought after bird in all of Central America, Monteverde is truly one of the last natural animal sanctuaries on earth. Whether you want walk through the infinitely green forest, or zip high through the trees in a canopy tour, you should not pass up a visit to this national treasure.
Monteverde which means “Green Mountain,” is also home to a traditional agricultural community. The green fields, founded by a small Quaker group in 1951, are nestled just below the mountainous tropical forests.
The community of Monteverde, just 35 km/22 miles from the Pan-American Highway, remains one of the most idyllic pastoral settings in Costa Rica. Cows graze contently in the fields, and horse-drawn wagons loaded with milk jugs still make the rounds in this world-famous location. The verdant pastures rest atop a secluded 1,400-meter-high plateau in the Cordillera de Tilarán.
Monteverde is populated by North American Quakers and their Tico-born offspring. There is no concentrated village to speak of; most of the homes are hidden from view in the forest, accessible by foot trail and scattered along the dirt road that leads to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Reserve.
Just down the road is the village of Santa Elena, a community of Tico families that is distinct from Monteverde and is the center of things hereabouts: the bank, stores, bars (these being absent, of course, in a Quaker community), and other services are here. Separating the communities of Santa Elena and Monteverde is the region of Cerro Plano, where most accommodations concentrate.