Camping at “Monte del Estado” in Maricao. BRRRRRR!!!!

Camping: I believe that The Coleman Company said it best when they referred to it as “The Original Social Networking Site”. Although I had been in the military for many years and an outdoor enthusiast for many more, my family itself never did develop the taste for camping until I pushed them toward their very first experience.

Puerto Rico is well known for its beaches, nightlife and touristic areas. But one thing even us locals very seldom do is to explore the inner regions: the mountains. We may drive by these, and see them from out far, or stop by a rural establishment and have a nice lunch or dinner; all very nice for a day trip. But to experience these magnificent areas, in the way they should be experienced, is something a very low percentage of our population do at all. So, for our first experience I chose one of the best known, and different from anything they’ve ever seen, campsites in all of Puerto Rico: Monte Del Estado.

The Monte del Estado Ecological Park. Although officially established as part of the town of Maricao in 1919, its 10,264 acres include 3 municipalities: San German, Sabana Grande and Maricao. It sits at 1,388 feet, (407 meters) above the sea level, and although it is not the highest peak in the Island of Puerto Rico, it does provide an amazing view of the Central Ridge, “Cordillera Central”, and all the other peaks that make up the same. On an island which average yearly temperatures range between 70 ˚F to 90 ˚F, at this height, the temperatures have been known to drop to nearly 60 ˚F or below at night. Needless is to say that this could be one of the coldest places to be in this tropical island. It is especially cold when all you have is four walls of synthetic fabric to shelter you. This is not one of the incentives my family was looking forward to during that weekend.

Map to Monte del Estado

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My wife called some friends and family and I did the same on my side. Before we knew it there were about 15 of us. Out of these 15, maybe 3 or so had actual previous camping experience; the rest, well, in some circles the may have been called “city slickers”, “suburban dwellers” or something to that effect. We bought some equipment; we borrowed some, and at the end we looked as if we were getting ready to climb Mt. Everest. One month of planning for one weekend. This was just two nights folks! But I have to say that for their first experience of being eased away from their sheltered comfortable beds and homes, it was worth all the preparation. We truly had a simple, yet amazing time together.

The road to the site is extremely narrow and curvy at times, but nothing some cautious driving and a couple of stops here and there for those who tend to get dizzy won’t remedy. The site is managed by the state “Compañía de Parques Nacionales”, (National Parks Company). Before entering the site, the first place you have to go to is the Park Rangers’ station and pay for the previously made reservations. There, they show you a layout of the forest, its trails and the campsite itself, as well as mention some of the rules of the site. The actual site is composed of two areas: The Cabin Area and the Tent Area. The Cabin Area facilities are very nice and well kept, but of course these were not our destination. Once you get to the Tent Area, the first thing I noticed is how clean, groomed and freshly painted everything was. Not to complain, but I was actually hoping for something more rugged. The good thing is that the sight of this actually alleviated some of the bad expectations some may have had about how rough we were going to have it.

Before unpacking my Jeep, we explored and looked for our assigned site. Something that caught my attention was how everything was very well marked and labeled. But what amazed me the most was the screen like material that paved the trails and the actual tent lots. I have no idea what you call it, but it seemed that it was meant to prevent erosion from the rain or people from slipping on the mud and falling; it had some sort of traction. I don’t know. I just wasn’t expecting that. I do have to say, if you are thinking of going to sleep on it on a sleeping bag, without a mat or an air mattress, don’t. This screen thing is hard, it does not give and you will feel it on every bony part of your body as you sleep.

We set up camp. We put up tents, lit up a fire on the well constructed designated fire pit, and sat to have lunch. That day was acclimatization day; very nice. Some nice conversations by the fire, but not much activity, except for some amazing star gazing and scenery watching from the two viewing decks at the campsite. There are some truly amazing views of the southwestern coast and the Cordillera Central.

The day after, we did a little hike up to the Torre de Piedra, (Stone Tower). A watch tower built on the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps; Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “Green Army”. The views from this spot were even more amazing than those from the viewing decks at the campsite.

After that little hike we then decided to go and explore more, but this time we mounted up on our Jeeps and headed toward “El Salto de Curet”, (Curet’s Plunge). The road to this waterfall is mostly paved up to a certain point. But after that you have two choices: activate the 4X4, or hike it. We went for the 4X4. But we could only do this for just part of the trail, (most of it, really), the hike up river was a little bit challenging. The terrain was highly uneven and slippery. Some good water mocks or slip resistant hiking shoes are a must for this t