This is a wonderful and unforgettable hunt to a unique ecosystem
in Puerto Rico, the biggest fresh water lagoon (wetland) and the
most important bird sanctuary in the Island. This trail is intended
for trail-walking fans or mountain biking lovers. This is a ~40
minutes walk to the cache, or 2.2 miles trail on plain terrain (one
way).
The cache is a lock & lock plastic container, the original
content is a log book, a pen, a retrieved travel bug, a hook
package, a coin from France, keychain, marbles and lot of goodies.
The FTF prize is a golden Coqui pin and FTF certificate.
The Laguna Cartagena is part of the National Wildlife
Refuge System, established in 1989 and has 1059 acres. It is under
the jurisdiction of the US Department of the Interior and the US
Fish & Wildlife Service.
More than 160 bird species has been observed in the lagoon and
close areas. A lot of migratory birds visit the lagoon. Also is
remarkable the high diversity of other vertebrates such as 15 fish;
9 reptile; and 7 mammal species.
HOW TO GET THERE: Laguna Cartagena is
located in the Lajas municipality. I highly recommend to check
mainly the second image posted and choose the better way to get the
cache depending if you want to reach it Hiking or by
Vehicle. The Purple route is better for vehicle; it's a non
pavment road but is in so much better conditions than the hiking
yellow route. If you decide going by car it only takes 7 minutes
from the Prime Gas Station at road 101. The hiking route is better
explained as follows. You must reach Road 116 and then Road 305. If
you are coming from the East (Ponce) the 305 exit is to the left
– there is a Texaco gas station right there. If you are
coming from the North-West (Mayagüez), the 305 exit is to the
right. Continue on Road 305 up to the next intersection (Caribe gas
station – Hacienda Resolucion sign) you must take a left and
almost immediately a right turn on the yellow cement barriers. This
is still Road 305 to Maguayo community. Keep on that route
–straight line- until the parking area N 18º 00.591 W 67º
05.216.
You can leave your car at the parking area and begin the trail
walking. The Laguna Cartagena’s gate will be at the first
intersection to the right at about 35 - 40 minutes walking from the
parking area.
You can reach this gate by car but the trail is not recommended
during the rainy season, unless you use a 4x4 car, is up to you. I
encourage the geocachers to do the trail walking, to see a very
nice transition from developed areas to wild-ones and enjoy the
beauty of Sierra Bermeja at the left side of the trail.
Sierra Bermeja has the oldest rocks formation from PR
(Cretaceous). You will see a lot of insects, horses, cows and of
course lots of birds. Consider that the better hours for bird
watching are very early or late during the day. Bring a hat, sun
block, water, comfortable shoes, binoculars, camera and telephoto
lenses, and flashlight just in case. There is an excellent bird
watching tower at the lagoon.
Another route from Mayagüez is using Road 101, then connecting
to Road 303 and then Road 305 to Maguayo community. If definitely
you don’t want to walk the trail, you can access the gate
driving to Roads 305, 303, 101 and 306 by the north side of the
lagoon. See the attached map for instructions.
Laguna Cartagena is also famous for a high number
of UFO sightings reports. Come and visit … if you are
lucky enough could observe something more than birds….
After finding the cache you must enter the Laguna Cartagena
refuge, follow the road by a 5 minutes walk to the bird watching
tower (N18º 00.662 W67º 06.171). There’s the
real prize for the hunting!!!