LOCATION AND RESERVATIONS

LOCATION AND RESERVATIONS

The Río Claro Nature Reserve is located in Colombia, within the department of Antioquia, in a region known as the Magdalena Medio (Mid- or halfway between the Magdalena River´s fountainhead in the south, and its delta in the North).

The entrance to the reserve is intersected by the Autopista Medellín-Bogotá (Medellin-Bogotá highway)  at roughly one third of the way between Medellín (152km) and Bogotá (264km).

Río Claro itself forms a watershed that runs down the eastern slopes of the Central Andes, spanning more than _-_-_-_ hectares of land belonging to the municipalities of San Francisco, San Luís, Sonsón, and Puerto Triunfo, in the department of Antioquia.

LOCATION

Río Claro´s waters form in the highlands of Sonsón, on the eastern slope of Colombia´s Central Andes, in an isolated peak locally known as the Alto del Tigre y de la Osa, 40 km upstream past the entrance to the Reserve. Along its course, Río Claro joins its forces with the Cocorná River, finally depositing their combined waters into the Magdalena, 57 km downstream past the Reserve.

COMO LLEGAR

La Reserva Natural Cañón del Río Claro se encuentra justo al lado de la autopista Medellín-Bogotá, a tres horas en carro de Medellín, en el  Km 152. O a cinco horas de Bogotá, en el Km 264.

Weather & (Micro) Climate

The area of the reserve is located within a zone which is both hot and humid. The reserve itself, being part of a rainforest is often hot and very humid.

The entire reserve is located in a hot to temperate climate zone which ranges between the altitudes of 300-600 meters above sea level. Usual temperatures in this zone oscillate between 24ºC and 28ºC, with an average humidity level above 80%, and an annual precipitation of about 3000mm.

Humidity can easily be appreciated by observing the long amount of time that clothes put to dry retain their moisture. Rain is constant throughout the year, but has its yearly peak at rainy season (April-June).

As you enter the canyon, and especially as you intern yourself in the forest, temperature will become notably cooler than in deforested areas around the reserve, including the highway. The vegetation inside the canyon regulates its own microclimate.