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Baño de Oro

1934 establishments in Puerto RicoAmerican Craftsman architecture in Puerto RicoBuildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Puerto RicoCivilian Conservation Corps in Puerto RicoEl Yunque National Forest
Park buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic PlacesPuerto Rico Registered Historic Place stubsRío Grande, Puerto RicoSpanish Revival architecture in Puerto RicoSwimming venuesTourist attractions in Puerto Rico
Banodeoro USDA forest service el yunque3
Banodeoro USDA forest service el yunque3

The Baño de Oro Historic Site (Spanish for golden bath) is a historic recreation center and swimming pool located in the Baño de Oro area of El Yunque National Forest in Río Grande, Puerto Rico. The site of Baño de Oro gets its name from the Baño de Oro Creek, which itself is named after the former Spanish gold panning sites in the area. The wider Baño de Oro Natural Area where the historic site is found was named a National Natural Landmark in 1980 and it is the only contiguous area in Puerto Rico that contains a subtropical wet forest, a rainforest, a dwarf forest, and a Pterocarpus forest.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Baño de Oro (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 18.302722222222 ° E -65.754611111111 °
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Address

Sabana


(Sabana)
Puerto Rico, United States
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Banodeoro USDA forest service el yunque3
Banodeoro USDA forest service el yunque3
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Baño Grande
Baño Grande

Baño Grande (Spanish for big bath) is a former swimming pool and historic site located in El Yunque National Forest in Río Grande, Puerto Rico. It is also known as La Mina Pool (Piscina de la Mina or just La Piscina), after La Mina River. It is the larger of the two swimming pools built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in El Yunque, being three times larger than the nearby Baño de Oro pool. Baño Grande is 18 feet (5.5 meters) deep, and it is reinforced by a stone and masonry dam of an unnamed creek belonging to the La Mina River watershed.The pool was designed by architects R.E. Pidgeon and H. Randolph (who also designed the Baño de Oro pool and related recreational infrastructure), and it was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps between 1935 and 1938 using stone masonry and reinforced concrete as the material. It was operational between the years 1935 and 1968 when it was closed due to safety issues. Although the pool was closed and swimming is no longer permitted, it remained well-maintained, and today it is preserved as a historic site open to the public as a scenic spot. The pool was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 28, 2017, as one of the New Deal Era Constructions in the Forest Reserves in Puerto Rico (1933–1942).Baño Grande is located in the La Mina Recreational Area within the Palo Colorado section of El Yunque, and it is connected to the trail network of the forest.

El Yunque National Forest
El Yunque National Forest

El Yunque National Forest (Spanish: Bosque Nacional El Yunque), formerly known as the Caribbean National Forest (or Bosque Nacional del Caribe), is a forest located in northeastern Puerto Rico. It is the only tropical rainforest in the United States National Forest System and the United States Forest Service. El Yunque National Forest is located on the slopes of the Sierra de Luquillo mountains, encompassing more than 28,000 acres (43.753 mi2 or 113.32 km2) of land, making it the largest block of public land in Puerto Rico. The highest mountain peak in the forest rises 3,494 feet (1,065 m) above sea level. The second highest mountain within El Yunque forest is also named Pico El Yunque. Other peaks within the national forest are Pico del Este, Pico del Oeste, El Cacique and El Toro, which is the highest point in eastern Puerto Rico and the Sierra de Luquillo. Ample rainfall (over 20 feet a year in some areas, or an average of 120 inches of water up to 240 inches of water a year) creates a jungle-like setting—lush foliage, crags, waterfalls, and rivers are a frequent sight. The forest has a number of trails from which the jungle-like territory's flora and fauna can be appreciated. El Yunque forest is also renowned for its unique Taíno petroglyphs. It is said that indigenous people believed that El Yunque was the throne of their chief god Yúcahu, so that it is the Caribbean equivalent to Mount Olympus in Greek mythology.

El Yunque (Puerto Rico)
El Yunque (Puerto Rico)

Pico El Yunque or El Yunque Peak (Taíno: Yukiyu) is a mountain that is located fully within the boundaries of the El Yunque National Forest, part of the U.S. Forest Service, which is the only tropical rainforest under the U.S. Forest Service jurisdiction. It is located in the municipality of Río Grande. It is accessible via Mt Britton trail near the end of PR 191, which starts in PR 3 in the small town of Palmer. The best access from San Juan is via PR 66 toll express in 1 hr. which exits to PR 3. At the end of PR 191 in El Yunque there is a loop that goes to the entrance of the Mt Britton trail - close to El Yunque peak. It is one of the few places close to this trail with about 15 parking spots. This trail is mostly paved and leads to the Mt Britton tower, the Three Peaks (Tres Picachos), the spur trail, and finally El Yunque peak with communications systems (towers) and then a small tower in the peak. The main road PR 191 has a gate at the end and after this there is a maintenance road to El Yunque and then the closed section of PR 191 which is about 3 hours long - a road that is being reclaimed by the forest and is closed due to a massive landslide. There is also the entrance the Tradewinds trail - possibly the longest trail of the park, which ends in El Toro Peak. It has amazing views of the rainforest, the other peaks of El Yunque and the island below. The river in PR 191 called Quebrada Juan Diego is just below this peak and has a trails, waterfalls and ponds.