Hanging Bridge

5 photos · 2019

5 photographs tagged Hanging Bridge, 2019.

A green mesh suspension bridge stretches through dense canopy vegetation in Monteverde Cloud Forest, Costa Rica. — The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve maintains a network of suspension bridges designed to let visitors cross ravines and move through the forest canopy rather than only along the ground. The reserve itself protects roughly 10,500 hectares of primary forest across the Tilarán mountain range, land set aside since 1972 largely through the efforts of Quaker settlers and conservation groups. Elevations within the reserve range from about 1,400 to over 1,800 meters, conditions that keep the forest in near-constant mist and support the dense epiphyte growth seen along the trail corridors. The bridges give researchers and tourists alike access to the upper forest strata, where much of the reserve's biodiversity — including many of its orchid and bird species — is concentrated.

A suspension bridge with green mesh decking stretches through the canopy of Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve in Costa Rica. — Monteverde's cloud forest reserve sits along the Tilarán mountain range's continental divide, where trade winds off the Caribbean push moisture into the forest, keeping the canopy perpetually damp. The reserve protects roughly 10,500 hectares of forest and is home to an estimated 2,500 plant species, including hundreds of orchids and epiphytes that grow on the trees themselves rather than in soil. Suspension bridges like this one were built to let visitors move through the upper canopy, where much of the forest's biodiversity — birds, insects, and mammals — actually lives, without cutting new trails through the understory below.

A suspension bridge with a yellow walkway stretches through the canopy of Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve in Costa Rica. — Monteverde's cloud forest sits along the Tilarán mountain range, where trade winds hold moisture against the slopes and keep the canopy in near-constant mist. Suspension bridges like this one let visitors cross at canopy height, moving through a layer of the forest usually reached only by climbing researchers or resident wildlife. The Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve protects roughly 10,500 hectares of this habitat, home to more than 400 bird species and an estimated 2,500 plant species, many of them epiphytes growing directly on tree limbs. The reserve was established in 1972, largely through the efforts of Quaker settlers and conservationists who recognized the forest's role in the region's water supply.

A suspension bridge crosses through dense rainforest canopy near Arenal Observatory Lodge in Costa Rica. — Arenal Observatory Lodge sits on the lower slopes of Arenal Volcano in Costa Rica's Alajuela province, and its trail network includes several hanging bridges that cross the surrounding rainforest. The lodge opened to the public in the 1980s after operating as a research station for volcanologists studying Arenal's activity, which continued from 1968 until it quieted in 2010. The trails connect patches of primary and secondary forest once used to monitor the volcano, and the property sits within view of Lake Arenal, Costa Rica's largest artificial reservoir.

Arenal Volcano rises behind the Royal Corin Thermal Water and Spa Resort near La Fortuna in Costa Rica's Alajuela Province. — Arenal Volcano rises above the Royal Corin Thermal Water and Spa Resort near La Fortuna in Costa Rica's Alajuela Province. The stratovolcano, at 1,670 meters, was continuously active from 1968 until its eruptive activity ceased in 2010, making it one of Central America's most studied volcanoes during that period. Its near-symmetrical cone sits within Arenal Volcano National Park, established in 1991 to protect the surrounding forest and wildlife. La Fortuna, the town at the volcano's base, grew largely around tourism tied to the volcano's decades of visible activity.

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