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Hidden Within A Map Of Costa Rica |
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Friday, 11 May 2007 |
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A map of Costa Rica will clearly show that Costa Rica is part of the ‘ring of fire’, the term defining a line of volcanoes that roughly girdles the Pacific. This being so, Costa Ricans are very used to earthquakes and tremors. Earthquakes and the uplifting of mountain ranges are caused by the shifting of giant rocky plates that form the earth’s shell. The friction between the plates produces the enormous heat exhibited by volcanoes.
Some of Costa Rica’s more than sixty volcanoes have been extinct for a long time, while others show signs of activity ranging from modest puffs of steam to spectacular explosions of rock and fire. This movement of the earth’s plates has been occurring for millions of years since the time when, instead of seven continents, there was just a single landmass known as Pangaea. Around 200 million years ago, Pangaea split into two separate landmasses, one in the north and the other in the south. Then, about 130 million years ago, the South American continent separated from the southern mass.At first, a series of islands appeared between North and South America, allowing some animal and plant species to cross between continents. These islands probably appeared and disappeared several times until about 3 or 4 million years ago, when the land connection between the north and south was complete. A map of Costa Rica will show that Costa Rica is part of that major link between the continents of North American and South America. Not far from San Jose, on a map of Costa Rica, you will see Cartago. Cartago is Costa Rica’s second largest city, alone 14 miles from San Jose. It is here that you can experience the wonder and thrill of the Reventazon River. The Reventazon River is a favorite of kayakers and rafters and provides quite the ride through gorges and dense forests to the coast. |
