General Information of Lake Arenal

History of Arenal

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Lake Arenal: This natural depression caused by local geological faults formerly contained a small lake that emptied into the Arenal River which flowed into the Caribbean via the San Carlos and San Juan Rivers. However, in the 1970's, the Costa Rican Electric Company (I.C.E.) began construction of what is currently the country's largest hydroelectric generating project.
An earthen dam was built only seven kilometres (4.3 miles) to the west of Arenal Volcano--that had erupted violently just a few years earlier. As the waters filled up behind the dam a thirty-kilometre long lake was formed. Water from the lake is tunnelled to the Pacific side of the country, passing through three turbine-driven generating stations, before being channelled into a system of irrigation canals that have substantially increased the agricultural productivity of the lower Tempisque basin in Guanacaste.

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Weather

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lLake Arenal is one of the best retirement locations in all of Costa Rica due the beautiful tropical weather (never too hot), air quality, and friendly people.

This beautiful weather is because Lake Arenal is surrounded by mountains, pastures and plenty rain to keep the fields green the whole year. The wind is steady most of the year, except for the wind season (Dec-Mar) when the wind can go up to 25 miles per hour. The direction of the wind is from the east bringing the Atlantic Ocean air and weather to the eastern edge of Lake Arenal where it meets the hot dry Pacific Ocean air coming in from Guanacaste to the west.

Here is some numbers about Lake Arenal:
10° N 84º W, 1,525 feet above see level, 48 square miles of surface area, 24 miles long, Air Temp: 65° to 90°, water temp 73° +, sweet water

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Activities at Lake Arenal

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As well as its importance for energy and agriculture, Lake Arenal provides excellent recreational opportunities, especially for windsurfing and freshwater fishing. The north-western end of the lake is buffeted by strong winds, particularly from December through March, that make for ideal windsurfing conditions.
Fishing for guapote (Cichlasoma dovii), often referred to as "rainbow bass" even though it is not related to bass, is another popular sport on the lake. The season is open year-round (on this lake only) and there is a limit of 10 fish per day.
Besides that, there are also other activities like canopy, horse back ridding, waterfalls, birds watching, just to mention some of them.

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Information of Cities and Districts of Tilaran.

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Tilaran City General Information
Population: 8291 habitants.
Area: 68563 km2.
Services: Banks: Nacional, Costa Rica, Popular. Ministry of Health, Municipality, Office of Costa Electricity Institute (I.C.E), Supermarkets, Schools, High School, Church, Hospitals, Clinics, Pharmacies, Dental Clinics, Offices of: architects, engineers, lawyers, specialists doctors. Restaurants & Bars, Bookstores, Firefighter Station, Red Cross, Bakeries, Post Office, Bus Station, Internet Cafe Stations, Police, hotels, cabins & hostels.
Places of interest: Eco-Tourism, Waterfalls, Bird watching, Canopy Tour, horse back riding, forest walking trails, windsurf, mountain biking (on dirt farm roads and one-track trails), kite boarding.

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Nuevo Arenal General Information:
Population: 2319 habitants.
Area: 73838 km2.
Services: Banks: Nacional, Costa Rica. Supermarkets, Schools, Colleges, Church, Clinics, Pharmacies, Dental Clinics, Offices of: architects, engineers, lawyers, Restaurants & Bars, Bookstores, Private Red Cross, International Restaurants, Bakeries, Post Office, Bus Stop, Internet Cafe Stations, Police, hotels, cabins & hostels.
Places of interest: Access to Arenal Lake, Rivers, Canopy Tours, Caves Tours, Boat Fishing Tours, amazing views of the Lake and Volcano.

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Tierras Morenas General Information:

Population: 891 habitants.
Area: 84287 km2.
Services: Mini markets, bus stop, church, cabins, hostels.
Places of interest: Windmills Project, electricity generators, opening soon a Zoo.

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Tronadora - San Luis General Information:
Population: 1812 habitants.
Area: 142402 km2.
Services: Mini markets, bus stop, church, cabins, hotels, hostels, Restaurant & Bars, Country Club.
Places of interest: Rivers, Forest Walking Trails, Waterfalls, Access to Arenal Lake, Fishing, Bird watching.

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Guadalajara (Rio Piedras) General Information

Population: 820 habitants.
Services: Mini markets, bus stop, church, cabins, hotels, hostels, restaurants & bars.
Places of interest: Rivers, forests, waterfalls, access to Arenal Lake, Bird watching, Fishing, windsurf, kite boarding.

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Libano General Information:
Population: 897 habitants.
Area: 72241 km2.
Services: Mini markets, bus stop, church, cabins, hostels.
Places of interest: Eco-tourism, Forests, Rivers, Waterfalls, Impressive Views of Lake.

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Quebrada Grande General Info:
Population: 2708 habitants.
Area: 85237 km2.
Services: Mini markets, bus stop, church, cabins, hostels.
Places of interest: Eco-tourism, Forests, Rivers, Waterfalls, Impressive Views of Lake, close to Monteverde Rain Forest Reserve.

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Cañas City General Information

Location: 165 Km from San José, Guanacaste province.

Population: 21000 habitants.

Area: 682.20 km, 86M. above sea level.

Services:
Banks: Nacional, Costa Rica, Popular. Health Costa Rica Department, Municipality, Office of Costa Electricity Institute (I.C.E), Supermarkets, Schools, Universities, Church, Hospitals, Clinics, Pharmacies, Dental Clinics, Offices of: architects, engineers, lawyers, specialists doctors. Restaurants & Bars, Bookstores, Firefighter Station, Red Cross, Bakeries, Post Office, Bus Station, Internet Cafe Stations, Police, Zoo, Water and sewerage systems of Costa Rica (AyA), hotels, cabins & hostels, RITEVE (mandatory technical revision of vehicles).

Places of interest:
Zoo Las Pumas (with all species of Costa Rican wildlife), Corobici River water rafting, Waterfalls.