Adjuntas

Adjuntas is a municipality and small mountain town located in the Cordillera Central region of Puerto Rico. The town is famous for its relatively cold temperatures (often called "the Switzerland of Puerto Rico"), its mountainous scenery, many rivers and waterfalls.

Understand


Adjuntas is located on a small valley in the Cordillera Central, the main central mountain range of Puerto Rico. Although the area had been settled by the Taino before the Spanish arrival, the modern town dates to 1815 when a small gold rush brought people from Coamo and other southern towns to the area in search of precious metals. Gold, silver and copper were still being mined in Adjuntas during the 20th century. In addition to its Taino and Spanish heritage, the town was also home to a relatively large Jewish community during the 18th and 19th centuries, and freed families also settled in large numbers after the abolition of slavery.

Get in

 * Ponce: Mercedita International Airport, 18 mi (29 km) away
 * Aguadilla: Rafael Hernández Airport, 48 mi (78 km) away
 * San Juan: Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport, 85 mi (136 km) away

By car
Adjuntas can be easily reached by car from Ponce through route PR-10 which crosses the southern portion of the Cordillera Central. The town can also be reached from Utuado (and Arecibo) in the north also through PR-10 although the route here has not been developed as a highway and the winding road is narrower.

Get around
The historic downtown is relatively small and is most easily explored by foot. Car is still the best option to move around the municipality, especially to get to the forests, swimming holes and other natural areas.

A word of caution: if driving you are sharing the road with trucks, and locals. The mountain roads have steep descents and ascents, hairpin turns, and steep cliff drops are not always protected by railing. The roads may look like one-lane highways but are made to handle two-lane traffic.

Do



 * Fishing at Garzas Lake, particularly by the
 * Hiking at the Guilarte State Forest, Pueblo State Forest (Bosque del Pueblo) and around Garzas Lake.
 * Swimming at one of the many natural pools formed by waterfalls and rivers banks around the municipality:

Buy

 * There are numerous gift shops selling local arts, crafts and souvenirs around downtown Adjuntas.
 * Coffee! Adjuntas is one of Puerto Rico's coffee centers with numerous coffee farms and haciendas selling their coffee to visitors, such as in Hacienda Tres Angeles.

Drink
You can enjoy drinks at any of the local restaurants. Many gas stations sell drinks as well as beer.

Go next

 * Arecibo and Utuado to the north along PR-10.
 * Ponce to the south along PR-10.