The San Carlos River (Spanish: Rio San Carlos) is a river in the Alajuela Province of

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

that drains into the San Juan River and thus into the Caribbean Sea. Its basin covers an area of about 3,100 km2. The river has a length of 142 km of which about 60 km allow navigation. The river originates from the confluence of the Jabillos River and Peje River both originating on the eastern side of the

Cordillera de Tilarán Costa Rica is located on the Central American Isthmus, surrounding the point 10° north of the equator and 84° west of the prime meridian. It has 212 km of Caribbean Sea coastline and 1,016 on the North Pacific Ocean. The area is 51,100&nb ...

and traverses the

San Carlos Canton San Carlos is a canton in the Alajuela province of Costa Rica. The capital city of the canton is Ciudad Quesada. History San Carlos was created on 26 September 1911 by decree 17. Geography San Carlos has an area of km² and a mean elevatio ...

. It meets the San Juan River close to Boca San Carlos.Instituto Costarricense de Turismo map
, 2007. Tributaries include: * Platanar River, (Rio Platanar) *

Arenal River Arenal River is a river of Costa Rica that is a tributary of the San Carlos River.Penas Blancas River, (Rio Penas Blancas) * Tres Amigos River, (Rio Tres Amigos) The basin has both economic and touristic importance. Rice, corn, beans, cane sugar, and pineapple are grown within it, also live stock produces milk and meat. In addition, there are touristic attractions, some are in the area of the Arenal Volcano: hiking, river tours, hot springs, and ecotourism. The average rainfall in the basin ranges from 3.500 to 4,500 mm and the temperature between 22 and 28 degrees C. A number of wildlife refugee areas are part of the basin, including the Tenorio Volcano National Park,

Juan Castro Blanco National Park Juan Castro Blanco National Park is a National Park, part of the Arenal Huetar Norte Conservation Area, in the northern part of Costa Rica. Location Located about 100 km north of San José, to the east of Ciudad Quesada in Alajuela Pro ...

Alberto Manuel Brenes Biological Reserve Alberto Manuel Brenes Biological Reserve is a nature reserve in the central part of Costa Rica. It is part of the Central Conservation Area; which protects tropical forest area near San Ramon. The reserve operates under the direction of the Univer ...

and the Maquenque National Park. Development with deforestation and hunting are a threat to the natural habitat of the basin.

References

{{coord, 10.7843, -84.1969, type:river_region:CR, format=dms, display=title Rivers of Costa Rica Geography of Alajuela Province