The Cambalache State Forest (Bosque Estatal de Cambalache) offers a lovely oasis for picnics and gatherings, and it has several miles of trails designed for enjoying nature via mountain bike or walking. This is one of the few places in Puerto Rico where you can mountain bike along cool and shaded forest trails.

Though Puerto Rico is full of all sorts of neat things to do, one of the few things we don’t have here is river rapids for tubing or rafting. We did find an adventure that offers "lazy river" tubing through a cave, along with some hiking and Taino cave exploration. Those are some of my favorite things all rolled into one day, and all in beautiful Utuado. So, when some family members came to visit, we decided to check it out.

The Central Mountain range that runs through the middle of Puerto Rico is full of canyons, caves and waterfalls. We recently took a hike, sponsored by the local chapter of the Sierra Club, into Canyon Las Bocas to see the Cascade Grande waterfall. It was an enjoyable, and challenging, day of hiking and river-trekking.

San Cristóbal Canyon has been named one of the top 10 Natural Wonders of Puerto Rico. With that high distinction, I needed to see it for myself. It is not the easiest place to get to (being at the bottom of a 500+ foot descent), so it does require some planning and, for best results, a guide! Montaña Explora, a family-run tour company, offers an extreme adventure that includes hiking and rappelling in the canyon. It was tough, but it was so worth the effort!

If you enjoy adventure tours — those with ziplines, rappelling, hiking, caving, and other fun things — and you also enjoy going to special, off the beaten path places — then this tour is for you. Batey Zipline Adventure, in beautiful Utuado, offers all of that in a nice half-day package. The majority of the activities are on, around, and above an organic farm near the Tanama River, making this the most eco-friendly adventure tour we’ve taken in Puerto Rico.

Culebra has always been a popular island, with its beautiful beaches and easy snorkeling right from the beach. The problem is, the amazingly beautiful Flamenco Beach has also become so popular that it can be a bit crowded at times. For people who are looking for a quiter beach that still offers great snorkeling, Playa Carlos Rosario may be just right for you.

Walking and hiking in El Yunque National Forest is one of our favorite things to do. On my brother’s recent visit, we decided to go to the south side of El Yunque and walk the Waterline Trail to Los Prieto Falls, and then to continue past the falls to the end to see the view. We have done this trail a few times, and we really like it. It’s an easy hike, the trail is mostly flat, and there are some great views along the way.

I had heard that Isla Caja de Muertos (or Coffin Island) was lovely, but I think it has been kept a secret just how fantastic it is! Visiting the island has been on my "to do" list for 6 years now, but we never really made the effort to go. We finally made it out there, and I can kick myself for waiting so long. It is a beautiful island and it is too nice to be missed, especially since it is an easy day trip.

Almost everyone that visits Puerto Rico makes the trip to El Yunque National Forest to see some waterfalls and get some great views. But there are other forests in Puerto Rico that offer all that, too. We had hiked in the Toro Negro Forest a number of years ago. I remembered it was very nice and parts of the forest looked very much like El Yunque. So we decided to go back again recently to take notes and write about it for anyone who wants an alternative to hiking in El Yunque.

The El Yunque National Forest covers 28000 acres, and much of it is protected as wilderness areas. Ray and I are always looking for new trails to hike and, of course, elusive waterfalls. We recently went to the south side of the rain forest in search of Los Prieto Falls. We found a great hike and beautiful set of waterfalls, too!

We like to discover and write about little-known places to visit and things to do here in Puerto Rico. Cueva Ventana is one of those places. The information available about it was scarce, but once we figured it out, it turns out to be very easy to get to. And the view is fantastic!

What do you get when you cross scavenger hunts with GPS technology? The "sport" called Geocaching. You can grab your GPS unit and try to find one of the 350 treasures hidden around Puerto Rico. You may be pleasantly surprised by what else you discover about the island during your hunt.

The Salinas de Cabo Rojo, or salt flats, is an active salt-mining operation in Cabo Rojo. This operation is part of the 1800-acre National Wildlife Refuge, which is a mecca for bird-watching along the many walking and biking trails. And it’s right down the road from the Cabo Rojo Lighthouse.

The Guajataca Forest, in the karst region of Puerto Rico, has 25 miles of trails within its boundaries. Most people will only use 2 of these trails: the Interpretive Trail and the trail to the Cueva del Viento. One can spend an hour or so exploring the Interpretive Trail and learn about what makes this part of the island unique.

Waterfalls are always beautiful, whether you pick the right day to go or not. Salto Curet in Maricao is another example of an off-the-beaten-path waterfall that is not easy to get to. Besides being about ½-hour drive along a small, twisty, turning mountain road, once you actually get to the river there is a hike in and then a walk up stream. But it is very pretty.