About 15 kilometers north of Zambrano as the crow flies is the little-visited Refugio de Vida Silvestre Corralitos similar in character to El Chile and covering 6,926 hectares of mountainside. While the pine and broadleaf forests are facing serious pressures from loggers, hunters, and farmers, plenty of intact forest still graces the upper slopes of Montaña de Corralitos (2,117 meters), in the heart of the reserve.

For more information on Corralitos and suggestions on possible guides, contact Fundación Educa (tel. 504/239-1793 or 504/239-1642) in Tegucigalpa, Colonia Las Minitas, just off Boulevard Morazán. Jorge Valle Aguiluz, owner of Casería Valuz in Zambrano, may also have ideas on how to get into the park. Topographical maps covering the reserve are Zambrano 2758 IV and Agalteca 2759 II.

Getting to Refugio de Vida Silvestre Corralitos

To get to Refugio de Vida Silvestre Corralitos, take a dirt road leaving the San Pedro highway just outside of Zambrano to the mountain town of San Francisco Soroguara; ask around there for someone who can guide you into the forest or at least give some directions on where to start hiking. This is a friendly and safe rural region, where the villagers have strong ideas on the importance of hospitality. You’ll have no problems getting directions from families in their tidy, painted ranchos dotting the lovely mountain countryside.