Costa Rican Geography & Geology

Geography

Costa Rica is bordered by Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south. It boasts over 760 miles of some of the most amazing coastline in the world with too many pristine beachs to count. To the east is the Caribbean, and to the west is the Pacific. Costa Rica’s volcanic mountains soar an amazing 12,529 feet above sea level (mount Chirripo). From the top of Mount Chirripo, on a clear day you can see both the Caribbean and the Pacific oceans. Costa Rica is only about the size of West Virginia! Even though Costa Rica covers a miniscule .01 percent of the earth’s surface, it contains approximately 6 percent of the earth’s biodiversity.

Geology

Most of Costa Rica is about three million years old-just an infant in geologic time. It was created when the Cocos Plate collided with the Caribbean Plate, a process still lifting Costa Rica today. Consequently, the area is prone to both earthquakes and volcanic activity.