Parque Nacional El Imposible

Introducing Parque Nacional El Imposible

Decreed a national park in 1989, El Imposible is a tropical mountain forest between 300m and 1450m above sea level in the Apaneca Ilamatepec mountain range. The park is named for the perilous gorge through which coffee growers once labored to move their crop from the northern fincas to the port of Acajutla. Many mules and crews fell to their deaths attempting to cross the gorge via makeshift tree-trunk bridges. The notoriously treacherous journey gave the park its name; when bridges were finally built a plaque was installed to mark the occasion. Still there, the plaque famously reads: 'Mayo 1968 - dejó de der imposible' (May 1968 - it's no longer impossible).

The majority of the park is original forest, the remains of a threatened ecosystem and habitat for an extraordinary variety of plant and animal life. Nearly 400 kinds of trees grow in the area, and endangered animals, such as pumas, tigrillos, wild boar, king hawks and black-crested eagles, are protected here. Eight rivers flow through Imposible, providing the watershed for Barra de Santiago and other mangrove forests along the coast.

Last updated: Mar 2, 2009