This 180-sq-km park lies to the south of town, around the mouth of the Río Monzón, a tributary of the Río Huallaga. Its most distinguishing feature is the Bella Durmiente (Sleeping Beauty), a hill overlooking the town that, from some angles, resembles a recumbent woman wearing an Inca crown. The park is not without its dangers for tourists, with reports of travelers being robbed and raped at gunpoint in recent years, and it is strongly advised to take a guide with you whichever site you choose to visit.
The main attraction here is one of Peru's biggest show caves, La Cueva de las Lechuzas. The admission fees gains you access to any of the other park sights, including the waterfalls in the Puente Tres de Mayo area, that you care to see within two days of purchase.
There are myriad great bathing spots in and around the park. Recommended are the San Jacintillo Medicinal Springs, 1km before the cave; Catarata Santa Carmen on the southern edge of town; and the waterfalls in the Puente Tres de Mayo area 14km south of Tingo on the Huánuco road.
La Cueva de las Lechuzas has police protection, but the road there is still risky, as are more remote destinations.
