Arancibia

About Arancibia:

Arancibia covers 45 square kilometres on the Pacific slope of the Cordillera de Tilarán, on the west bank of the Río Aranjuez. It is the youngest district in Puntarenas canton, created by law in November 2000. The map explains most of daily life: the only road in runs the length of Montes de Oro, so the district answers to the port city’s municipality while its shopping, banking and bus connections all run through Miramar. From Cuatro Cruces on the Interamericana it is 36 kilometres, and the climb from central Miramar takes about an hour. Bajo Caliente is the head village, and a bus links Miramar with Ojo de Agua.

This is farm country, and coffee is the crop that brings in the most money. Families also grow tomato, sweet pepper, green beans and cucumber, keep beef cattle, raise pigs and bees, and pick oranges, lemons, mangoes and water apples from trees around the house. Farmers around Corazón de Jesús and Ojo de Agua have organised their own irrigation association, backed by SENARA. Rural tourism is small but growing: farm visits, home cooking, the waterfalls of Las Tres Marías and El Bambú, and walks into the canyon of the Río Aranjuez.

The ground is what to understand before anything else. Above the village of Las Lagunas, Cerro El Silencio slipped in 1988, gave way in 1993 and killed six people, and in June 2000 sent down more than eight million cubic metres of earth that buried the village, left eight people dead and ended Las Lagunas for good. Elsewhere the district is farmed hillside, and on all of it slope and drainage decide where a house can safely stand. Water is not short: the streams running off these hills feed the Aranjuez, where the El Encanto hydroelectric plant generates power for the Compañía Nacional de Fuerza y Luz. The forest that remains around Ojo de Agua belongs to the Pájaro Campana biological corridor, which runs from the Monteverde cloud forest down to the Gulf of Nicoya.

Fewer than a thousand people live in Arancibia, spread across Bajo Caliente, Arancibia Norte and Sur, San Martín Norte and Sur, Rincón, San Rafael, Corazón de Jesús and Ojo de Agua. Most households live from the land. Errands mean the drive down to Miramar, and anything bigger means Puntarenas or the Central Valley. Outside buyers come for a working finca or a weekend house with land, and anyone who needs to be in an office every day will feel the distance.

Houses in Arancibia:

Homes here are rural family houses, set along the village roads or standing inside a farm. Many are sold with pasture, a coffee patch or fruit trees around them, and some farms carry two or three houses. Before you fall for the view, look at what sits above the house: a steep cut bank or a slope that holds water matters more here than the age of the kitchen. Check how the access road behaves in the rainy season, since residents of San Rafael, Corazón de Jesús and Ojo de Agua have complained publicly about the state of theirs. When you look at houses for sale in Arancibia, ask exactly which village the house is in and how far it sits from the bus route down to Miramar.

Land and Lots in Arancibia:

Land is most of the market, and it is measured in hectares rather than square metres. A five-hectare farm with improved pasture, a little coffee, two houses and a river along the bottom edge is the kind of property that changes hands here. Parcels around Corazón de Jesús and Ojo de Agua fall inside the irrigation association’s area, so ask whether it is delivering water and whether a new owner can join before you plan vegetables for the dry months. Some sellers pitch their land as the site for a weekend house in the hills, which works only if the slope and the access allow it. When you compare land for sale in Arancibia, walk the boundaries, find the nearest stream and see the ground in the wet season before you agree a price.

FAQ:

• How do you get to Arancibia?

  Leave the Interamericana at Cuatro Cruces, drive up to Miramar and keep climbing through Montes de Oro until you cross the Río Aranjuez. It is 36 kilometres from the highway, and the stretch from central Miramar takes about an hour. A bus runs between Miramar and Ojo de Agua for anyone without a car. Drive the route yourself in the rainy season before buying, because the state of the road is a regular complaint.

• Is Arancibia part of Montes de Oro?

  No. Arancibia belongs to Puntarenas canton, even though the road and most daily services come through Miramar. Land-use certificates, building permits and property tax are handled by the Municipalidad de Puntarenas, not by the municipality in Miramar. Confirm the district on the survey plan so there is no doubt about which office you are dealing with.

• What should I check before buying land in Arancibia?

  Start with the slope. The Las Lagunas slides of 1993 and 2000 show what these hillsides can do, so have a geologist or engineer look at any building site on steep ground. Then get a land-use certificate from the Municipalidad de Puntarenas, and match the survey plan, the owner and any liens against the Registro Nacional (Registro Inmobiliario). Ask in writing about water, and find out whether the access road is public or an easement across a neighbour’s farm.

• What can you farm in Arancibia?

  Coffee is the main cash crop, and many farms also grow tomato, sweet pepper, green beans and cucumber. Beef cattle, pigs and beehives are part of the mix, and citrus, mango and water apple trees grow around the houses. Near Corazón de Jesús and Ojo de Agua, talk to the irrigation association before you count on watering crops through the dry season.

• Is there anything to do nearby?

  The draw is the countryside itself. Waterfalls such as Las Tres Marías and El Bambú, the canyon of the Río Aranjuez and farm visits with local food bring in weekend visitors. Miramar, down the hill, has the restaurants and shops, and the beaches of Puntarenas make an easy day out.