Las Horquetas

Las Horquetas is a district of the Sarapiquí canton, in the Heredia province of Costa Rica.

Location
It is located in the northern region of the country and borders the neighborhoods of Puerto Viejo to the north, Varablanca de Heredia to the south and La Virgen to the west. While to the east it borders with the province of Limón.

Its head, the village of Horquetas, is 16.9 km (16 minutes) to the SE of Puerto Viejo city and 68.5 km (1 hour and 14 minutes) to the NE of San José city, the capital of the nation. Another important and slightly larger village is Rio Frio, which is about 8.5 km to the west (12 minutes).

Geography
Las Horquetas has an area of 565.41 km² and an elevation of 68 metres.

It presents a mountainous territory in its southwest zone, whereas in direction north and east, the land descends and ends in the plains of Sarapiquí.

Demographics
For the 2011 census, Las Horquetas had a population of 24,331 inhabitants. It is the most populated of the canton, ahead even of Puerto Viejo y  La Virgen.

Settlements
The district's 37 population centers are:


 * Horquetas (head of the district)
 * Bambuzal
 * Cerro Negro (parte)
 * Colonia Bambú
 * Colonia Colegio
 * Colonia Esperanza
 * Colonia Huetar
 * Colonia Nazareth
 * Colonia Victoria
 * Colonia Villalobos
 * Cubujuquí
 * Chiripa
 * Fátima
 * Finca Agua
 * Finca Zona Siete
 * Finca Zona Ocho
 * Finca Zona Diez
 * Finca Zona Once
 * Isla
 * Isla Grande
 * Isla de Israel
 * La Conquista
 * La Chávez
 * Flaminia
 * La Vuelta
 * Rambla
 * Pedernales
 * Platanera
 * Río Frío (the biggest village)
 * San Bernardino
 * San Luis
 * Santa Clara
 * Tapa Viento
 * Ticarí
 * Tigre
 * Villa Isabel
 * Villa Nueva

Economy
It plays an important role in the area, the extensive cultivation of bananas and pineapples for export purposes, dominating the landscape and being the main source of income for many of its inhabitants.

Horquetas, his head, and the village of Rio Frio, have health and education services.

Entertainment services are also offered in recreational areas.

In terms of trade, it is remarkable the sale of groceries, shoes, clothes, appliances and various accessories.

Road transportation
The district is covered by the following road routes:
 * CR RNP 4.svg National Route 4
 * CR RNS 229.svg National Route 229
 * CR RNT 817.svg National Route 817