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Cerro El Marrano: Protecting a Forest While Opening a New Path for Tourism

How conservation, community participation, and responsible tourism could transform one of Chalatenango’s protected forests

El Salvador’s tourism growth is often associated with its beaches, volcanoes, and historic towns. However, some of the country’s greatest potential can be found in places that remain largely unknown outside their surrounding communities.

Cerro El Marrano, located in the district of San Ignacio in Chalatenango Norte, is one of those places.

According to a report published today by Diario El Salvador, Plan Trifinio believes the protected forest could become an important nature-tourism destination. Its wooded trails, panoramic views, natural water sources, and mountain setting offer the foundation for something special.

The proposal is not simply about attracting visitors. It is about protecting the forest while creating new opportunities for the people who have helped care for it.

A Protected Forest in the Chalatenango Highlands

The protected area of Cerro El Marrano covers 261 hectares of privately owned land. Luis Posada, an agroforestry technician with the Trifinio Transboundary Biosphere Reserve Protection Project, explained that the area has been protected since the project began in 2023.

The mountain contains a mixed forest where pine, cypress, and oak trees are among the most common species. The forest has an estimated density of approximately 2,000 trees per hectare.

That figure gives some idea of how rich and important this area is.

Cerro El Marrano is also located within a water-recharge zone. Its forests help rainwater enter the soil and replenish the natural sources that surrounding communities depend upon.

Trees also capture carbon, help regulate temperatures, and reduce some of the effects of climate change. These are sometimes called ecosystem services, but in everyday terms, they represent the many ways a healthy forest quietly supports human life.

It protects the water, cools the air, holds the soil together, and provides a home for plants and wildlife.

Conservation Supported by the Community

One of the most encouraging parts of this project is the direct involvement of local residents.

People from the surrounding communities participate in forest-protection work and receive a combined annual economic incentive of $10,631. The funds support practical conservation activities, including maintaining and clearing trails, creating internal firebreaks, inspecting protective signs, and conducting patrols.

This work is especially important in a region that can be vulnerable to forest fires during the dry season.

Cerro El Marrano suffered a serious forest fire in 2023. That history makes the current prevention work even more meaningful. Protecting the mountain requires more than declaring it a conservation area. It demands constant attention from people who understand the land and can recognize threats before they become disasters.

The project also shows why environmental protection is stronger when local communities receive a direct benefit. The people living closest to the forest are not being treated as outsiders. They are becoming active partners in its protection.

Trails Leading to Remarkable Views

Plan Trifinio is now preparing a strategic tourism proposal that would include local communities and the private owners of the protected land.

Ignacio Rivera, technical assistant for the project’s territorial coordination, explained that the goal is to connect the community with the forest’s tourism potential.

Cerro El Marrano already has two trails that could be developed as challenging or extreme routes. One follows a principal path through the middle section of the forest. Another provides views toward several of the most impressive natural landmarks in the region.

From the mountain, visitors can see the Peñón de Cayaguanca, El Pital, and the mountains of neighboring Honduras.

These views give Cerro El Marrano something that cannot be created through construction or advertising. The natural landscape is already there. The challenge is to make it safely accessible without damaging the environment that makes it worth visiting.

The proposal could also connect visitors with camping areas, guided forest walks, hiking routes, and a trail leading to a natural water source known as El Salto de las Golondrinas.

Together, these attractions could turn the forest into an appealing destination for hikers, campers, birdwatchers, photographers, and travelers looking for a quieter experience of El Salvador.

Tourism That Benefits the People Who Live There

Tourism can bring opportunity, but its success should not be measured only by visitor numbers.

For Cerro El Marrano, the real measure will be whether tourism helps protect the forest and improves life within the surrounding communities.

A carefully developed destination could create work for local guides, food vendors, transportation providers, farmers, small lodging businesses, and artisans. Visitors who spend a day hiking may also purchase meals, local products, or stay overnight in nearby communities.

This is how a natural attraction can support a wider local economy.

Adilio Méndez, secretary of the Community Development Association of the Santa Rosa canton, told Diario El Salvador that conserving the forest is important and that the tourism proposal could benefit both the community and Salvadoran and international visitors.

His words point to the balance that will be needed. The forest should be opened carefully, with the people of the area helping decide how tourism develops and how its benefits are shared.

Another Side of El Salvador’s Tourism Story

Cerro El Marrano fits naturally into the growing tourism identity of northern Chalatenango.

San Ignacio, La Palma, Río Chiquito, El Pital, and Cayaguanca already attract visitors because of their cool climate, mountain landscapes, agriculture, handicrafts, and small hotels and restaurants. A protected forest offering more challenging hiking routes could add something different to that regional experience.

It could also encourage visitors to stay longer instead of making only a short trip to one familiar destination.

El Salvador is a small country, but its landscape changes considerably within a short distance. A traveler can visit the Pacific coast and then find cool mountain air, pine forests, and views across an international border only a few hours later.

That variety is one of the country’s strongest tourism advantages.

Protect First, Then Welcome Visitors

Cerro El Marrano has clear potential, but development should proceed carefully.

Trails need to be marked and maintained. Guides should be trained. Fire-prevention measures must remain a priority. Waste management, visitor limits, emergency procedures, and protection of water sources should form part of the tourism plan from the beginning.

The mountain should not be changed to resemble a conventional recreational park. Its value comes from being a living forest.

The goal should be to help visitors experience the landscape while leaving as little impact as possible.

If Plan Trifinio, the landowners, and local communities can maintain that balance, Cerro El Marrano could become a good example of responsible rural tourism—one in which conservation and economic opportunity strengthen each other.

A Forest Worth Discovering—and Protecting

Cerro El Marrano may not yet be one of El Salvador’s best-known destinations, but that could become part of its appeal.

Its trails, trees, mountain views, and natural water source offer visitors a chance to experience a quieter side of the country. More importantly, its development could show how tourism can grow without placing the environment second.

The forest has already been giving something valuable to the surrounding communities through its water, climate regulation, and natural resources. With thoughtful planning, tourism could provide an additional benefit while strengthening the reason to protect it.

Sometimes the next important destination does not need to be built. It only needs to be cared for, understood, and opened responsibly to those willing to walk its trails.

Based on reporting by Walter Solórzano for Diario El Salvador, published July 19, 2026.