El Picacho Park is one of the city's oldest parks, located at 1,300 meters above sea level and 5 kilometers north of downtown Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras.

Inaugurated in the mid-20th century, it was named "Cerro El Picacho" United Nations Park to commemorate the visit of the first Secretary of the United Nations, Trygve Halodan Lie.

Construction of the park began in 1937, during the administration of President Dr. General Tiburcio Carías Andino. Architect Augusto Morales y Sánchez was commissioned to design the staircase and botanical garden with the goal of creating recreational spaces for Hondurans. Prior to construction, architect Morales and his team recorded the reforestation of 1,750,000 trees of different species in the park.

From this first reforestation, “El Picacho” began to become the closest forested area to the capital.

The sites created at that time officially bear the name Staircase of Skulls, and at its summit are the Temple of the Kukulcans and the Botanical Garden. From its inception, it is reported that the top of the Staircase was designed to project colored lights in sync with symphonies such as Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker.

Additionally, the pergolas-viewpoints were built on the edge of the gorges, so that the capital's residents could admire the colonial center of the city.

Additionally, chalets for park rangers and playing areas for softball, a once popular sport, were built.

In 1939, construction of the park was halted due to World War II. Construction resumed in January 1946.

On August 2, 1946, the park was inaugurated, celebrating the First International Conference of Caribbean Archaeologists. It was held at the site now known as the 1946 Archaeological Congress, adjacent to Philosophy Plaza and Confucius Plaza.

Text adapted from the book "United Nations" National Park, Cerro de "El Picacho", 1950. Library of the National Congress.

Since early 2022, we have been referring to the park as El Picacho Park, as visitors refer to it as "El Picacho."

Its official name is United Nations Park Cerro de El Picacho.

Fundación de Parques Nacionales, a non-profit organization overseeing the park's 395 blocks, was founded in 1993. It is currently celebrating its 32nd anniversary (2025).

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The foundation is made up of an assembly, a board of directors, an executive director, an administration, and a team of park rangers. The assembly and board of directors establish a series of regulations to govern travel and activities in the park, with the aim of protecting and reforesting the various ecological sites that are home to a variety of local animals.

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Adapted from the article " United Nations Park: 81 Years of Hidden Natural Wealth in Tegucigalpa," by La Tribuna newspaper.

Park entrance fees support the care of visitor access areas, as well as the 395 acres of forest.

The forest is home to a life zone classified as a transition from dry to humid subtropical forest. The majority of the vegetation cover, 80%, is the ocote pine (Pinus oocarpa), the national tree of Honduras, along with pine and pinabete trees, oaks, holm oaks, ferns, and bromeliads. Within the park, there are trees over 63 years old. You can also see native and exotic trees such as guanacastes, eucalyptus, macuelizos, palm trees, jacarandas, and figs, as well as a wide variety of flowers of diverse shapes and colors.

In the park, 44 species of birds can be observed, both resident and migratory, as well as small mammals such as the wild cat, the guazalo, rabbits, squirrels, and snakes.

Adapted from the United Nations Park trefoil Cerro "El Picacho".

Copy the following section to include as the correct citation in your school reports:

History of United Nations Park, El Picacho Hill. El Picacho Park. National Parks Foundation 2024. www.parqueelpicacho.com

We believe in continuous improvement.

If you have any information about the park's history or flora and fauna, please don't hesitate to contact us. You can email our digital marketing team at parqueelpicacho@gmail.com with your name and information about the park's history.

If you are a journalist and would like to schedule a visit for an interview at the park, to do a report: send an email to fundacionparquesnacionales@gmail.com