The Rio Grande de Loíza (English: Great River of Loíza or Loíza River) is a river in the main island of Puerto Rico. It is the largest river in Puerto Rico by discharge volume. Situated on the north coast of the island, it originates in the northeastern Sierra de Cayey, flowing from south to north, and draining into the Atlantic Ocean, a few miles east of San Juan.[1]
Rio Grande de Loíza runs for approximately 40 miles (64 kilometers). It has its origin in the municipality of San Lorenzo at an altitude of approximately 3,500 feet (1,100 meters) above sea level. It runs through the municipalities of San Lorenzo, Caguas, Gurabo, Trujillo Alto, Carolina, Canóvanas and Loíza, forming the Loíza Lake along its route, making it one of the longest rivers on the island.
The river is of historical importance due to the number of settlements, cities and towns that were founded along it such as San Lorenzo, Caguas and Trujillo Alto.
In the 1898 Military Notes on Puerto Rico by the U.S. it is written that the "limits of the Loisa River are: On the east, the sierra of Luquillo (situated near the northeast corner of the island); on the south, the sierra of Cayey, and on the west, ramifications of the latter. It rises in the northern slopes of the sierra of Cayey, and, running in a northwest direction for the first half of its course and turning to northeast in the second half, it arrives at Loisa, a port on the northern coast, where it discharges its waters into the Atlantic. During the first part of its course, it is known by the name of Cayagua."[3] The river was commemorated in a poem by Puerto Rican poet Julia de Burgos.[4]
^"Los Ríos"(PDF). Hojas de Nuestro Ambiente. Puerto Rico: DRNA. February 1, 2007. Archived from the original(PDF) on April 1, 2012. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
^ abPuerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources. "Cuenca del Río Grande de Loíza"(PDF). drna.pr.gov. Retrieved 2021-09-21.
