Natural Protected Area Valle del Lunarejo, Protected natural area in Rivera Department, Uruguay

Natural Protected Area Valle del Lunarejo is a nature reserve covering roughly 29,000 hectares of valleys, streams, hills over 350 meters high, numerous waterfalls, forests, and grasslands. Deep basalt rock formations shape the entire landscape and create its distinctive terrain.

The Rivera departmental government declared the valley a natural reserve by decree 10839/01 in 2001, although the land remained in private hands. Decree 476/009 of 14 October 2009 delimited the area and admitted it to Uruguay's national protected areas system as a protected landscape. Management is shared by DINAMA, the Rivera intendencia and the owners of Colonia Aparicio Saravia, held by the Instituto Nacional de Colonización.

The name Lunarejo comes from the stream that drains the valley, the Arroyo Lunarejo, a right-bank tributary of the Tacuarembó River. The land is privately owned: the fields belong to the Colonia Aparicio Saravia of the Instituto Nacional de Colonización, and management is shared by DINAMA, the Rivera intendencia and the settlers. Access is from Route 30 near Masoller, Boquerón, La Palma and Lunarejo.

Access is from Route 30, near the towns of Masoller, Boquerón, La Palma and Lunarejo, in the northwest of Rivera Department by the Artigas and Salto limits. The 29,286 hectares are private land managed by DINAMA, the Rivera intendencia and the Colonia Aparicio Saravia settlers. Trails cross streams and basalt escarpments, so check water levels before setting out.

The region is home to over 150 bird species along with rare animals like margay cats, coatis, anteaters, and armadillos living among subtropical vegetation. This wildlife thrives within the protected basalt formations.