Day 6: Monteverde and travel

We got up at 5.45 this morning to hit the road for a long day of travel.  From La Fortuna, we drove to Monteverde, the mountaintop district in the center of the country.  The distance wasn't far as the crow flies but the road trip took around 3 hours.  The first half was on twisty roads, and the second half was on twisty roads that were unpaved and full of potholes.  And, it rained almost the whole way there.  

After about 3 hours on the road, we got to Selvatura, one of the outdoor naturalist/adventure companies in the area.  We had signed up for an amazing zipline experience, but the rain was so intense that we decided to change our plans.  We started with a two-hour naturalist walk through the woods and the hanging bridges.  The tour was great, though it rained and was quite chilly.  We made friends with a father/daughter (adult daughter) combo from New Zealand who were also on the tour.  The walk was great, and our guide showed us a lot of cool things that we would have missed had we not had him pointing them out.  We even saw a quetzal, which was a rare treat!

Juan Carlos was our guide.

Visibility was poor.

After the walk, we jumped right in a queue to see the sloth house. Since zoos are illegal in Costa Rica, the only sloths allowed to be kept in captivity are either in research institutions or sanctuaries.  This sanctuary had 12 female sloths, and we were lucky to visit right as they were having their afternoon meal!

After the sloth house, we grabbed a fast lunch of chicken soup and quesadilla and began the drive down to Parque Manuel Antonio and the Hotel Costa Verde, our home for the next few nights.  The drive was scheduled to take 4 hours, and it started in much the same way as the first half of the drive ended - with rain, potholes, sharp corners, and steep terrain.  Very glad we had a 4wd vehicle.

We finally left the potholes behind and descended towards the coast, including a stint on the Inter-American Highway.  We started driving along the coast as the sun set.  We stopped for dinner at a restaurant along the way, finally getting to the hotel at around 8pm.  H was feeling sick (sore through, exhaustion), so we put her right to bed while S and I settled in.  We've got a two room bungalow, so we don't all have to go to sleep at the same time.  

Tomorrow's plans are in flux.  We were supposed to all get up for a naturalist visit to Manuel Antonio tomorrow, but with the late arrival and H feeling crumby, we're playing flexible.  No alarm for her.  S will def meet the naturalist.  I'll stay with H.

Day 5: Animal Hike and a Volcano Wash-Out

Today was a mellower day compared to yesterday.  We started with a sloths-and-birds naturalist tour with our rad guide Jason.  We toured a farm that used to be a dairy cow farm until the owners went into preservation mode and turned it into a tourist/naturalist area.  We were the only folks on the tour, so we had him all to ourselves.  He was great with H, engaging her, listening to her, and asking her lots of questions.  It was grey and misty, but not unpleasant.

Jason and H

Jason had eagle eyes and spotted sloths and iguanas hundreds of feet away in the trees.

Can you find the iguana?

Of course, there were lots of other critters and beautiful flowers in the preserve too!

A huddle of bats hanging out under a big leaf.

After the naturalist park, Jason drove us to a local place where we had a snack (black bean empanada, papaya, and pineapple) and watched dozens of birds come in for their own papaya snack.

The site was a small cooking school that was also building a restaurant, and one of the workers had found this docile-yet-deadly snake.  He put it in a construction bucket and we all got to see it.  No idea what became of the snake after we left - I'm curious about the rules about this sort of thing...

After Jason dropped us back at the resort, we tried to book a last-minute horseback ride, but they were filled up. Then, we tried to book a last-minute coffee-and-chocolate tour, but they too were booked up.  So, we headed into town for lunch at Organico Fortuna, which was delightful and a nice healthy break from fried empanadas.  S and I each had protein bowls, and H had a chicken-and-bean quesadilla.  By the time we were sitting down to lunch, the sun was finally out and it was actually pretty warm.  I was afraid that my pants would be too warm for the hike that we were planning for after lunch.

We drove to the Arenal 1968 park for a hike on the lava flows that formed after the Arenal volcano last erupted in 1968.  The hike climaxed in a pretty scenic viewpoint, but as we pulled into the parking lot, the clouds were rolling in over the volcano.  

Undeterred, we started our hike. We didn't even blink an eye when we had to stop 45 seconds into our hike to put on ponchos.

The rain got very intense, and by the time we were at the scenic viewpoint, visibility was 20'.  We were in thick pea-soup fog.  But, we didn't hike this dang trail for nothing, so we took an ussie (hoping we were facing the right direction) and just put the volcano in behind us.

Yes, I know it's a hack job.  Don't judge.

By the time we finished the hike, we were wet, but the rain had stopped.  We dove back to the resort and H and I got in the pool for an hour.  Then, back to the bungalow to clean up before a quick dinner and packing.  We leave La Fortuna tomorrow!

I asked H what her favorite parts of the trip were.  Her answers: rappelling down waterfalls and zip lines.  

More zip lines tomorrow!

Day 4: Adventures

We had a 6am wake-up today to grab dinner in time to start our big adventure day.  At 7.15, the van picked us up from reception and drove us deep into the rain forest, where we put our dry goods in a locker and then got in a 4WD-towed trailer for another journey up into the hills.  When we got out, we put on harnesses and helmets before walking to the start of our first adventure: waterfall rapelling with PureTrek.  

All three of us went (along with two other families) on this amazing adventure, where we repelled down the faces of waterfalls, often IN the waterfall itself.  The first waterfall was the longest, and we were soaked by the end of it.  The canyon rang with screams and giggles.  Then, we did a 'monkey drop,' where the guides quickly lowered us (it felt like a free-fall) about 80 feet before dropping us into a pit of water.  I was the only one of our trio to get the full positive experience of this (S went into the pool nose-first, which did not feel good, and H ended up getting off center, so she missed the plunge and landed safely next to it).  Then there were three more drops of varying lengths and terrains, one of which was directly down (no footholds) and the last of which took us straight through a waterfall.  We couldn't bring cameras on this wet adventure, but the guides took photos, and I'll update this post later with some photos.

After that, we took a van to another area and got into a different set of harnesses and helmets and rode a different 4WD-pulled trailer to do a zipline adventure with Arenal Mundo Aventura.  We rode with another family and did about 7 ziplines, including a few that went right over La Fortuna Falls and one that was over 1km long.  While we were out, a rainstorm blew overhead, so about half of our zips were in rain.  One (the long one) was in such heavy rain that our faces felt like they were getting sandblasted.  We had a great time, but one of the people in the other family we were with got a cable burn and had to bail out.  She'll be fine, but she had some abrasions on her back, some hair was ripped out, and the cable burned a hole through her shirt.  

I brought my iphone but didn't take it out while I was on the line.  H brought her camera and took lots of videos from the lines.

H getting clipped in.

The first descent required climbing this tower.

Kitted up!

After the ziplining was done, we grabbed lunch at the tour operation and then hitched a ride back to the resort with one of the staffers.  I'm astounded at how enthusiastic and friendly most Costa Ricans are.  I've lived in quite a few tourist places and have never encountered enthusiasm like this.  The energy is that they are proud of their home and are happy to share it with responsible stewards (who can pay dough to help maintain the natural wonders, of course).  

Back to the hotel to soak in the heated pool (the jacuzzi is broken).  Another rainstorm came through while we were in the pool, so we had cold rain above the surface and warm water below.

Got cleaned up and headed into La Fortuna to grab a snack and do some shopping.  We grabbed dinner in the early evening and headed back to the resort for bed.  Tomorrow's activities are a little later in the day and a lot less adrenaline-filled, but we need to catch up on our sleep!

Day 3: Canopy Tour and La Fortuna Waterfalls

We woke up early-ish and had breakfast at the resort buffet before getting picked up for our first outing - a canopy tour at Mistico Park.  Our guide Angie and driver Oscar picked us and a few other guests up before driving about 20 minutes back over the lake and up into the hills.  Angie was very knowledgeable (we talked about our favorite soccer players), and Oscar had a great eye - he spotted a sloth in a tree before we left the pick-up route!  The trailhead was packed with people, but the guides did a great job of distributing their groups, so once we got over the first bridge, we weren't jammed up.

Jammed trailhead

Angie (blue hair) discussing a pit viper on the trail.

The tour took us over 16 bridges (4 of them hanging, so they swayed a bit), and showed us all sorts of critters and plants.  The highlights were probably the two pit vipers that we saw (one pictured below).   

Don't look down!

After Angie & Oscar dropped us back at our resort, we did a quick stop at the room to change before headed out to lunch in La Fortuna.  The city is bustling and busy!  We headed to a place called the Rainforest Cafe (no relationship to the American chain tragedy).  H had nachos while S and I each had empanadas.  Thinking they were the sizes that we were used to from our Argentina, Peruvian, and Bolivian friends, we each ordered two, but these empanadas were huge!  9" diameter.  And, instead of being baked, they were fried!  Think corn-dog dough.  They were delicious, but they were not small.

After lunch, we drove to the La Fortuna Waterfall, which is one of the most visited sights in all of Costa Rica.  After you take a 466-step hike down into a canyon (the literature says 400 steps, but S counted...), you're rewarded with a huge waterfall into a blue lagoon that empties into a rushing river.  Usually guests can swim in the lagoon, but b/c the rains have been so heavy, the waterfall was too dangerous to swim in the lagoon.  But, H and I were able to swim in the river.  It had a swift current that was fun to play in, in part b/c the structure of the river meant that the current didn't last long before slowing down at a sand bank.

After the 466 step hike back up (phew!), we headed back to the resort for an hour in pool.  Heated pool, that is.  With a swim-up bar.  That served mango smoothies. Livin' large.

Then a return to the room for showers and siestas before a New Years buffet at the restaurant.  Off to dreamland now - we've got an even earlier day tomorrow!

Day 2: Liberia to La Fortuna

I woke up refreshed after a good night's sleep at the airport hotel, but S, who had shared a bed with a very animated H, didn't sleep well.  When we finally rolled out of bed, we grabbed a breakfast at the hotel buffet (standard western fare, plus Gallo Pinto, some small quesadillas, and tamarind juice) and packed our bags.  Our rental car met us at the hotel, and we began our journey into the jungle with a quick stop at a coffee shop (chai latte for S) and the local WalMart (towels).

Shortly south of Liberia, we stopped at Llanos de Cortez Waterfalls for a real treat.  We paid a small entrance fee and then drove about 1km to get to a small parking lot.  From, we hiked down a 100m trail (pretty steep - it was all steps) until we got to a small sandy beach in front of a beautiful waterfall.  There were lots of folks swimming and sunbathing, and H and had fun swimming almost to the place where the water would crash on our heads.  There was a local lifeguard who blew his whistle if you got too close to the falls or climbed on rocks you weren't supposed to.  

In a rocky overhang we also saw some sleeping bats!

We dried our feet and got back in the car for the three-hour drive to La Fortuna, on the SE corner of Lake Arenal.  Along the way we stopped for lunch at a place with a delicious mango smoothie and some of the best tortillas I've ever tasted:

At one point, all the traffic on the road came to a standstill when about a dozen coatis decided that they had the right of way.

 

We eventually made it to our bungalow at Lomas de Volcan, a lovely place deep in the jungle.  Our bungalow has a back porch that looks out at the volcano!

H and I took a quick swim (her third swim in less than 24 hours!) before cleaning up for dinner.  After dinner, we took night hike with a local naturalist through the jungle on an old cacao plantation.  He was great at finding all sorts of animals, including lots of insects, spiders, and other creepy crawlies.

But the stars of the night were definitely the frogs!  We saw 11 species of frogs and 1 species of toad.  We saw frogs in all cycles of life, from eggs to tagpoles to polywogs to mature frogs to mating frogs.  What a treat!  Our guide was amazing at knowing how to spot them.

After the hike, we went back to the resort to finish unpacking and settle in.  S has her own bed tonight, so hopefully she'll wake up refreshed.  I'm bunking with H.