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Adventures in Costa Rica Part 1
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Sun4MySoul
- Posts: 524
- Joined: Sun May 06, 2007 1:37 pm
- Location: NC
Adventures in Costa Rica Part 1
The Background: Traveling to Costa Rica has been on my Bucket List for quite sometime. When a girl friend of mine had some time off and the itch to travel, I went all "Carpe Diem" and convinced her to go to Costa Rica with me! We decided to ignore that its Rainy Season and planned the trip in about 6 weeks. Me and R are both single 30- somethings, ready for adventure- so off we go.
I flew direct to San Jose, CR from Charlotte on US Airways. Thank you Frequent Flier miles for a free First Class ticket! R was on the same flight from Charlotte with me and she reports that life in Coach Class was not too painful. Though I noted that she was much more sober than I was upon arrival.
After a painless flight and trip through immigration, we took the shuttle to Thrifty Car Rental and there I got my first taste of this country’s idea of customer service. They put a whole new twist on “Island Time”…especially since I wasn’t even on a damn island! Many of the guide books steer tourists away from car rental and most of the folks we met were using public transportation to get around. But I can now say that the roads were not as ‘interesting’ as some of the ones on St John and we were never uncomfortable driving anywhere. You pretty much are not getting out of the car rental place without opting for the Full Insurance Coverage, so just plan to spend the money. Though we never had to actually use it….I consider that a miracle, and would get the full coverage again next time.
After over an hour at Thrifty, we were on the road to our first stop- La Fortuna. It's only about a 100 mile drive, but took over three hours on the winding mountain roads with crazy one lane bridges etc. I believe the scenery would
have been amazing, but the typical late afternoon rain and fog had already set in, so we missed the views.
Our hotel for the first four nights was La Pradera. http://www.lapraderadelarenal.com It was a cute complex, just outside of town. It was perfect for us. They have several housing options; we chose a double room with AC. Our room had a little front porch with a view of the Arenal Volcano- the second largest active volcano on the world. I was warned that due to the rain and fog of the season, I would be lucky to catch a glimpse of the top of the volcano during our stay, but we scored!
Our room also came with our own pet frog, trapped somewhere in the bathroom window. I never actually saw him during our stay, but he sounded like a dying lamb. Other highlights of the hotel were the pool and hot tub area, which we used in the afternoons during the rain. And the grand Towel Animals that graced our bed every day when we returned home. Clearly, it takes very little to impress me!
Dinner the first night was at an awesome open-air Mexican restaurant recommended in all the guidebooks. Nice to listen to the rain on the terracotta roof and feel like you’re outside at the same time. Of course, this was the case with all the restaurants in Costa Rica, so every night was fabulous! Food was great and cheap. $25 for one app, two dinners and beer. But I got another lesson in the typical customer service: across the board, they are quick to take your order and bring your food, but after that you have to beg for anything else. Save yourself the trouble and order two drinks at once.
The best part of dinner for R was our uninvited guest, who thankfully showed up after I was finished eating. An anole (or similar type lizard) climbed up the back of my chair unnoticed and took up residence IN MY HAIR! Note to self: wear hair up for the remainder of the trip. The lizard seemed unphased by my flailing about to remove him. Afterwards, he just hung out on the table and stared at us. I swear he was giving me his version of my dog’s puppy eyes when we wants me to feed him from the table.
We were blessed with nearly a full day of sunshine on Day 1 of our trip. This is a rarity in the Arenal area, especially during rainy season. We immediately had to explore the hotel grounds. Plants and flowers overwhelmed the walkways and drew in more butterflies and hummingbirds than I had ever seen in my life. Fabulous. On to breakfast that was included with the room. Also fabulous. Then off to adventure!
Our first stop was Hanging Bridges Park. http://www.hangingbridges.com A series of suspension bridges through the trees of the rainforest, so you can get up close and personal with the wildlife. The hike was probably a couple of miles, and not strenuous, so very family friendly. Most people we saw had hired guides, but we went on our own. Perhaps we would have seen more wildlife if we had hired someone. Not sure.
Nevertheless, we saw a ton of different birds and butterflies that were unidentifiable to us.
But the best score of this trip were a pair of Golden Blue Macaws, the largest of the parrot family. They were quite vocal, and thus easy to spot.
We saw our first group of active Howler Monkeys towards the end of the trail. A guide came upon us on the trail while we were watching the monkeys and showed off his skills of calling them. He had several voices to ´talk´ to the monkeys and I decided this would be a most admirable skill in this country, indeed. I shall study up on Monkey Calling before the next trip. Obligatory Monkey Balls pic:
And while we're on the subject: I discovered my first Penis Tree in this park. But seriously...does anyone know what this is actually called?
We were rewarded after this hike with a fabulous break in the high clouds so that we could get our first full view of the Arenal Volcano. We went to the Arenal Observatory Lodge, which is the closest that you can get to the volcano for viewing. We were treated to some eruptions while we had lunch with a once-in-a-lifetime view. The eruptions sounded like a cross between thunder and fireworks. Very cool. More hikes from the lodge led us to a huge waterfall and a beautiful river. The afternoon sprinkles came along to cool us off but did not linger.
By the time we were finished with these hikes, we had probably been 5-6 miles and decided that deserved an afternoon stop at the local Thermal Hot Springs.They have a river here fed from a spring of over 90 degree water. Several hotels along the river make pools from the thermal water and invite the tourist to visit. We chose Eco Thermales Hot Springs because it seemed to be a more ´natural´ version...designed to make you feel like you were sitting in the river on the rocks as opposed to a swimming pool. Not sure how natural it was with a bar on the riverside serving me daiquiris all afternoon, but I wasn’t complaining! It was a very cool experience that I hope to do again. http://www.arenal.net/tour/eco-thermales-hot-springs/
Another fabulous dinner in town complete with the local wine. La Fortuna is very geared towards tourists and all the restaurants have English speaking waiters, accept American money, and have plenty of American food on their menus for those that might wish to not be a foreign country entirely. Most of the restaurants are basically set on one roadside. All open-air and right on the street. The stray dog problem is pretty severe (worse than feral cats on St John). There seem to be several ´Street Dogs´ that make their living roaming from restaurant to restaurant living off the food from big-hearted tourists. Off course, they always score with me. Though, I should say that most of the Street Dogs do not look hungry at all, and their version of begging is sitting quietly under your table waiting for a scrap or a pet on the ears. They have perfected the art of not being bothersome. I know some dogs in the U.S. that could take lessons from them!
Day Two was a planned adventure. We set up all our excursions through the hotel in La Fortuna ahead of time and they put the cost of the excursions on our hotel tab at the end of the week. Very efficient way to handle payment and I was happy with all the excursions they booked for us. But the company we used on this particular day was OUTSTANDING and when I return to La Fortuna, I will happily book everything I can directly through them. http://www.desafiocostarica.com/
Today we are off on the Canyoning/Waterfall Rappelling Adventure. They gear the trip to the ´adventure tourist´ that have never been rappelling before, so no experience necessary. First we went up the mountain in the back of 4wd drive trucks. Part of the area was used in the filming of Jurrasic Park and it was quite beautiful. A short hike into the jungle and we were at the river that basically slotted a long, deep canyon. We rappelled through the steepest areas and free fall rappelled down the largest waterfalls (the highest was 150ft, I think). But the majority of the trip was rock-scramble / hiking down the canyon....staying in the river the entire time as that is the only area of the rocks that isn´t too slippery for walking. There were deep holes to traverse and even one hole that we just had to jump into and hope for the best! Of course, the guide did everything first and as long as you “followed his steps´´ he said we would be safe. Though, I can assure you that this much fun would never be legal in the United States! There would be too much of a potential for lawsuits etc. I enjoyed the rock scramble/hiking even more than the rappelling. The scenery was indescribable. It was hands-down one of the best adventures of my life. After 4 hours in the canyon and a CRAZY hike out, I wanted to go again with the next group - exhaustion be damned! Though no pictures can do this day justice, here are some shots:
After canyoneering we enjoyed the hotel Jacuzzi in the rain and a good dinner at a local restaurant. I re-discovered my love of plantains and enjoyed the Costa Rican version of the banana split...with caramelized plantains to replace the bananas...heavenly! Food Porn Alert!
We had a Zip Line excursion scheduled for Day Three. I had been looking forward to the zip lines more than anything else we had planned on the trip. But I have to be honest, I knew going into it that NOTHING was going to top the previous day’s adventure, so my expectations were low. However, it was still a very cool experience. I really felt like I was “zooming” through the treetops. The scenery was beautiful: over rivers etc. And there were howler monkey and sloth sightings. Of course, I think it’s impossible to see anything that small when you’re flying by at warp speed…but the guides were kind enough to point out the wildlife to you, right before they shoved you off the platform into the abyss!
I learned a valuable lesson on the zip line excursion: Fat people can REALLY fly down those things! You have to master your braking early! In the end, the guide will slam you to a sudden stop right before you crash into the tree at the End Platform, but it’s a lot smoother if you can figure out how to do it yourself. And of course, if you brake too early, you have to turn around backwards and walk yourself to the end platform, hand over hand, using whatever may be left of your body strength. This is NOT fun, and I don’t recommend it. Learn from my mistakes, people!
After an exhilarating trip through the treetops, we headed to the Butterfly Garden. With 4 atriums of butterflies, I was sure I would get some better photographs than were possible in the wild. On our trip up the road, we had to pull over when a pack of Coatamundi had stopped traffic to beg for food. Literally. Smart little boogers. They were one of the many elusive animals that I had hoped to see on the trip. SCORE! So we got plenty of up close shots while the other idiots (I mean tourists) were actually feeding them. RIGHT NEXT to a road sign that reads “Don’t Feed The Coati”. Reminiscent of a STJ Traffic Jam…
The Butterfly Garden was a success, lots of great pictures, and very educational. The guide was able to point out things to us that we never would have noticed on our own and she could even catch a butterfly and hold it between her fingers for closer inspections. I tell you, the guides in Costa Rica are very talented! There was also a Frog House, which was awesome…since most of the best frogs are all nocturnal and I am not. I got to see the poison dart frog and the popular red-eyed frog up close and personal! Score!
We hiked around looking for monkeys (no luck), had another good lunch overlooking the volcano …steaming today…very cool. And the lake near the volcano is beautiful as well. We were lucky to have good weather again until after lunch when the bottom fell out of the sky and washed out our afternoon hike plans. Alas: back to the hot tub.
Today’s great discovery in the rain: a Costa Rican ice cream treat….looks like a frozen doughnut on a stick, is actually a carmel vanilla ice cream, hard-coated in chocolate….YUM-O
well, that must be enough for one day...Up next: Creatures of the Blue Lagoon and Lunch on the Locals Front Porch!
I flew direct to San Jose, CR from Charlotte on US Airways. Thank you Frequent Flier miles for a free First Class ticket! R was on the same flight from Charlotte with me and she reports that life in Coach Class was not too painful. Though I noted that she was much more sober than I was upon arrival.
After a painless flight and trip through immigration, we took the shuttle to Thrifty Car Rental and there I got my first taste of this country’s idea of customer service. They put a whole new twist on “Island Time”…especially since I wasn’t even on a damn island! Many of the guide books steer tourists away from car rental and most of the folks we met were using public transportation to get around. But I can now say that the roads were not as ‘interesting’ as some of the ones on St John and we were never uncomfortable driving anywhere. You pretty much are not getting out of the car rental place without opting for the Full Insurance Coverage, so just plan to spend the money. Though we never had to actually use it….I consider that a miracle, and would get the full coverage again next time.
After over an hour at Thrifty, we were on the road to our first stop- La Fortuna. It's only about a 100 mile drive, but took over three hours on the winding mountain roads with crazy one lane bridges etc. I believe the scenery would
have been amazing, but the typical late afternoon rain and fog had already set in, so we missed the views.
Our hotel for the first four nights was La Pradera. http://www.lapraderadelarenal.com It was a cute complex, just outside of town. It was perfect for us. They have several housing options; we chose a double room with AC. Our room had a little front porch with a view of the Arenal Volcano- the second largest active volcano on the world. I was warned that due to the rain and fog of the season, I would be lucky to catch a glimpse of the top of the volcano during our stay, but we scored!
Our room also came with our own pet frog, trapped somewhere in the bathroom window. I never actually saw him during our stay, but he sounded like a dying lamb. Other highlights of the hotel were the pool and hot tub area, which we used in the afternoons during the rain. And the grand Towel Animals that graced our bed every day when we returned home. Clearly, it takes very little to impress me!
Dinner the first night was at an awesome open-air Mexican restaurant recommended in all the guidebooks. Nice to listen to the rain on the terracotta roof and feel like you’re outside at the same time. Of course, this was the case with all the restaurants in Costa Rica, so every night was fabulous! Food was great and cheap. $25 for one app, two dinners and beer. But I got another lesson in the typical customer service: across the board, they are quick to take your order and bring your food, but after that you have to beg for anything else. Save yourself the trouble and order two drinks at once.
The best part of dinner for R was our uninvited guest, who thankfully showed up after I was finished eating. An anole (or similar type lizard) climbed up the back of my chair unnoticed and took up residence IN MY HAIR! Note to self: wear hair up for the remainder of the trip. The lizard seemed unphased by my flailing about to remove him. Afterwards, he just hung out on the table and stared at us. I swear he was giving me his version of my dog’s puppy eyes when we wants me to feed him from the table.
We were blessed with nearly a full day of sunshine on Day 1 of our trip. This is a rarity in the Arenal area, especially during rainy season. We immediately had to explore the hotel grounds. Plants and flowers overwhelmed the walkways and drew in more butterflies and hummingbirds than I had ever seen in my life. Fabulous. On to breakfast that was included with the room. Also fabulous. Then off to adventure!
Our first stop was Hanging Bridges Park. http://www.hangingbridges.com A series of suspension bridges through the trees of the rainforest, so you can get up close and personal with the wildlife. The hike was probably a couple of miles, and not strenuous, so very family friendly. Most people we saw had hired guides, but we went on our own. Perhaps we would have seen more wildlife if we had hired someone. Not sure.
Nevertheless, we saw a ton of different birds and butterflies that were unidentifiable to us.
But the best score of this trip were a pair of Golden Blue Macaws, the largest of the parrot family. They were quite vocal, and thus easy to spot.
We saw our first group of active Howler Monkeys towards the end of the trail. A guide came upon us on the trail while we were watching the monkeys and showed off his skills of calling them. He had several voices to ´talk´ to the monkeys and I decided this would be a most admirable skill in this country, indeed. I shall study up on Monkey Calling before the next trip. Obligatory Monkey Balls pic:
And while we're on the subject: I discovered my first Penis Tree in this park. But seriously...does anyone know what this is actually called?
We were rewarded after this hike with a fabulous break in the high clouds so that we could get our first full view of the Arenal Volcano. We went to the Arenal Observatory Lodge, which is the closest that you can get to the volcano for viewing. We were treated to some eruptions while we had lunch with a once-in-a-lifetime view. The eruptions sounded like a cross between thunder and fireworks. Very cool. More hikes from the lodge led us to a huge waterfall and a beautiful river. The afternoon sprinkles came along to cool us off but did not linger.
By the time we were finished with these hikes, we had probably been 5-6 miles and decided that deserved an afternoon stop at the local Thermal Hot Springs.They have a river here fed from a spring of over 90 degree water. Several hotels along the river make pools from the thermal water and invite the tourist to visit. We chose Eco Thermales Hot Springs because it seemed to be a more ´natural´ version...designed to make you feel like you were sitting in the river on the rocks as opposed to a swimming pool. Not sure how natural it was with a bar on the riverside serving me daiquiris all afternoon, but I wasn’t complaining! It was a very cool experience that I hope to do again. http://www.arenal.net/tour/eco-thermales-hot-springs/
Another fabulous dinner in town complete with the local wine. La Fortuna is very geared towards tourists and all the restaurants have English speaking waiters, accept American money, and have plenty of American food on their menus for those that might wish to not be a foreign country entirely. Most of the restaurants are basically set on one roadside. All open-air and right on the street. The stray dog problem is pretty severe (worse than feral cats on St John). There seem to be several ´Street Dogs´ that make their living roaming from restaurant to restaurant living off the food from big-hearted tourists. Off course, they always score with me. Though, I should say that most of the Street Dogs do not look hungry at all, and their version of begging is sitting quietly under your table waiting for a scrap or a pet on the ears. They have perfected the art of not being bothersome. I know some dogs in the U.S. that could take lessons from them!
Day Two was a planned adventure. We set up all our excursions through the hotel in La Fortuna ahead of time and they put the cost of the excursions on our hotel tab at the end of the week. Very efficient way to handle payment and I was happy with all the excursions they booked for us. But the company we used on this particular day was OUTSTANDING and when I return to La Fortuna, I will happily book everything I can directly through them. http://www.desafiocostarica.com/
Today we are off on the Canyoning/Waterfall Rappelling Adventure. They gear the trip to the ´adventure tourist´ that have never been rappelling before, so no experience necessary. First we went up the mountain in the back of 4wd drive trucks. Part of the area was used in the filming of Jurrasic Park and it was quite beautiful. A short hike into the jungle and we were at the river that basically slotted a long, deep canyon. We rappelled through the steepest areas and free fall rappelled down the largest waterfalls (the highest was 150ft, I think). But the majority of the trip was rock-scramble / hiking down the canyon....staying in the river the entire time as that is the only area of the rocks that isn´t too slippery for walking. There were deep holes to traverse and even one hole that we just had to jump into and hope for the best! Of course, the guide did everything first and as long as you “followed his steps´´ he said we would be safe. Though, I can assure you that this much fun would never be legal in the United States! There would be too much of a potential for lawsuits etc. I enjoyed the rock scramble/hiking even more than the rappelling. The scenery was indescribable. It was hands-down one of the best adventures of my life. After 4 hours in the canyon and a CRAZY hike out, I wanted to go again with the next group - exhaustion be damned! Though no pictures can do this day justice, here are some shots:
After canyoneering we enjoyed the hotel Jacuzzi in the rain and a good dinner at a local restaurant. I re-discovered my love of plantains and enjoyed the Costa Rican version of the banana split...with caramelized plantains to replace the bananas...heavenly! Food Porn Alert!
We had a Zip Line excursion scheduled for Day Three. I had been looking forward to the zip lines more than anything else we had planned on the trip. But I have to be honest, I knew going into it that NOTHING was going to top the previous day’s adventure, so my expectations were low. However, it was still a very cool experience. I really felt like I was “zooming” through the treetops. The scenery was beautiful: over rivers etc. And there were howler monkey and sloth sightings. Of course, I think it’s impossible to see anything that small when you’re flying by at warp speed…but the guides were kind enough to point out the wildlife to you, right before they shoved you off the platform into the abyss!
I learned a valuable lesson on the zip line excursion: Fat people can REALLY fly down those things! You have to master your braking early! In the end, the guide will slam you to a sudden stop right before you crash into the tree at the End Platform, but it’s a lot smoother if you can figure out how to do it yourself. And of course, if you brake too early, you have to turn around backwards and walk yourself to the end platform, hand over hand, using whatever may be left of your body strength. This is NOT fun, and I don’t recommend it. Learn from my mistakes, people!
After an exhilarating trip through the treetops, we headed to the Butterfly Garden. With 4 atriums of butterflies, I was sure I would get some better photographs than were possible in the wild. On our trip up the road, we had to pull over when a pack of Coatamundi had stopped traffic to beg for food. Literally. Smart little boogers. They were one of the many elusive animals that I had hoped to see on the trip. SCORE! So we got plenty of up close shots while the other idiots (I mean tourists) were actually feeding them. RIGHT NEXT to a road sign that reads “Don’t Feed The Coati”. Reminiscent of a STJ Traffic Jam…
The Butterfly Garden was a success, lots of great pictures, and very educational. The guide was able to point out things to us that we never would have noticed on our own and she could even catch a butterfly and hold it between her fingers for closer inspections. I tell you, the guides in Costa Rica are very talented! There was also a Frog House, which was awesome…since most of the best frogs are all nocturnal and I am not. I got to see the poison dart frog and the popular red-eyed frog up close and personal! Score!
We hiked around looking for monkeys (no luck), had another good lunch overlooking the volcano …steaming today…very cool. And the lake near the volcano is beautiful as well. We were lucky to have good weather again until after lunch when the bottom fell out of the sky and washed out our afternoon hike plans. Alas: back to the hot tub.
Today’s great discovery in the rain: a Costa Rican ice cream treat….looks like a frozen doughnut on a stick, is actually a carmel vanilla ice cream, hard-coated in chocolate….YUM-O
well, that must be enough for one day...Up next: Creatures of the Blue Lagoon and Lunch on the Locals Front Porch!
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mindehankins
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piscesgirl0314
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greyhoundmom
- Posts: 978
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Sounds like a great adventure! Can't wait to hear more.
Thanks for posting -
Help me Make Strides
http://main.acsevents.org/site/R?i=2sJC ... FXmEus64kA..
Thanks for posting -
Help me Make Strides
http://main.acsevents.org/site/R?i=2sJC ... FXmEus64kA..
janet
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California Girl
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Sun4MySoul
- Posts: 524
- Joined: Sun May 06, 2007 1:37 pm
- Location: NC
Thanks for the kind words,everyone! I'm glad you are enjoying the report. For all of you who are thinking of going to CR, I highly recommend it. Especially if you are at all the adventurous type. Though its a COMPLETELY different vacation than going to STJ, so its not for everyone. I loved it enough to start thinking about planning my return trip when we were still there! 
And CA Girl- We were only eaten alive by bugs on a couple of occasions in the two weeks I was there. It was certainly NOTHING compared to the Great Mosquito Invasion on STJ in May!
Next installment tomorrow!
And CA Girl- We were only eaten alive by bugs on a couple of occasions in the two weeks I was there. It was certainly NOTHING compared to the Great Mosquito Invasion on STJ in May!
Next installment tomorrow!
