A little further down the coast is a small down called Dominical which comprises a few cluttered buildings centred around its two sandy roads.The town is famous for its rip curling surf and apparently a great place to learn how to catch a wave.
We decided to take a surf lesson before we made any attempt to master the sport on our own.We spent an hour on the beach with our instructor going over the drill of how to paddle, catch the wave and stand.As we were just getting into the swing of things guy shouted from the road and pointed out to the sea.About a half a kilometre out a huge humpback whale was repeatedly launching itself out of the water and smashing back down into the waves.It was the most amazing sight, like something out of National Geographical.Our instructor explained that the whales do this to remove the barnacles on them, but it was very rare to see them doing it this close to the shore.
We watched for another few minutes and then reluctantly returned to our surf lesson.Having mastered the concepts on land we made our way into the sea.Just getting out to a point where you could catch a wave was a chore.The waves were relentless and for every 10 metres you paddled out a huge wave would send you back at least 2.Our guide was patient with us and helped stabilise our boards so we could concentrate on our technique.When a suitable wave came along he would yell at us to paddle and nudged us into the surf.After a few failed attempts I managed to stand for a few seconds and after a while even made it all the way to the beach.It was great fun but far harder than I ever imagined.We gave up for the day with aching muscles and lungs full of water.
The next day we decided to give it a try on our own.We both waded into the sea full of confidence but after just 10 minutes were exhausted by just having to paddle out beyond the breakers.I managed to get a few good rides in but spent most of the time battling the waves and being thrown around in the surf.Suffice it to say I don’t think my career is in surfing.
From Monteverde we made our way to the Pacific coast and south to Manuel Antonio, a small town which boasts a beautiful national park with pristine white sand beaches and dense jungle.
We took a guided tour through the park and were amazed at the wildlife that was so easily observed.We saw colourful ‘Golden Orb’ spiders lying in wait in the middle of their huge webs strung metres across between trees. We watched sloths lazing in the trees, eating leaves at a painfully slow pace and witnessed a Cayman catch and eat a large land crab.
The beaches in the park are stunning, the sparkling white sand contrasted by the lush green jungle and sparkling turquoise water.Unlike many places we had been to, it was just like it looked on the postcards.
After lounging on the beach for a few hours, we decided to take a hike along one of the coastal paths.After we had got so far that it was not worth turning back it began to rain so heavily that even under the dense jungle canopy we got soaked. We marched on as the jungle got gloomier and gloomier and suddenly heard a crashing noise just metres from the path as if something were rummaging in the undergrowth.We both whirled around but couldn’t see anything.There was another, sound and another.Eventually we looked up to find a solitary Capuchin monkey munching on fruit and throwing the remains in our direction.We watched us curiously from the trees as he kept chewing and sending his rubbish our way.
From La Fortuna we made our way by jeep and boat to Monteverde, a small mountain town renowned for its virgin cloud forest reserve.Having been in hot and humid climates for some time it was nice to breathe the fresh mountain air.
We decided to do a ‘Canopy Tour’ (basically zip-lining through the tree tops) and having been kitted out with gloves, helmet and harness we set off.It was great fun, zipping along wires from tree to tree, sometimes over a hundred meters off the ground when we crossed over the valley.At one point as we were strapping in for the next ride we found ourselves just a few feet away from a group of Howler monkeys who watch us intently from the tree tops.
There was also had a massive Tarzan rope-swing which was particularly scary as you had to jump from a platform high above the ground where the rope is slack meaning you fall a few metres before the rope tightens and you begin to swing.I was really nervous about doing it and clung to the railings of the platform.The guide kept edging me forward until my feet hung over the edge and then he nudged me off.You could probably hear my screams the two miles away in the town and I definitely did not sound like Tarzan.I was shaking from the adrenaline for the next half an hour but really glad I had done it.
The last zip line was the longest and fastest at over a kilometre long stretching far out over the valley from one hill to another.Sam had decided to do this one ‘superman style’.He was strapped to the zipline by both his feet and shoulders so he was lying flat and facing down.He was told to keep his arms stretch out as he ‘flew’ over the valley.I went first, conventional style, sweeping high above the ground getting faster and faster until I eventually reached the other end out of breath.I turned to watch Sam’s arrival.After a minute or two a saw a small speck travelling at an incredible speed, then I heard him yelling. He got closer and closer and larger and larger flying through the air like a huge lanky bird, and he wasn’t slowing down.He zoomed through the trees face first towards the end of the line scattering everyone who had been watching.The guides pulled hard on their ropes to slow him down and he eventually came to a halt grinning madly and begging to go again.
The next day we arranged to take a hike through the Cloud Forest of Monteverde, ...and Cloud Forest it was.We trekked through dense fog and rolling mist through dark jungle and across gushing rivers.The area is famous for its biodiversity although we only managed to find a few large bugs.
In the afternoon we went for a walk amongst the hanging bridges of Monteverde and were a little more successful.We saw Capuchin monkeys (often called Cappuccino monkeys due to their small white faces and dark bodies)watching us shyly from the trees.
We arrived in the capital of Costa Rica, San Jose, late at night and got a taxi straight to our hotel.The next morning we woke to a beautiful view of rolling hills and lush green countryside.It was a bit of a shock to the senses after nearly two months of the sandy dustiness of Roatan.
We stayed in San Jose for a few nights although mainly avoided the city which was a large sprawling mass of too narrow streets and bustling crowds.We arranged a trip to go white water rafting on the Rio Pacuare, a river which winds its way through dense jungle and deep canyons and is renowned for the ferocity of its rapids.
After an hour or so journey through tropical countryside we arrived at the river ‘put-in’ where we met our raft, donned our life jackets and helmets and were briefed by the crew on what to expect.We set off down the river practising out techniques on some smaller ‘training rapids’.They certainly didn’t feel like training rapids as we were bounced from our seats and swept along by furious currents, this was really nothing compared to what was to come however.
A little farther down the river and we hot our first class 3 rapids, from a distance they looked like white swirling whirlpools, the kind that if you fell in you’d never come out again.The currents swept us through at ridiculous speeds and we frantically paddled to avoid hitting the rocks.The adrenaline rush was fantastic and we all came out the other side grinning like maniacs…..then we hit the class 4’s.One minute we were dropping like stones and the next we were being carried high on a swell. Our guide shouted instructions to us to “paddle left”, “paddle right”, “get down”.After each rapid we were shouting for more.
In the calmer parts of the river we had a chance to appreciate the scenery that surrounded us.After an hour or so we found ourselves in the middle of dense jungle where the nearest civilisation was miles away.We passed through deep canyons and by gushing waterfalls that stretched for tens of metres above us.At times we all jumped into the river and just drifted along with the current.We were all disappointed when we turned a corner and found the end of our trip in sight, the day had gone far too quickly.
Lava Spotting at La Fortuna, Arenal
We had spoken to a few people on our travels who had been to a town called La Fortuna where you can see one of Costa Rica’s most active volcanoes.We heard stories of people seeing glowing hot laving rolling down the sides of their Volcano from their hotel room, so decided to go and have a look.
We arrived in La Fortuna to find a bustling tourist town overshadowed by the Volcano to the north.It was a pretty grim day and the Volcano was mostly covered by cloud.We hoped the bad weather would pass and that we’d get a chance to see the lava at night…no such luck.We booked a trip out to see the Volcano which included a trek through the national park to watch the lava erupting.Unfortunately the weather was so foggy and miserable all day that we couldn’t really even see the top of the volcano.After an hour or so of hanging around at the viewpoint we gave up and headed to the local hot springs to make up for our disappointment.As we were leaving we passed a tour group we had read about in Lonely Planet, led by a guy called ‘Mr Lava Lava’.He personally guarantees that you see lava on his trips or you get your money back.The downside being that he looked fairly determined that his guests were going to see lava…no matter how long they had to stand in the rain and wait.The gloomy looking group looked on as we climbed into our nice warm van and drove off.It didn’t look like Mr Lava Lava was going to be letting them go home any time soon.
The hot springs in La Fortuna more than made up for failing to see the volcano erupting. Tabacon Hot Springs is a huge complex of hot spring pools and waterfalls feeding into each other all naturally heated by the volcanic activity of Volcan Arenal. The owners have built a posh spa hotel around it with hidden trails leading from pool to pool so you can find your self in a secluded spot surrounded by lush vegetation, listening to the night insects and watching the stars.Closer to the hotel, there is also a large hot pool bar and water slide.After a tough few hours soaking up the warm waters we enjoyed a huge buffet dinner with wine overlooking the pools….a perfect end to an otherwise average day.
Posts
