Costa Rica Part 2: Adventure with Style


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Published: June 27th 2008
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Although I knew that Hurricane Season officially started on June 1st, I did not think it would begin with such punctuality and force. As soon as it hits June, these rains and storms unleash their annual pounding of central america without hesitation. We noticed on the weather channel that Hurricane Alma recently started up in Nicaragua and we would be flying over the region the next day. Yowza! Fortunately, the worst part of this weather system pushed out of our direct flight path and we had no problems.

We landed in San Jose Costa Rica and quickly made our way to Volcan Arenal. This volcano has come highly recommended from a number of sources. It is apparently the most active of all volcanoes in the Americas. One neat way to enjoy this Lava Party is to stay in a hotel with a nice view of the action. This requires a bit of research as the lava flows actually change which side of the volcano they explode from on an almost monthly basis. With a bit of luck, we ended up in a tremendous place called Arenal Lodge. With no advance booking, we managed to secure a large beautiful room with MASSive panoramic windows that peer directly at this hot towering beast. The lodge also featured an infinity pool and 2 gurgling hot tubs. This all looks pretty impressive considering we are tucked pretty far into this lush green cloud forest.

The next day we embark upon an ambitious COMBO TOUR of events. First stop is a Jungle Safari River Rafting event. The river is flowing pretty nice and we are a small group. We see lots of dangling jungle, exotic birds, huge lizards and our old friend the Howler Monkeys. Turns our our guide speaks Howler...so as we pull up to a certain friendly grouping, he lets out a horrific (and thus realistic) Howler screech. Now I am not easily impressed by sound imitators, but he truly had all of the subtleties of this call down. He could do male, female, aggressive, greeting and favorite pizza topping...all in Howler. This lovely trip ended and we took a short ride over to La Fortuna waterfall. To get a close up view of this water treat, we had to descend 450 rocky twisting steps into the canyon. Although it was not so bad going down, the inevitability of climbing back up was certainly dancing in our minds. One peculiar part of this waterfall was that their was a ZIP-Line stretching between the tops of the 2 cliffs. This meant that crazy screaming travelers were torpedoing above us every few minutes. After a chilly dip at the base of the falls, we clambered our way back up. Mom did excellent. Her fitness level is on par with Costa Rica Adventure! Next we sat down for a superb lunch at a nearby restaurant. Just as we arrived, a torrential downpour was unleashed. The metal roof of this place turned into such a chaotic din that it was nearly impossible to talk to the person next to you. It was like eating dinner at a Metal Concert! After a bit of waiting around for the downpour to end, we made the last stop of the day at the Tabacon Hot Springs. This is the most massive and luxurious collection of natural hot springs I have ever seen. They did an excellent job of maintaining the natural feel of the jungle area while making the pools accessible and fun. Some areas were completely secluded. Others had swim up THERmal bars and a THERMal water-slide. RAD! This was a nice relaxing way to end an epic adventure day.

Usually "going to sleep" is not a highlight worth mentioning in a travelblog (no matter how tired you are)...but sleeping in a volcano lodge changes those rules a bit. Plopping down in bed and turning off the lights revealed the true greatness of this room. From the comfort of these beds, we could see some of Mother Natures most violent activity happening right before our eyes. Huge lava boulders and fire geysers would blast from the top and come crashing down the sides of the volcano. This was endlessly entertaining for me. Who needs TV?! I spent quite some time trying to capture the audio/video/pictures of this exploding show...but the lighting and distance made for only so-so results. Just when I finally began dozing off, I was periodically awakened by powerful lightening smashes. I was so tired, however, that I really didn't recognize what it was. I was finally stirred to consciousness by the loudest smacking crash of electricity I have ever heard and became aware of the insane storm that surrounded our unprotected window cabin. It was truly amazing and scary at the same time. Each bolt and crackle sounded and looked like it was directly above us. This fear was confirmed when I saw the only power source in the area explode with sparks! I must have stayed up enjoying this flurry of sky power for a few hours. Another point for Mother Nature!

The next day we chose to do the local butterfly hike. It was quite nice to be surrounded by so many delicate creatures. Each of them had their own personalities...many of which were quite friendly and would even land on us for a bit. The enclosed butterfly garden area had a section where the scientists had gathered all the cocoons together so they had a better chance of surviving. We could see caterpillars slowly curling into a cocoon, fresh green pods sitting still, older pods shaking with renewed energy and even butterflies beginning their squeeze out of the shell. In one miraculous moment, we actually saw a butterfly fully free itself and fly away! It was quite neat to be a witness to this most peculiar of transformations.

The last leg of the trip took us back down south to the Osa Peninsula. We chose to stay in the eco-lodge land of Bahia Drake. We landed in Palmar Sur and took a muddy truck ride to a mangrove boat ride to arrive at our secluded paradise lodge called Jinettes de Osa. Delicious food, amazing ocean views, friendly staff and a plethora of energizing activities. I spent 2 of my days scuba diving around Canos Island. One of the dives on the Devils Pinnacles was spectacular. These rock formations were absolutely slathered in millions of tiny fish that seemed to collectively morph into abstract shapes with each movement of our big scuba diver bodies. These were my last dives of the trip and I realized I have done almost 30 dives in 2 months! Ka-blamo! I definitely have improved my skills and passion for this sport and have actually started the Divemaster program in LA. What crazy scuba adventures does the future hold!?

Mom decided to take it a bit easier and went for a massage. Turns out the massage lady is also a book and culture junkie...so they really hit it off over the next few days. She also did some of her own trekking and exploring around the small village, again proving her Ultra-Mom status. I finished the last night with a night hike with the BUG LADY. This was a really neat trip. The bug lady and her assistant took us through the night jungle and pointed out all of the bizzare creatures...and most interestingly...their behaviors. One of these was the Trap Door Spider. She approached a random piece of boring mud with a tiny twig....and with great precision, she carefully lifted a tiny lid of mud to reveal a rather large spider tucked away in a hole. She propped the lid up and we all watched in amazement as the spider dutifully reached out and slammed the door shut. Apparently this mud is thin enough that when a small bug cluelessly walks by, the trap door falls and the spider gets a treat. She had so many interesting stories to tell about each bug...she seriously loves bugs and I kinda do too. To polish it off, I arrive home late and mom is kinda asleep. To my horror, I notice a very large spider directly below her bed. It was somehow ironic to have our 1st and only encounter with a large bug in our room, directly after a bug hike. Anyway, I manage to elaborately shooo this guy out the door without me killing it or it killing me. Hurray!

The next day we hurdle off to the airport and mom flies away with no problems. Somehow my flight is cancelled after 12 hours of sitting in the airport/airplane and I end up flying the next day...but I dont care because life rules!

Thanks for reading my blog! I am in the process of editing the epic video and will certainly post that for you all to see.

Adios para ahora!


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3rd July 2008

Hey Brad catching up on your blog...Wow the dive stories were so awesome. It makes me want to go!!! But 140 sounds a bit frightening to me...30 is more my style haha. Can't wait to watch some videos!!! Are you back in LA now?

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