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Published: February 7th 2023
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La Fortuna was billed as this big backpackers hang-out at the foot of a massive volcano. There's no doubting the first part of that statement, but what volcano? All we saw was low cloud and drizzle! It was good to sit in a bar drinking craft ale and playing Jenga, but there wasn't the party vibe we had expected. Food, drink and accommodation were generally way overpriced, but we did manage to find some value.
We had big plans for our stay. A walk on a trail where we were more or less guaranteed to see sloths was definitely on our itinerary as was a trip to see a series of hanging bridges close to the volcano. Both bit the dust as the rain was relentless leaving us spending more or less a whole day in our room, which was a bit dark and dingy and very much not our favourite place!
We took a chance on a day trip to Caña Negro close to the border with Nicaragua. What a great choice that turned out to be. Two hours on a bus saw us emerge from the grey into glorious sunshine. At our destination hot coffee and mountains
of fresh tropical fruit were waiting for us. A bright orange iguana stood guard over the boat we were going to be in for our short excursion on the Rio Frio. It was an extraordinary thing to see!
Once on the boat we were soon seeing wildlife in every direction. There were many highlights but the albino howler monkey which looks ginger was very special indeed. Apparently they are not normally allowed to survive by the alpha males and only eight are known of in the whole world with three of them being in Costa Rica. After craning our necks for a while we continued along the river and were rewarded by kingfishers, snake birds, crocodiles and eventually, rewarding our patience, a sloth!
After a fabulous lunch we then went to a chocolate and coffee plantation where we got to see sugar cane juice produced and leaned all about the process of turning it into molasses (what we call
caña de miel in Spain) and into solid lumps which I guess are pure cane sugar. The coffee was strong and delicious. The chocolate drink was a bit on the weak side for us, but it is made with
lots of milk which we don't normally do. Don Domingo who runs the plantation was such a nice guy, but he never smiled!
Another couple of hours on the bus saw us back in La Fortuna where the sun was actually shining! We got off the bus in the central square where a toucan (at last!) was waiting for us in the trees. Walking back to our digs we got a glimpse of what we had been missing as the volcano emerged allowing us a full view.
The next day, the day we were leaving, was a bright morning and the volcano finally put on a little show for us. It's been dormant for 20 years or so, but it's still an impressive sight. We walked out to the swing bridge on the river, known locally as El Salto. Some young fools were swinging out over the water and dropping into the iciness. By the time we made our way back to our hostel the volcano had disappeared again! It's like some magic trick by mother nature!!
Public transport in these parts isn't always easy and there is a good network of shuttle buses taking travellers to
all corners of the country. Our destination didn't afford us that luxury though, and we had a coupe of hours on a slow bus along torturous sinuous roads through the drizzle before we got to the Arenal Hotel and Brewery. More of that next time.
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D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Enjoy Costa Rica
Looks like you planned a fabulous time in Costa Rica. It is a lovely diverse country.