Blogs from Puntarenas, Costa Rica, Central America Caribbean - page 16

Away from the beach, into the mountains Having finished our time working at the conservation project, we moved on to Monteverde to start the second week of our trip, which was more of a holiday. As soon as we arrived, it was obvious that it was going to be cooler and wetter than the previous week. Monteverde sits on the Continental Divide at an altitude of about 1600 metres above sea level, and so is affected by weather fronts from both the Pacific and Caribbean sides of Costa Rica. In addition to visiting one of the local coffee plantations, the majority of people that come to Monteverde do so to visit the cloud forest in the nature reserves such as the Reserva Biologica Bosque Nuboso. In the cloud forest There are many different ways to see ... read more

Life at the conservation project Our time in Montezuma was spent working at a turtle conservation project run by ASVO (Asosacion de Voluntarios para el Service en Areas Protegidas en Costa Rica - http://www.asvocr.org/english/). ASVO is a non-profit NGO that has been running for 25 years, with a number of different projects working in protected areas in Costa Rica. Montezuma beach is a nesting site for Olive Ridley, Black and Leatherback turtles, with their overlapping seasons running from July through to February. Arriving late on Monday night, our first exposure to the project consisted of quick introductions to some of the key people and sorting out sleeping arrangements. Accommodation was very basic, with everyone sleeping in bunk beds, and while the staff tried to keep separate male and female rooms, that wasn't always possible as people ... read more

We are finished with Central America and for that I am grateful. In all fairness, there were excursions that went inland and that were probably wonderful and exciting but we have pretty much had it with tours. It has been a fabulous trip and we have done more than anyone can imagine and now we are ready for reality. Reality isn’t so bad - the lake is beckoning, the boat is beckoning, we miss our family and friends - only 2 more ports and then we reach Miami. We did our obligatory stroll off the pier and glanced toward the souvenirs and strolled back but not before taking a picture of the beach! Ugh! Yes we are definitely ready for home.... read more

Distance driven today: 91 miles / 146 km Cumulative distance driven: 7,474 miles / 12,028 km Today’s trip: San Jose to Manuel Antonio, Cosa Rica Times I dropped the bike: once on an extremely steep driveway up to the hotel parking – no serious damage other than to Christer’s pride… Today we rode the shortest distance so far, just 146km/91miles. However, there was no lack of adventure for sure. Our goal was to ride from San Jose to the Pacific coast, and the beautiful backpacker friendly Manual Antonio. Instead of taking the straight-forward highway to the coast, I decided (in my infinite wisdom!) to take the scenic route over the mountains. The GPS route showed it to be shorter by a whole 50km/30 miles compared to the coastal highway. Half way into the scenic route it ... read more

Los Últimos días.. Following our speedboat to Jaco, a we were driven two hours south to Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio. Upon arrival we headed straight to the beach for a seafood platter, why not! It was a long beach, and once we had found a spot away from the slightly concerning crocodile warning signs, we were happy chilling out and playing in the immense waves. Big kids at heart, it's awesome how much fun the ocean can be! Manuel Antonio has an odd layout because right by the park entrance there are shops and restaurants, which we were told were overpriced and more for convenience. The majority of good eateries and amenities such as ATMs or shops were on "the road to Quepos". We only went to Quepos itself to purchase bus tickets, but other than ... read more