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Published: December 25th 2009
Merry Christmas everyone!!!
We left Alajuela on Wednesday morning and took the ´Gringo´´ bus to Fortuna. The bus is a shuttle service and it’s a bit more comfortable than the other bus options. The ride was about 3 ½-4 hours. We bumped into some folks we met in Alajuela who took the local bus option, it’s cheaper - but they had to stand for the entire ride (which is through mountains and valleys on curvy windy roads). We were glad we went the route we did. Fortuna is a small city at the base of the Volcano - sort of the gateway to the mountain. It’s a bit touristy-lots of restaurants, cheesy shops and some bars, but fun in its own way. There’s a park right in the center of town - and all the shops and restaurants line the streets around it. There are also TONS of tour operators, it’s almost impossible to choose what we want to do and see there are so many cool things.
Just after we got here on Wednesday afternoon, we found a guide to take us to the mountain in the evening so that we could see the lava flow - WOW. Our guide was named Carmielo - a columbian guy who used to live in Miami, but moved here several years ago. He was a supernice and informative guide. He explained that the exposions are actually big molten rocks - they are huge and as they come down the mountain, you can see them splitting into lots of smaller rocks. Apparently it had been raining here all last week, and when we arrived the weather broke and it was a perfect sunny and clear day. The evening temp was about 70 and it was clear - we could see tons of stars and the moon. The volcano has been very active - so there was plenty of lava to see. Unfortunately, was tough to get any night shots with the digital camera - watch for postcards It was a special night!
Yesterday - we decided to do some hiking and went to the Arenal Observatory, which has a lodge and also a bunch of trails. We started the morning on the deck - watching the volcano erupt in the morning. We got to see our first coatis - these kind of raccoon like critters. We hiked a bunch of trails - including a trail down to the river (steep!!!), to a waterfall, and a long hike through a rolling trail - with views of the volcano the whole time. Throughout the walk we could hear the eruptions - which sound like popcorn popping, or thunder or fireworks in the distance. After hiking all day we had a nice meal at a funky mexicanish open air restaurant. Needless to say we were zonked after the 5 hour hike.
Nothing - not even Christmas seems to slow down the tourism here, as everything is basically open today. We started the day with a tour to the Arenal Hanging Bridges - it’s a 3km trail through the rain forest, parts are over suspended hanging bridges. Yep - they bounce when you walk across them. On they way there, we saw a sloth in the tree and a toucan. It was a beautiful walk - a bit busy, so we didn´t get to see too many animals - more sloth, an eyelash viper and a tarantula. On the way back we saw some more coati.
It’s very hot today, so we are taking it easy this afternoon. Tomorrow, we are planning on hiking to some more waterfalls and an ambitious hike - to Cerro Chato, a lagoon in a crater. It’s about a 3 hour climb. The day after that - we are planning on spending the day at one of the many hot springs in the area, I think we will need it!
Catch you all soon!
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