Category: Costa Rica
Day 14 – Up the Creek with a Paddle
Another good night’s sleep. But regardless of this, I was awake at 4.30 listening to the sounds of the jungle, the grasshoppers in the background, frogs chirping in the foreground, then as the light gathered, the howling of the monkeys and the cawing of the birds. We tried doing an early morning bird-watching walk, but… Read more
Day 13 – Seaside Stroll
Second night sleeping in The Dream House, and it began living up to its name. I had a much better sleep, waking up only at 5 am when the howler monkeys began their murderous racket. After that, a slow start: a bit of reading, breakfast of fruit (adopting the local ways), some rather dry pastries… Read more
Day 12 – An Unexpected Journey, and Back Again
Sarah had a plan. We would meet Jenny halfway for a passport exchange. I thought this sounded complicated, but Jenny worked out that she could get an Uber to Guapiles for $65, a three-hour round trip for her and a five-hour round trip for us. It also meant we didn’t need to drive into San… Read more
Day 11 – Jungle Beaches, Swamps, and Monkeys
We said goodbye to Roberta and staff at the Hotel Casa Del Flores. I’d be surprised if there was a nicer place to stay in Cahuita. We parked the car opposite the empanada place, where, for a third day, we failed to buy any empanadas. They weren’t yet open today; yesterday, they’d sold out, and… Read more
Day 10 – Snorkeling, Beaches and Fish Supper
We mentioned to Roberta, the hotel owner (who was rushing around running the breakfast service), that we were interested in a snorkelling trip. Balancing her phone against her ear while she collected plates, she spoke to Jose – the man who organised these things for her. Before Sarah could have any second thoughts, she had… Read more
Day 9 – Road to the Coast and Cocktails
After last night’s early night, I was awake at 2.30 am. I’d slept for six hours, and that appeared to be enough. I’d stopped worrying about being eaten by things. Instead, I was listening to all the noises: the chirping frogs, the rasping grasshoppers, the occasional barking dog, and the sound of the river. There… Read more
Day 21 – Horse Ranch Cabin
Camping meant staying at lots of places with little ability to do any blog posting because nowhere we stayed had any connectivity. Yes, more excuses! Maybe this daily posting, as Jenny suggested, is too ambitions. Anyway, here is a post to reflect what we are doing now. We finished our last camp at Atenas, less… Read more
Day 8 – Relaxing While the Ants Do the Work
We thought there was going to be more to do at Pacuare River Lodge. This might have been my mistake. At the end of the same four-wheel drive track is Pacuare Lodge a four star venue where the cabins are called villas. This offers canopy tours, indiginous tribe visits and zip line activities. It would… Read more
Day 7 – Intense Driving and Waterfall Swimming
It was moving on day – time to leave the northern lowland jungle for some hilltop forest on our way to the Caribbean coast. We had a few hours drive which Jenny was keen to do. From the nearby main town of Puerto Viejo, we took the Ruta 4, mostly dual carriageway, fairly empty but… Read more
Day 15 – Monster Truck Camping
I will fill in some of the previous days of the trip which have been great, and eventful! But in an attempt to get a bit more real time. Here is what we’re up to now. We have started the camping part of our trip. This is vehicle based camping, which is really popular in… Read more