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Bienvenidos a Costa Rica
On Day 172 we crossed the border to Panama. Costa Rica was one of the highlights so far. The Country is beautiful and diverse. The people live the motto " Pura Vida" and are extremly helpful and nice. We learned that the reason for the bad roads in Costa Rica is the fact that the governemt chooses to spend the most money on education and health care. 97 % of the people in Costa Rica can read and write. This is more than in the US. We loved every minute of it and were a little sad that we had to move on. But Panama will be great, too.
Days 170 & 171
July 6th & 7th
Golfito
On July 5th we left San Jose and drove about 200 miles south to the little town of Golfito.
Golfito Bay
As one of the wettest places in the world, the region receives an annual average of 400 - 500 centimeters of rainfall. The drive to Golfito took a little bit longer than anticipated. About two hours south of San Jose we saw a german SUV, parked on the side of the road. We stopped and chatted with Maria and Ingo for an hour or even longer. They are on their way north from South America. Then, about 15 miles north of Golfito traffic stopped. Some kind of roadwork. It looked like a landslide had come down and they were clearing the road with bulldozers. It was already late it was getting dark fast. Normally I don't have a problem with driving in the dark. Problem here: Heavy rain, cars or trucks with no lights and bad roads with potholes as big as Donald Trumps ego. Once they had cleared the road we were able to move on. Slowly but steady we came closer to our goal. We finally saw the turnoff to the place where we wanted to spend the night. The driveway was really steep and the bridge over the small river didn't look too god. I was not sure if it would hold the 8000 lbs and as an " added bonus" the bridge was really narrow. But after three tries we made it over the bridge and to the parking lot of the small hostel. We spent two nights here before we moved on towards Panama.
Days 167 - 169
July 2nd - July 5th 2010
San Jose / Belen Trailerpark & Volcano Poas
Back at the only Trailerpark in Costa Rica. Once again we cleaned our Camper and enjoyed the full hook-ups and the hot showers. Our neighbor Raul invited us to watch the World Cup Game Germany vs. Argentina. What a great game. Raul's Wife Mirella baked a tasty birthday cake for Nicole. On the way back from Puerto Viejo we had to go through San Jose and we did not really like what we saw. That's why we did not go back to the City.
A daytrip from San Jose was the drive to Volcano Poas with an altitude of 8800 feet / 2700 Meters and three craters.One of the craters measures 1.5 kilometers in diameter (0.9 miles) and is 300 meters deep (900 feet). This makes it th second biggest crater worldwide. At the bottom of this prehistoric-looking hole, there is a medium sized lagoon, that spews boiling sulphurous gases. The other crater is the one mentioned above, called Botos Lagoon, which unlike the other lake, contains cold water that connects to the Rio Angel, and later to the large Rio Sarapiqui. The volcano has had a long history of eruptions, going back as much as 11 million years ! On January 25, 1910, the volcano spewed out 640,000 tons of ash, and in the period of 1952-1954, it bombarded nearby areas with ash and rocks. Since then, the Poas has maintained a low profile, but as recently as 1989, the park was closed because of dangerous sulphurous gas emissions. Its geyser-like eruptions of muddy water and steam, have given it the reputation as the world’s largest geyser.
Apart from its volcanic activity, this national park offers four different habitats; this, in a relatively small area, is evidence of Costa Rica’s incredible biodiversity. The four habitats are the following: areas with scarce vegetation, a stunted forest, a cloud forest, and an area of arrayans. There are 79 species of birds in this park, including the robin, the hummingbird and the spectacular quetzal. Among the mammals found here, are the coyotes, long-tailed weasels, skunks and some small felines. If you see a green-yellow squirrel, take a good look at it, because it’s the Poas green-yellow squirrel, and as its name suggests, it’s only found in this park, and nowhere else in the whole world! One of the most interesting ecosystems present at the park, is the dwarf or stunted forest, where the tough ferns and bonsai-type trees aren’t allowed to grow much because of the acid rain that’s emanated from the volcano.
Days 155 - 166
June 20th - July 1st 2010
San Jose - Montezuma - Santa Elena/Monteverde - Lake and Volcano Arenal - Puerto Viejo
On June 20th our friends Stephanie and Tim arrived from Switzerland. We had had almost two weeks together and travelled through a big part of Costa Rica.
First stop was Montezuma.
Montezuma is a small village on the Nicoya Peninsular. To get there we drove to Puntarenas where we took the ferry to Paquera. From there it was another three hours on mostly dirt roads to Montezuma.
Montezuma is a small village at the beach and caters mostly to Backpackers and Budget travellers. It was late when we arrived. Steffi and Tim stayed at a small hotel and we moved to our "oceanfront property". We parked right at the beach. We stayed for two nights and on our second day we were trying to find the waterfalls on the photo above. We got lost several times. Finally, on our third try we found the easy way to the waterfall. Overall it took us over three hours to get there. On Tuesday, June 22nd we took the ferry back to Puntarenas. From there we drove to Santa Elena / Monteverde. Monteverde is home of the Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve.
The Reserva Biológica Bosque Nuboso Monteverde is a Costa Rican private reserve located along the Cordillera de Tilarán mountain range Named after the nearby town of Monteverde and founded in 1972, the Preserve consists of over 10,500 hectares of tropical rainforest, the reserve is visited by roughly 70,000 visitors a year.
The Preserve consists of 6 ecological zones, 90% of which are virgin forest. An extremely high biodiversity, consisting of over 2,500 plant species (including the most orchid species in a single place), 100 species of mammals, 400 bird species, 120 reptilian and amphibian species, and thousands of insects, makes this place very special.
In Santa Elena we found a nice Swiss Hotel where Steffi and Tim took a room. We parked on the parking lot.
On our first day in the area we took a guided tour through the Preserve and learned about fauna and flora. The second day was a little more action filled. Steffi, Nicole and Marissa went to the Skywalk, a network of hanging bridges through the forest canopy. Tim and I took a bus to Extremo Canopy Zip Lines. There are 14 Zip Lines. The three longest are 450 Meter, 540 Meter and a little over 1000 Meter. Not only do they have zip lines, but also a Tarzan swing
The most exciting zip line is the Superman. The upper body and the feet are connected to the line and you fly head first and belly down through the air. Quite an experience.
From Monteverde we moved on to Lake/Volcano Arenal. All the roads around Monteverde are pretty bad. So it took us hours - again. After four hours or so we reached Lake Arenal. This is one of the most beautiful areas in Costa Rica and was a highlight for us.
Arenal is Costa Rica's most active volcano, and one of the ten most active volcanoes in the world. It has been studied by seismologists for many years. Although the activity nowadays is less damaging, you can still see ash columns, underground rumbling, glowing orange lava flows and sudden explosions on a daily basis. With its perfect conical shape it allows breathtaking views of volcanic action in the summit. Almost every night the crater offers a spectacle of lights with its explosive eruptions. The volcano was asleep for hundreds of years and exhibited a single crater at its summit, with minor fumaroles activity, covered by dense vegetation. In 1968 it had an eruption and destroyed the small town of Tabacón. Due to the eruption three more craters were created on the western flanks but only one of them still exists today.
First we stopped at the German Bakery in Nuevo Arenal. Tom made us feel very welcome and we enjoyed some great coffee. Of course we bought some german bread and other goodies. Tim and Steffi found a place for the night close to the bakery and we parked our camper right at the lake with beautiful views. Tom recommended a Hotel close to the Volcano. The next morning we moved to the Essence Arenal. A very nice boutique hostel with awesome views of the volcano. The hostel is owned by another German, Nick. Looks like we Germans took over Costa Rica. We were able to park our camper in the parking lot. From our "dining room" we had the best view of the volcano and the lava. Nick told us about some hot springs in the area and we went there to relax. It was great. There are two rivers that connect. One of them is cold, the other hot. Mix both together and you get nice 87 - 102 F. The next day was filled wit some hiking and horse back riding. In the evening we got to make our own pasta in the hostel's restaurant/kitchen. On Sunday, June 27th we got up early to watch the World Cup Soccer Game between Germany and England. What a game!! After the game it was time to say good bye to our hosts and the little paradise. Next stop was the carribean coast of Costa Rica.
It seems that every major tourist area has bad roads. The last 20 km from Limon to Puerto Viejo took us a long time just because the road was filled with potholes. Once we reached Puerto Viejo it did not take long for us to find the place where we wanted to spend the next couple of nights. Rocking J's is a very cool Backpacker Hostel / Hammock Hotel with some parking spaces. Getting in their parking lot was another story. The entry gate to the parking area itself was high enough for our camper. The problem was the "PURA VIDA" sign that was hanging in the gate. Tim climbed up on the roof of the camper. Then I drove slowly through the gate while Tim was holding up the sign. By now everybody knew that some crazy people from New York had arrived in their camper and people came over to chat.
The main activities during our stay in Puerto Viejo were eating, sleeping and hanging out at the beach. There are several very nice beaches around town. The first day we went to Playa Cocles, about 1 mile south of town. It is a great beach for surfing. Swimming is nice, too but there are strong waves and rip currents. The next day we rented a golf cart and drove 5 miles south to Playa Uva, a very nice caribbean beach. No waves - perfect for Marissa.
On the third and last day we first went to the Jaguar Rescue Center in Playa Chiquita.
After many trips to Costa Rica since 2001 and witnessing the mistreatment and killing of many of Costa Rica’s animal species, the centers owner Encar and Sandro made the decision to quit their jobs in Europe and move to Costa Rica full time in 2005.They initially started out primarily with reptiles in 2005 however the project continued to grow and in 2008 The Jaguar Rescue Center in Puerto Viejo was built. Encar and her husband Sandro are both devoted naturalists and passionate animal lovers.
The center today has all the different species of poisonous snakes found in Costa Rica, baby howler monkeys, baby sloths, wild cats, owls, caimans and other various mammals and amphibians. The mission of the project is not to be a zoo, but rather a rescue and education center with the end goal of releasing the animals back into the wild once rehabilitated or of the age of sexual maturity.The couple, along with other partners, have also purchased 50 hectares of primary forest (untouched) in Costa Rica as a form of conservation. They see it as one of the only ways to preserve Costa Rica’s beautiful and fragile ecosystem which is constantly under threat of development. The land is also used to release their animals into the wild when they are ready
The center is non profit and receives no help from the government. If you would like to help them, send us an e-mail and we will forward it to them. If you plan to visit the center you can help them by buying milk powder for their animals in the US or Europe.
On July 1st we returned to San Jose as Steffi and Tim were flying back to Switzerland.
Days 147 - 154
June 12th - 19th 2010
San Antonio de Belen / San Jose
Ahhhh, hot shower. Nice. We spent the last week at the Belen Trailer Park close to San Jose. It's the first real RV Park for us since Mexico and it's great to be able to waste some water....We were able to clean our camper and car. And the Park has hot showers. Something we didn't have for a long time.
Our truck was in desperate need of an oil change and a new front tire. Right next to the PV Park was a big garage and they were able to do all those things. It took a while for them to get the right oil filter but other than that they did a great job.
We didn't do a lot of sightseeing. It was good to just hang out and meet other travellers. We drove so much the last couple of weeks - we needed a break.
Of course we watched the World Cup. One of our neighbors was so nice to invite us into his RV to watch the game. Aussie Mike was of course not really happy with the result...(AUS - GER: 0:4)
One other thing we did was a Coffee Tour. We visited Cafe Britt, a high end coffee roaster, and learned quite a lot about coffee.
Day 147
June 11th 2010
Border Crossing Costa Rica
Today we crossed the border from Nicaragua to Costa Rica. It was the longest (3 hours) and the cheapest ($ 4) crosing so far. Here are, for your entertainment, all the steps.
1. Still in Nicaragua we had to pay a $ 2 fee to the local municipality
2. Got back in our car and drove to a small building where they checked our passport
3. We now drove to the Customs and Immigration Building Nicaragua
4. First we went to Customs to clear our vehicle, One officer filled out some form and gave it back to us.
5. National Police ( we had to look for them) checked the form and the car. Got a signature on another form
6. Next step another customs building where they doublechecked passport and customs form and stamped form.
7. Immigration Nicaragua. We filled in another form and our passports got stamped out. Payed exit fee
8. Fumigation
9. Drove a mile to Costa Rica Immigration and got our passports stamped.
10. Bought mandatory car insurance for Costa Rica (don't know what the hell it covers...)
11. We made copies of the stamped passports and the receipt for the insurance.
12. Walked across the street to customs 1. Filled out form and the officer collected copies of title, registration, drivers license, passport, insurance.
13. Officer came out of his airconditioned office to check car. He then stamped and signed the form I filled out earlier
14. Customs 2. We drove half a mile to another customs building where they again collected various copies, doublechecked the form from customs 1 and finally issued the vehicle import permit.
15. Checkpoint where they checked papers and collected a tiny form which we received at Step 6.
It is unbelievable how unorganized this border is. I took a car from the US to Canada once. It took 2 min. Anyway, it's all part of the experience.
We drove to Bahia Salinas where we spent the night.
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