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Trip Report

Fauna and flora trip in Costa Rica.

8 beautiful days in the nature of the Costa Rica.

  • Our friend the capucin.+ 12
  • The Catarata Rio Blanco.
  • On our way to find the way…
  • Fauna and flora trip in Costa Rica.
swaxlito
About Me:
AtlasGuru Contributor

North AmericaCosta Rica8 days / March 2022

Highs & Lows

Quite simply the best fauna and flora of the world, definitely.

Costa Rica is an expensive country, in addition it is tropical and the weather can be very unpredictable

Itinerary Overview

This trip starts the last day of my WorkAway where I am finally free to travel anywhere I want! 

With my workaway buddies we decide to have a last day all together at a well known waterfall in the area.

Then the next day I take a short bus ride to La Fortuna to meet up with some friends of mine there!

After 4 days discovering volcanoes and rivers, it's this time a huge full day bus ride to Puerto Viejo.

 Where we finished our trip in Costa Rica a bit more calmly, chilling and surfing.

  • 1 Night: Guapiles
    It's not where I would have gone if I hadn't done this work away. But i al super glad the discovered this area !
  • 4 Nights: La Fortuna
    It is one of the most famous location of Costa rica for his super Volcano Arenal and his breathtaking nature.
  • 3 Nights: Puerto Viejo de Talamanca
    We wanted to visit the Cahuita park. And de knew that it was a good place to party and meet people.
Guapiles - It's not where I would have gone if I hadn't done this work away. But i al super glad the discovered this area !
1

Guapiles It's not where I would have gone if I hadn't done this work away. But i al super glad the discovered this area !

Guapiles - It's not where I would have gone if I hadn't done this work away. But i al super glad the discovered this area ! - The Catarata Rio Blanco.
The Catarata Rio Blanco.
Guapiles - It's not where I would have gone if I hadn't done this work away. But i al super glad the discovered this area ! - On our way to find the way…
On our way to find the way…
Guapiles - It's not where I would have gone if I hadn't done this work away. But i al super glad the discovered this area ! - A little tree.1+
A little tree.

We had long since decided to visit this waterfall with our Work Away friends to celebrate our last day together.

We had been advised to take a guide so as not to get lost. But we, as we like adventure (and also because it's cheaper). We decided to go by ourselves !

So we took a taxi to the nearest Rio Blanco and tried to find this path. Luckily we were helped by two locals who were fishing. They decided to join us to see the waterfall ! 

This is followed by a 2/3 hour walk through this incredible jungle. The vegetation is indescribable. So many different varieties of plants and trees!

The trees move with the passage of birds and monkeys. We are well and truly in the jungle.

Finally we arrive in front of this natural wonder. A waterfall of more than 100m high (one of the highest in Costa Rica) that takes your breath away.

It was worth it. I really recommend this waterfall because it is in a region where there are few tourists, so we were literally the only ones in the jungle.

La Fortuna - It is one of the most famous location of Costa rica for his super Volcano Arenal and his breathtaking nature.
2

La Fortuna It is one of the most famous location of Costa rica for his super Volcano Arenal and his breathtaking nature.

La Fortuna - It is one of the most famous location of Costa rica for his super Volcano Arenal and his breathtaking nature. - Hot springs.
Hot springs.
La Fortuna - It is one of the most famous location of Costa rica for his super Volcano Arenal and his breathtaking nature. - On our way for the top of the Cerro Chato.
On our way for the top of the Cerro Chato.
La Fortuna - It is one of the most famous location of Costa rica for his super Volcano Arenal and his breathtaking nature. - The volcano Arenal from the Volcano Chato.4+
The volcano Arenal from the Volcano Chato.

We arrived late in La Fortuna and went directly to our hotel to sleep. Indeed the country is small but the transport is not well organised for tourism. So travelling in Costa Rica is always a day full of buses...

The first day we went to the free hot springs. What a pleasure to dive into a 32 degrees water especially when the weather is not good (it's the only time we enjoyed the rain). We did not see the time pass and spent most of the afternoon talking and meditating in this beautiful place.

On the second day we tackle the cerro chato. It is an ancient volcano now filled by a lake of rainwater. It is known to be very slippery but very beautiful. After 2 hours of climbing through the jungle we finally reach the top. Through the trees we can see the lake and the Arenal volcano. We then decided to go down into the crater for a swim (be careful it's slippery). It was very messy but worth it.

On the last day we went to a free but beautiful waterfall. And in the evening to mark the occasion before leaving we went back to relax at the hot springs. With some candles, beers and music: the paradise.

The day after we left to reach Puerto Viejo !

I think that La Fortuna will remain for me my favourite destination in Costa Rica. 

Puerto Viejo de Talamanca - We wanted to visit the Cahuita park. And de knew that it was a good place to party and meet people.
3

Puerto Viejo de Talamanca We wanted to visit the Cahuita park. And de knew that it was a good place to party and meet people.

Puerto Viejo de Talamanca - We wanted to visit the Cahuita park. And de knew that it was a good place to party and meet people. - Our friend the capucin.
Our friend the capucin.
Puerto Viejo de Talamanca - We wanted to visit the Cahuita park. And de knew that it was a good place to party and meet people. - Cahuita park.
Cahuita park.
Puerto Viejo de Talamanca - We wanted to visit the Cahuita park. And de knew that it was a good place to party and meet people. - Desert Beach.1+
Desert Beach.

We spend a lot of time to just chill by the beach. And there is a lot of beautiful beaches all along the coast ! It’s also a perfect location to improve your surf.

The second day we went to the national park of Cahuita. And clearly it was one of my favorite things in Costa Rica! We had a very nice day which helped to make this day wonderful. We did a long walk of 3/4h to cross the whole park. All along the way there were beautiful desert-like beaches. We could see an impressive number of animals. Howler monkeys, capuchins, a sloth, frogs, birds and even a crocodile !

On the last day to finish this trip in beauty before leaving Costa Rica, we went out to party at Jonnys! It's a bar that turns its speakers towards the beach. The whole village is dancing on the beach, the atmosphere is crazy. After a moment the rain comes, I thought people were going to leave but on the contrary everyone continued to dance under the rain.

So if we recap, to finish my trip: dancing in the rain on a beach in Costa Rica.

Q & A

  • Restaurant recommendations?

    At Puerto Viejo : carne or pollo con Caraïbe sauce and rice and beens. You can find that in every restaurant of the village.
  • Tips you would give a friend?

    In the parks, but also for waterfalls and volcanoes, in fact everywhere you are offered guides. But be careful, most of the time it's not even necessary, if you're a bit resourceful you can do it without (and save a lot of money).
  • Packing tips?

    You need good shoes to climb the volcano. Don't try to wear city shoes... (prefer shoes of another colour than white!). And unfortunately, this is Costa Rica so don’t forget your raining coat !
  • Transportation Tips?

    Start every trip very early to make sure arrive not to late because the costa rican buses are very messy.

Lodging

  • I just finished a Work Away at Guapiles when I started my strip. So, I spent my first night there, in my super tent. In this region it is rain all the time. Therefore the nights was humid…

  • We stayed at an hotel called La Cascada. We chose this one because it was a very good location, around the main square. And because we are always looking for the cheaper habitation. It was very basic And to tell the truth the rooms were not very good, without windows and with a poor ventilation. But good for us because we were not here to enjoy the hotel but the beautiful nature that surrounds La Fortuna!

  • We stayed at an Hostel called Madre Selva. Very very nice ! Staff friendly, huge dormitory but super clean. Location a bit far from the the restaurants and bars of the center but we rented bikes !