taco's & toucan's travels ~ 2019

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DAY 58

Week 9

LA FORTUNA (Alajuela, CRI)

Saturday May 11^th, 2019

TODAYS MILEAGE – 38 miles / 62 kilometres

TRIP MILEAGE – 21,501 miles / 34,603 kilometres

I was up and exploring La Fortuna way before dawn as we had a 7:30 PM pick up for a day trip with Desafio Adventure Company.

After a quick coffee and a sandwich from the Musmanni bakery, I joined all the “Avocados” on the Arenal Highlights Combo: Hanging Bridges, Volcano Hike & Catarata Río Fortuna tour that was scheduled to last 9 hours with Francisco our guide and Roy the driver.

First stop was the Mistico Arenal Hanging Bridges Park where we spent a couple of hours exploring the 3.2 kilometre (2 mile) dense jungle walk, on well-maintained paved pathways and hanging bridges, some of which were a hundred meters up in the canopy of the rain forest.

A short 20-minute drive and we were at the Arenal Volcano National Park in which as the name implies - sits the 1,633 metre (5,358 foot) tall Arenal volcano.

Officially dormant since 2010, it last erupted in 1968 with devastating effect - burying over 15 square kilometres (5.79 mi²), 3 small villages, killed 87 people and affected more than 232 square kilometres (89.6 mi²) of land

The 2 kilometre (1¼ mile) walk to the 1992 lava flow was a whole lot less strenuous than the Pacaya Volcano walk in Guatemala. Upon arrival at Arenal's base, you are rewarded with views of steam billowing from the top, but no lava flows.

Lunch was a near vegetarian affair at the tour company’s facilities in the city, where I took the time to wander next door to the local waterfalls of El Salto.

Our final stop of the day was 75 metre (250 foot) Catarata Río Fortuna (Fortuna River Waterfall), located at the base of the dormant Chato volcano, about 5½ kilometres (3½ miles) outside of La Fortuna. It was a leisurely 15-minute, 500 step walk to the base of the waterfall in which I spent the best part of an hour exploring both swimming pools, before deciding to head back up the stairs.

I’ll be first to admit that I struggled on the ½ hour return accent and thought to myself that carrying an extra 14 kilogram (31 pound) backpack full of camera gear, is probably not the best decision I’ve made in a while.

We grabbed a feed at the Lava Rocks Café and just do that you're in the know - they give you 50 Costa Rican Colones less per US Dollar in thier "exchange rate" they give you back in your local currency change - basically 12% less ..... good work if you can get it.

From there it was back up to the La Fortuna Pub for a few sherbets and a couple rounds of house brick Jenga before calling it a night.