Volcan Arenal

Hello All!

La Fortuna was amazing! Such a great weekend. Our Saturday was loaded. In the morning we hiked down to a waterfall (la Catarata Río Fortuna). You begin at the same elevation as the waterfall and take a steep decent to the base. Once we got to the bottom and took some pictures, we decided to swim a bit. As soon as we got in the water, it began pouring. Obviously in Oregon, this would be a bad thing, but here it was beautiful. Picture a huge waterfall making a sheer drop down jagged cliffs into a clear blue pool with a small sand beach guarded by towering rock walls covered in fern and other greenery. It was my first time swimming in the rain!

The Top:

The Bottom:

We enjoyed our swim but our clothes had become soaked in the downpour and we decided to hike out in our swimsuits which was funny to the people that we passed! One among the thirteen of us (and it wasn’t me) had the foresight to bring an umbrella (to a rain forest) and I’m not sure that anyone even brought a raincoat. Shouldn’t teachers be a little smarter?

When we finished the hike we had very little time to eat lunch and meet our guide for our next hike. We stopped off at a restaurant and took turns going into the bathroom to hold our shoes, socks, and clothes under the hot air hand dryer in the bathroom! Our next excursion was also fantastic. As we drove up to the forest at the foot of the volcano some monkeys were spotted in the trees and we pulled over to snap some photos then entered the bosque on a swaying footbridge. As we walked through the rain forest we saw many beautiful flowers and trees.

I’m amazed by the variety here. I love taking pictures of the flowers.

It was a beautiful hike and we had a clear view of the volcano most of the time. Even when the volcano was not in sight we could hear the gases rumbling. We also saw massive chunks of rock hurled out and tumbling down the face, sparking, smoking and breaking into smaller pieces on its way downhill.

Quite a spectacle. After the volcano we were dropped off at the hot springs for dinner and swimming. So relaxing after our busy day!

We stayed at a backpackers hostel that has dubbed itself the “5-star hostel,” which actually is a fitting name. We had a pool, restaurant, free internet, bar, view of the volcano... The only difference between this and a hotel was that there were 8 to a room on bunks (with teddy bear sheets) and towels for rent. The rate was about $14 a night.

We came home Sunday morning but one could easily spend more time there. There are canopy/zip line tours, white water rafting, canoeing, bird watching tours, jeep & boat tours… Come visit and I will take you there!

Where to next?? I think the beach!

Two weeks until Ryan gets here!