We decided to move on and make our way up to volcano Arenal which was described as continuously active with wonderful views at night.
Going up in the mountains basically meant could forest and cloud forest as you can probably guess means clouds and clouds bring rain! And that’s what we had for the following three days: we tried to get a glimpse at the great volcano but all we got was the noise of erruptions. Nevertheless we were quite lucky with our find of camp site since we were allowed to park next to a small dairy farm with the most friendly farmer who got the children to join in all the farm activities.
Going up in the mountains basically meant could forest and cloud forest as you can probably guess means clouds and clouds bring rain! And that’s what we had for the following three days: we tried to get a glimpse at the great volcano but all we got was the noise of erruptions. Nevertheless we were quite lucky with our find of camp site since we were allowed to park next to a small dairy farm with the most friendly farmer who got the children to join in all the farm activities.
After several days we gave up on Arenal and went for one of the highest parts of Costa Rica where the famous Quetzal bird can be found. This bird was an almost holy creature for the Mayas and its feathers were an important part of their clothing. However, Quetzals do not bread in captivity and therefore it is only possible to see them in wilderness, which is obviously not very easy (we met some Canadians bird fanatics who had come three times to Costa Rica to see the bird and had never managed to do so.
We had been looking forward to some time in Costa Rica for quite a while. It was supposedly the best central american country for family travelling. When we entered the first town we understood that Costa Rica was basically very influenced by the US and had a lot of tourism.
We spent the first night just parked at a hotel. Probably the most expensive camp site we ever had: 35$. But Anna had come down with a heavy throat infection that she had taken over from Lili which we were treating with homeopathic medicine and therefore it took quite a while to get rid of it. So we did not look around much for cheaper alternatives.
The following day we went up for an hour on a dirt road to an old hacienda close to one of the national parks of Costa Rica: Rincon de la vieja. When we arrived we
We spent the first night just parked at a hotel. Probably the most expensive camp site we ever had: 35$. But Anna had come down with a heavy throat infection that she had taken over from Lili which we were treating with homeopathic medicine and therefore it took quite a while to get rid of it. So we did not look around much for cheaper alternatives.
The following day we went up for an hour on a dirt road to an old hacienda close to one of the national parks of Costa Rica: Rincon de la vieja. When we arrived we
discovered quite a fancy hotel and after some negotiation by Kate the manager accepted to have us park on the small car park and use the hotels facilities. They had a very nice pool and the kids were thrilled. In the afternoon our danish friends arrived and Kate managed too to get permission to park for a night.
The next day we discovered that the park was closed on Mondays (reminded us of France!!) and so we went for a walk to a close by river with a small waterfall.
The next day we discovered that the park was closed on Mondays (reminded us of France!!) and so we went for a walk to a close by river with a small waterfall.
The strong wind that was coming down from the mountains seemed to increase by the hour and the next day a huge old tree came crashind down on the coral of the farm. Quite exciting for the children.
We enjoyed a lot too the thermal bath. This was an amazing arrangement of ten different pools along the side of a hill, starting with water at 75°C at the top one down to normal 25°C at the lowest pool. Sitting in the pool in bath tub warm water and sipping a milk shake was a great pleasure after having walked in the rain for a day.
We drove up to Cerro de la muerte and discovered a Mirador de Quetzales with a few very basic huts for rent. We asked to park there and a very friendly and famous guide (had been written about in international animal magazines) welcomed us. The next morning we undertook a guided tour through the rain forest starting at 5:30 am. After 2 hours of walking around we still had not seen the famous bird and the guide gave up on us. He sent us with his son down to another part of the forest in the hope we might see something there. After another unsuccessful walk and the children becoming cranky since they still had not had breakfast we heard the cry of the Quetzal. Our guide rushed off to find it and after a few minutes gave us signs to follow him quickly. And there indeed we saw a pair: male and female! It was a great experience for the all of us.
The following day we continued our drive over the pass at 3600 m and down again to the coast. We found a public campsite that was rather crowded since it was weekend. The swim in the Pacific with a water temperature of around 33°C was a great relaxation after a long driving day.
