Adventure's were had

Every place you travel has an adventure side. I wasn’t planning on indulging anymore about my Costa Rica trip, but I realized that besides leaving my heart in Costa Rica I had experienced some unforgettable adventures.

My project leader had asked us if we wanted to take a "day off" from our volunteer duties to go on a hike to one of Costa Rica's tallest waterfalls. We all imagined an extremely leisurely day so we agreed. The next day we woke up at 5:30am to be on the trail by 6:00am. What we found out is that the land leading to the waterfall was privately owned, and the waterfall itself was public. We were driven up a windy road on a mountain to the private entrance to the falls. The reason we had such an early start was to avoid the $20 (american) per person charge for being on the land. We hiked (a difficult) one hour to the falls, and then swam in the natural pools. Then we had to make a choice to either hike the one hour back and pay the land owner, or hike "a few hours" along the river back to our town. We chose to embark on the river hike, which turned into a four hour "hike". We had a local guiding us who literally hacked his way (with a machete) through the rainforest, with us trustfully following him. Note to anyone who ever embarks on a rainforest hike: DO NOT WEAR RAIN BOOTS. I regretfully hiked four hours criss crossing the river all the way down, with mini pools in my boots. However, I am not complaining for a single second because I will never forget the day we were "in the jungle" for almost six hours, I pushed myself to limits that I didn't even know I had. The day at the falls was an unschedule surprise in my volunteer itinerary, and Im glad we didn't miss the opportunity.

Before embarking on our four hour jungle exit. (notice our smiles) personal photo

Though I was fortunate to partake in unplanned discovery in Costa Rica, I was involved in a two week adventure tour itinerary. We travelled as a group of 30, from Tico coast to coast and I had amazing experiences. Cost Rica is rich in adventure and my top five adventure destination suggestions are:


Rio Pacuare :White Water Rafting
I went white water rafting for my first time this summer. I also had my first time falling out of a raft into white water. We paid a photographer for our photos at the end, and I'm excited we did because the picture below captures the moment after I was in the water. Overall the day was amazing, our guide's name was Frankie and he taught us everything we need to know; specifically if you fall out, lay back and breath.

"swimming" Pacuare. Personal Photo

La Fortuna: Zip-lining and Rappelling
In La Fortuna we had the amazing day of zip lining on 11 different lines, and mid way through we did a 250 foot rappel.

Rappelling in La Fortuna. personal photo

Samara Beach: Surfing
I want to live in a place where the ocean is at my door everyday so I can master surfing. I have never tried surfing before but at Samara beach we got lessons to try. I was addicted to the challenge that surfing presented itself as. I can not say Im a surfer, but I'm definitely hooked, one day...

Surfing lessons (before water) @ Samara Beach. Personal Photo 

Rincon de la Vieja National Park: Horse Back Riding and River Tubing
We had a horse back ride, and a short walk carrying our large inner tubes to the river. The river was a series of small rapids and we all got to sit back and relax. Except for the rapid parts, just enough adrenaline to keep us a float (pun intended)

River Tubing. Personal Photo

Rio Negro Hot Springs: Mud Bath and Natural Hot Springs
I was excited by the hot springs, they were nestled in tiny pools (with a natural stone setting). In the picture below is me and my travel mates covered in natural mud. Moments after this picture was taken we had to rinse off in a freezing natural spring.

Mud Path @ Rio Negro Hot Springs. Personal Photo