Because we value independent travel, we were pretty set on having our own transport while in Costa Rica. As ever, every corner of the internet warned us about the treacherous driving conditions in Costa Rica, and as usual we were skeptical. Here’s the reality: everyone but the most timid drivers can drive a car in […]
With our last day in Costa Rica on tap, we woke up early and, as we’ve been nearly every day, were the first ones to Parque National Rincon de la Vieja. A quick chat with the ranger sent us hiking at a quick pace up and down the trails through the dry forest. We would […]
Bree: Our nighttime walk was in fact fairly benign, although the prospect of walking around any forest with such a diverse and unknown lineup of animals in the dark was enough to make me uncomfortable. As we perused the beach in the dark, our headlamps glowing red, my eyes darted back and forth, worried we […]
Some tips for visiting Santa Rosa National Park: Do: Drive down to the beach even though the route in no way resembles a road. Drive a 4×4. No exceptions. This was easily the worst road we have ever encountered anywhere in the world and we visited during dry season. Hold your breath every time you […]
Bree: We woke early, our tent folded into the hovering cloud sitting low on the mountain. We wanted to get an early start in order to be the first ones on the trail, but the ranger station wasn’t open on schedule. After some deliberation, we gave up and started hiking anyway. No one was around […]
With extreme motivation to see a caiman during our stay in Costa Rica, Bree and I decided to head north toward the Nicaraguan border in order to visit Cano Negro, a river which runs through one of the world’s most important wetlands as far as migratory birds are concerned. Attempting to route from our location […]
Early this morning, we piled out of bed and ate at the hostel, served by the kindest, non-English speaking host. Then, we darted out toward the volcano, hoping to get an early start on our hike. As we hoped, we were the first people to arrive in the park. We took the trail that […]
Finally feeling rested, we got a leisurely start on the road to La Fortuna. With slightly better directions in hand, we actually found ourselves on an established, albeit rough road. The going was quick by Costa Rican standards, and before long we found ourselves at the overlook, peering over Lago Arenal at the stately volcano. […]
Ben: We slept beautifully in our small, now cat-free territory. It seemed that Bree had made her statement against our crazy white friend. The same could not be said for Bree, however. The night brought a pretty stiff wind which gusted all night, flexing the timid frame of our tent and rattling the fly with a […]
Though I was exhausted, we hit the road as soon as I scraped myself out of bed, headed for the cloud forest in Monteverde. At first, the going was busy and sometimes a bit bumpy, but quick. We drove through dry pastures and forests, with many of the trees having lost their leaves due to […]
Since I had some time off for the holidays, Ben and I had been debating for weeks what adventure might be awaiting us. We looked at local road trips and snow studded itineraries in Alaska, but nothing compelled us enough to make any actual plans until Ben discovered we had enough frequent flyer miles to […]
Last weekend Ben and I were in the middle of a house cleaning frenzy when Colton and Miara stopped by to borrow something. We chatted a while before giving up on our domestic projects, piling into Colton’s SUV, and heading for the nearby bird refuge. The daylight was draining fast toward the west mountains, the […]