Costa Rica Day Five!

Our final day in the rain forest dawned rainy once again. We knew that this was expected in the rainforest, but we were sure ready to be dry again!

We were going on a true Zip Line Tour, with a series of 8 zip lines through the rain forest. It was not our first zip line, nor the best we've ever done, but pretty fun overall. Really, how can you not have fun on a zip line tour?! We felt a little like herded cattle, as they had zip line tours that left every 30 minutes and ended up stacked on top of each other, but we still had a great time.

All geared up!

Hot coffee midway through to take the chill off

Even Kent got into the coffee today!

After our Zip Line tour, we were off on the SkyTrek. A guided hike through the rain forest. It was nice to slow down for a bit and appreciate the flora and fauna. And that is a sentence I never thought I would write! Haha! We learned some very interesting facts about the wildlife in the Costa Rican Rain forest.

Me and my new favorite tree- a stilted palm

A savvy reader might notice that this is the same waterfall we rappelled the day before!

Our darling guide Nancy teaching us all about the foliage

One of the many VERY looong Rope bridges we traversed through the tree tops.

Another cool tree, which I cannot remember anything about now. LOL. And yes, at this point we were getting some heavy rain.

Costa Rica Day Four!

Today was a day with few photos to show as evidence of our adventure. Bummer! We weren't sure what we were headed for when we were picked up for the Sky Limit Tour, so we left our camera in our safe (and dry!) backpack. Turned out to be a good move, as we got soaked!

There was a little mix up in the pickup time for our tour (no fault of ours :), so Kent and I were the last to arrive at the departure point for the Sky Limit tour. The guides quickly helped us into our harness and gear and off we went on the Sky Tram deep into the rain forest! With very little discussion, we headed onto our first obstacle, a zip line, followed by a parallel tight rope race. Third, we were tortured by descending a netted cable, backwards as quickly as possible. This activity was not our favorite, and made us feel like a couple of stumbling bumbling fools! We traversed a high wire, then dropped down in a controlled free fall from the treetops to the forest floor. We hiked through the forest for awhile then descended a 45 degree ladder down a cliff. After traversing a rope bridge and a ladder bridge, they took us to the Tarzan Swing! A fifty foot free fall, with only a rope to save us from sure death! Okay, maybe a slight exaggeration, but it truly was exhilarating! The waterfall rappel we went down next was no big deal after the Tarzan Swing! It was raining quite heavily for the second half of the tour, so we got very wet, and my fall into the river sure didn't help! The chill didn't really kick in until we went for our final two zip lines through the treetops.
Luckily we were able to take advantage of the cafe at the end of the tour and I indulged in a hot cup of coffee while Kent had a nice cold beer. Men!

The view of the Arenal Lake, from the treetop cafe at the Sky Tours headquarters.

This is the waterfall we rappelled. Sadly, no photos of us rappelling it were available.

At this point in the trip we were getting consistent rainfall, as it had rained all night and much of that morning. We had a nice clearing with some sun when we headed out on our Sky Limit tour, but that turned to rain midway through. One of our taxi drivers told us that there is no "dry season" in the Rain Forest. Just the "wet season," and the "Less wet season." Funny, but true. 

We decided to stay close to home, and had dinner at AltaMira, the restaurant on site at our hotel. They were grilling steaks out on the patio. My ribeye was fantastic, as was Kent's filet. Delicious food in a picturesque setting, after a fun-filled day. Paradise!

A break in the rainy evening at the Nayara Resort and Spa.

Costa Rica Day Three!

Our second adventure in Costa Rica was again led by our friends at Desafio. We had a long bus ride to the Rio Sarapiqui to begin our rafting tour, but it was totally worth it! The river rafting closer to our hotel only offered level 2-3 rapids, and Kent wanted a little more adventure (sensing a theme here?!), so he booked this tour, with level 3-4 rapids. The river was quite low on our visit, (apparently it is controlled by the Costa Rican government, who open and close the damns above this river to maximize flow...) so it turned out to be some very technical rafting! We even had to paddle upstream at one point to rescue some fellow tourists who were thrown from their raft, and stranded on a large rock. It was quite an adventure! 

Our guide, Adan, thinking we are goofy tourists.

Our guide, Adan, working his butt off while we have a good ole' time with our new friends Sam and Audrey.

This time we are doing the work, while Adan takes a well deserved break. :)

We had a long day on the river, and a long drive back to the Nayara, so we quickly showered and headed into La Fortuna for dinner. We chose an Italian restaurant called Anchi'o, and we were not disappointed! Our food was fantastic! Highly recommended if you ever find yourself in La Fortuna, Costa Rica!

Great Ambiance too!

Yummy Focaccia

Costa Rica Day Two!

Our second day in Costa Rica, or rather our first full day in CR had us going on our first adventure of the trip... Rappelling waterfalls! Kent spent hours and hours researching excursions, but I very intentionally did not. Just the names of the adventures Kent had planned were enough to raise my heart rate a bit. I'm so glad I went this route and didn't back out of any of the adventures Kent had in mind. I would have missed some pretty fantastic experiences!

The folks from Desafio (which is, in our humble opinion- the best tour company in CR) picked us up and toted us to their headquarters in downtown La Fortuna. After transferring to a 4WD vehicle, we were four- wheelin our way up Lost Canyon. Aptly named Lost Canyon because it is not found on any map! 

Our team of four guides took us on a fantastic Canyoneering (or Canyoning as they say...) adventure through the rain forest, with a series of four waterfalls, natural pools, a "manmade" waterfall, and some of the most spectacular scenery we have ever seen!

Desafio!

Pre-adventure, with 2 of our fantastic guides, and a nice couple from Mumbai who joined us on our adventure

Me, rappelling one of four waterfalls

There was a free fall section at the end of one of the rappells. Somehow they talked me into flipping upside down and flying freestyle! :0)

Kent, rappelling the waterfall

Kent, in freefall

Hopping into the jungle pool!

For some reason, this was the scariest part for me... Go figure!

Our guides created a "human dam" in order to give us this experience.... a mini flash flood! It truly took my breath away for a moment.

After our canyoneering adventure we had some free time to relax in the sun by our cozy little pool, in the most comfortable pool chairs EVER! Well done Nayara!

Poolside!

Kent and I ventured into town for dinner at the Lava Lounge that evening. I made a bad decision and ordered a hamburger. Oops. Kent ordered a traditional Costa Rican meal, that was awesome. Big surprise, huh?! I ordered a pina colada as a nod to my dad, and it was the best one I have ever had!


Yum!

Lovin the Lava Lounge!

Costa Rica Day One!

Kent and I flew out of Salt Lake on the red-eye on Tues March 3rd. After traveling through a time warp (and getting a wee bit of sleep!), we arrived in San Jose airport in the San Jose province of Costa Rica. We were excited to be there, and our fatigue quickly faded once we arrived in Costa Rica! We were met by our driver Diego, and hopped into his luxurious taxi for our 3 hour drive to the Nayara Hotel and Gardens, in the Arenal Region. Then the lack of sleep hit me. You'd think I would be prepared since I work nights, but I suppose I must be accustomed to sleeping after I stay up all night! I crashed in the van. Kent, however, made it there without a blink! He really enjoyed watching the Costa Rican scenery passing by.
When we checked in at the Nayara, they provided us refreshing wet towels... Sounds lovely, right? Well, it wasn't. It was totally awkward, sponge bathing in front of the concierge. But, we survived this luxury. :) While we waited for our room to be prepared, we took a little tour of the property. It was everything we expected Costa Rica to be! The grounds were lush and green, and we got lucky with sunshine! 

A bridge on the hotel grounds. And a jet lagged traveler. :)

Our beautiful Cabana

The luxurious bathroom, closets, and minibar in our room.

The view from the on-site open air restaurant. In the background you can spot the Arenal Volcano.

The pathway into our little hideaway

Outside the spa... Bliss

After checking into our room we hopped into a taxi headed for the La Fortuna Waterfall. When we arrived we sat down for a quick lunch just outside the waterfall, at a darling little cafe set up on a balcony in the middle of the rain forest. Pure Perfection!!!

Lunch at the Rio Lounge

The La Fortuna waterfall was impressive! It fell from a great height, and hit the pool below with such force that the spray flew several feet into the air. Some people were swimming in the pool around the waterfall, but Kent and I opted out since we didn't have swimming suits.

La Fortuna Waterfall

Kent lookin cool on a little rest during our hike to the waterfall