Beyond Boundaries Travel: Costa Rica Comes to your senses

Bank Travel Management January/February 2003
Costa Rica Comes to your senses By: Brian Reed

Maybe it was the warm tropical sun and the lapping sound of the water rocking against our boat that had put me in a near catatonic state. But as quickly as the ambiance was created, this tranquil moment was shattered by the frantic movements of a crew member bouncing around the boat like a bumblebee.

A fishing pole was thrust into my hands, and I was put into the saddle of a fishermen's chair.

"Go, go, go," everyone chanted.

So, dazed, I began to reel. What was on the end of the line I had no idea, but whatever it was, it was winning this tug-of-war.

Then, like a slow-motion scene from a Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom episode, the beast jumped skyward, its jagged dorsal fin arching slightly as it shuddered in a dizzying attempt at freedom.

"Is that on my line?" I said in disbelief.

Then, as if to confirm it, the beast gave a tug. Just when I didn't think I could continue, the crew member pulled in my prize catch: a 90-pound sailfish.

Sport fishing is just one of the many adventures I had during my fam trip to Costa Rica with Beyond Boundaries (Formerly Colorado International Tours, Inc.) I could only gawk, slack jawed, at Costa Rica, an eco-tourist's wonderland, dotted with rain forest, glorious beaches, angry volcanoes and cuddly monkeys.

And, with 25 percent of the country designated a natural preserve, Costa Rica is well positioned for eco-tourism for years to come.

But Costa Rica is as baffling as it is beautiful. You won't see ruins from ancient cultures or hear stories of triumphant war heroes.

You don't read much about Costa Rica in history books, because they haven't had wars or revolution" said Ralf Kettner, general manager of Central American Adventure Travel, who was with us the entire trip.

The Spanish landed in Costa Rica in search of gold but didn't stay long. Their mark is seen in the people more than anywhere else, as the European diseases they brought all but wiped out the native population.

Instead, the history of Costa Rica is made up of the greener-than-green habitat of the rain forest, which has stayed unchanged for years, and that is a fascinating enough study.

Break the mold
Costa Rica broke most of the stereotypes I had about Central America. First, it is peaceful. It has been an independent democracy since 1821, and the constitution adopted in 1949 dismantled the country's armed forces.

The source of stability can be traced back to coffee. In 1821, the government gave 25 coffee plants and land to anyone who wanted it.

"Many people say this is the beginning of democracy in Costa Rica," said Edvardo, our guide for the week.

The fertile volcanic soil of Costa Rica made it an ideal spot for coffee and below the volatile Irazu volcano, the terraced hills are covered at every imaginable point with coffee plants.

Cartago, a couple of hours from the capital, San Jose, was the first stop.

We unloaded our bags, changed our clothes and headed out for our Costa Rican orientation, a bike ride through the Tapanti National Park. The best way to experience the country is to drive in headfirst and let your senses be overwhelmed by the event.

The drive up through the park to the top of a hill offered fantastic panoramic views of the valley below, and I took visual inventory of spots to slow down or stop on the way down.

I hadn't been on a bike for years, but after a short orientation and safety demonstration, I felt confident enough to speed down a gravel path on the winding roads of the sultry park.

Ferns and huge petaled plants with three-foot-wide leaves hugged the road, and rivers hummed with natural ambiance as an incredible fog moved over the verdant hilled areas.

We reached town by dusk, in time to see Ticos -- what Costa Ricans call themselves -- preparing for their Saturday night activities.

Friends, perched in white plastic lawn chairs on their front porches, socialized, while two young women carrying a baby and a sack of coffee beans walked down the road through the lingering scents of a fish fry.

Upon reaching our destination, we decided to soak up local culture in a pub suggested by Elvardo.

We munched on fried chicken and fried potato chips as the men who lined the bar socialized over beers and colas or engrossed themselves in a soccer match.

The day came to a satisfying close back at our hotel, the Rancho Rio Perias, as we soaked in a warm pool filled with mineral spring water heated by a volcano nearby.

Whole lotta shakin' going on
The next day, we were volcano-bound, set to humble the mighty Irazu. Sitting just beyond a group of hills from our hotel, "the Powder Keg of Nature" remains an astonishingly active volcano.

Any doubt about the intensity of the tectonic activity here is quickly gobbled up with one look at the periodic crevices and gaps in he pavement and sidewalks.

"There are 30 to 40 tremors a day here, though most are so deep in the ground, you can't even feel them," said Erica, our guide for the day, as our driver swerved to avoid a huge pothole.

Though the last eruption took place in 1963, much of the natural landscape has yet to recover.

The damage from the eruption became much more apparent as we entered Prusia National Park and made our way up toward the volcano. The vegetation has undergone considerable alteration due to the eruptions, it's possible to see areas with sparse plant growth within the rim of the craters and in other areas where patches of forest have grown back.

"Wildlife in Irazu is veray scarce," said Erica.

The violence of the past eruptions left the top of Irazu looking more like an extraterrestrial landscape than like the rain forest that surrounds the volcano. Because of the volcano's height, its four craters are not always visible. That was the case during our visit, as thick fog and high winds sent us running for shelter.

We decided to take the quick way down the mountain and once again mounted bikes for an hour long downhill coast that covered 6,000 feet of elevation.

I couldn't get down the mountain fast enough as the combination of temperature and wind was numbing my hands. Some group members had the right idea and finished their rides in a warm van that followed us. Still, I was enjoying the fresh air, and the farther I got down the mountain, the warmer it got.

And to celebrate our quick ride down the mountain, we enjoyed a sumptuous buffet at Casona Cafetal Restaurant. The restaurant was once a coffee plantation; however, the owners converted their home into a restaurant and kept the thriving plants, the gardens and even the kids' playground equipment outside.

The buffet was a good opportunity to sample Costa Rican cuisine, which centers around fish, beef, tortillas and black beans. The food was hearty, not very spicy, but tasty -- just the ticket for our active group.

We group members just couldn't get enough of wind blowing through our hair. So, wanting to score high on the adventure quotient, the next day, we went to the Dreamforest canopy tour.

Scientists conceptualized this interesting form of transportation so they could move through the rain forest without damaging the environment. They solved the problem by stringing high-tension wires from one tree stand to another and by putting up stands up to 150 feet high where they could set up posts and study.

For us, though, it was less about study and more about an adrenaline rush.

After strapping on loads of safety equipment, including harnesses, helmets and gloves, the group listened attentively to learn the "right way" to coast through the canopy, only to see the "wrong way" demonstrated by one of our guides as he coasted to the first tree stand upside down with his legs up over the line.

Going First
Everyone suggested that I go first, and, letting out a yee-haw that would have made the Dukes of Hazzard proud, I went speeding across the rain-forest canopy to the next tree.

If you can deal with heights, this is an absolutely spectacular view of the rain forest. There are few things as pristine as looking down at the forest floor and the myriad greens that lay there; wet, waxy palms, towering ferns and thousands of other plants that neither I, nor a scientist, could identify. I decided that if Crayola ever needed another shade of green, they should come here for research and development and call it Costa Rica Green.

While I was gawking at the foliage below, I almost forgot to brake. In order to brake, we used thick leather gloves to grab ahold of the line and squeeze tight or pull down on it until we stopped.

From the small stand, I did three of the most enjoyable things on my trip: soaked in the views from the canopy, took a deep breath of some of the purest air I have ever breathed and watched the facial expressions of the rest of the group as they came down the line.

After eight stops, we were finished, but that didn't stop us from doing an 18 stand canopy tour later in the week.

So far, we had had adventures on land, sea and air; so we just needed to tame a river to complete the circuit.

Edvardo suggested a white-water rafting trip on the Rio Savage River, and there were no complaints from the men of the group. The women went into Quepos to pick up stashes of coffee for home.

Doug Lofland, co-owner of Beyond Boundaries (formerly Colorado International) did show some apprehension, though.

"What class of rapids are these again?" he asked.

"Oh, there are maybe some spots of class three," Edvardo answered with a wink and a smile.

As it turned out, the rapids were quite manageable. They were brisk enough to get the blood pumping but calm enough not to be worried about prematurely exiting the raft. Few rocks lined the shore or jutted out of the water the way they do at most rivers. Instead, the shore was lined with thick brush.

Most of the adventure happened before we even hit the water. After exiting main roads on our way there, we encountered uneven, rocky roads. Finally, our driver stopped the van in front of a tall hill.

It seemed that the constant rain from the previous day had washed out most of the road, and the only way to get to the put-in point was by a four-wheel-drive vehicle. Unfortunately, there were fewer seats in the four-wheel-drive than there were in the van, so Edvardo and our van driver had to ride on the roof.

I thought for sure that the jostling would send one of the two flying off into the brush, but they held on tight.

Almost over
I could feel that the week was winding down, but some of the highlights were still to come. Arenal, another highly active volcano, awaited.

"Arenal is one of the four most active volcanoes in the world," said Edvardo.

The running joke in the group was that the volcano was so active that it would regularly shoot lava like old faithful.

Many visitors see the glowing lava shooting up at night or on a clear day. But even though I didn't see any lava from Arenal, I felt its warmth at Tabacon Resort and Spa.

With more than a dozen pools of varying temperatures, the spa was beyond relaxing.

On our last day, the group set out for a short walking tour of Manuel Antonio National Park.

All of the beaches in Costa Rica are national parks, so for those uninitiated into rustic beaches, they have a bit of a Castaway vibe to them; their untouched beauty is unmatched by any tourist beach.

A couple steps into the forest, our resident eagle eye, Edvardo, had already spotted several birds, a sloth and about two-dozen iguanas.

"The rule of the rain forest is, if something looks good to eat, don't eat it," said Edvardo. "It is probably poisonous. But if it doesn't look so good, it will be fine to eat."

Then, out of nowhere, we were surrounded by a group of white-faced monkeys. They climbed through the trees, seemingly oblivious to our presence.

Much to her delight, one of the tour members, Carol Main of Canton, Ohio, spotted a toucan.

"The one thing that I wanted to see on this trip was a toucan," she said. "I can go home now."

As we were about to leave, Edvardo spotted a king hawk, which really didn't seem like that big a deal to me, but from his excitement, I could tell it was something special.

"Those are really rare. This is the first one I've seen in six years," said Edvardo. It seemed that we had really racked up on what we saw, and the tour was half the regular length, only an hour and a half.

Farewell
Between coffee and the free market, Costa Rica has a relatively high standard of living, without being overly expensive.

"Costa Rica has the best standard of living of any Central American country," said Ralf. It is easy to see why there are more Americans living in Costa Rica than Costa Ricans living in America; they have all the trappings of home within a day's drive and all the charms of a tropical paradise. The first thing I saw after exiting my plane was a Papa John's Pizza, which sat right next to a Burger King.

I left feeling that I had only scratched the surface of this captivating land and, even now, I am yearning to go back.

So, whether your group is looking for an exotic getaway or just searching for a relaxing trip for a change, you just might find the gold the Spanish missed in Costa Rica.

Beyond Boundaries specializes in adventure travel to Costa Rica using a wide range of lodging, from luxury five-star hotels to less expensive eco-lodges throughout the country, from spa resort vacations to fishing trips, trekking and discovery trips.