After an amazing week of surfing, we headed off into the mountains to explore new regions of Costa Rica. After leaving Uvita we traveled inland where our first stop was a three day, two night trip to a waterfall garden. Thaddeus had been crowned king for the day on our journey up, but as we entered the rainforest he quickly converted to a tribal chief and we even adopted a local dog to be part of our tribe. “Cosa” was a quiet companion, always eager to run ahead of the group to check out any sounds off the trail. We were introduced to a range of native plant species, and everyone except Maddie ate a few termites along the way. Most people agreed that they didn’t have a particular taste, and at best they tasted like wood. Go figure.
Once we made it to the cave, we made ourselves at home. Katy and Claire were a bit apprehensive about some of the local inhabitants in the cave, but they kept their distance. The cave had four large waterfalls careening over its roof, and we had the opportunity to explore above and below our cavern over the course of our three days. On the first night we celebrated our darkness with candles and some sparklers that the leaders had stashed away, and the festival of light continued when Graham got out his camera and showed us a cool light trace function that allowed us to graffiti the darkness. Raúl stroke a ninja pose, and Luke silohetted with a guitar.
On the second full day at the cave we rappelled off the waterfall above the cave, with enough time for everyone to do it twice. Ian and Amelia were both a bit nervous on their first go, but they didn’t hessitate to do it again. After refuelling at lunch, we made a nice hike to a higher set of waterfalls. Laura was one of the first to jump into the swimming hole, and after everyone got in we were convinced it was worth the hike.
On our third day we hiked our way down to the main road, where we then connected to our overnight destination leading up to our two-day rafting trip. Our time on the river flew by, and in addition to some toucans, we also saw a few big snakes along the sides of the river. It was a great activity to end with, and now that we’re back in San José, it’s hard to believe that just a few hours ago we were taking on Class IV rapids in a tropical paradise.
We’re getting packed up and showered now, and we’re all excited to have one last dinner together. Though we’re all excited to be coming home soon, it will be hard to say goodbye to our new friends and the places we’ve called home over the last two weeks.
Nos vemos pronto. Pura vida.
