Travelblog LA#29: Irazú Volcano, Manuel Antonio National Park & Venado Island – Costa Rica

3rd – 9th September, 2023

 

Note; this blog is a continuation of my previous entry where I gave an account of my stay in the Puriscal region of Costa Rica. Throughout the time covered in this blog I am still (mostly) based in Puriscal, but I went on some day trips with my friend Juan.

 

Irazú Volcano

This is the highest volcano in the whole of Costa Rica, and it is said that on a clear day you can see both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans from its summit. We were perhaps a little unlucky in that regard – as the weather that day didn’t allow for any panoramas – but I do not consider us unfortunate. It was a nice, refreshing, atmospheric walk, and watching the mist draft across the various craters was a novelty.

This volcano has erupted over twenty times since its first recording in 1723, the most famous being when it showered Costa Rica’s capital in ash during John F. Kennedy’s visit in 1963. It has been almost thirty years since the last occasion but I suspect this is one to watch out for as most of its incidents have been explosive.

If you go to this place you are almost certainly going to pass by Cartago, which is Costa Rica’s former capital (and there are some gorgeous views along the way). As far as colonial cities go it isn’t very well preserved so it doesn’t hold up to the likes of Antigua or Granada, but we did make a stop along the way to have a little walk around the main plaza and its cathedral; both of which were quite charming.

 

Manuel Antonio National Park

Basing myself in Puriscal has meant that most of my time in Costa Rica has been a bit off the beaten track but as soon as Juan’s car approached this park I knew I was back in on the tourist trail when we passed lots of gringos, international restaurants, and souvenir shops. This is not a critique. Some places are popular for a reason, and this is one of them. It was just a very noticeable transition.

In many ways, this place reminded me of Tayrona National Park in Colombia, as it is essentially a sprawl of gorgeous tropical beaches surrounded by jungle, all connected by paths and boarded walkways. During our walks along the trails we saw lots of wildlife, including some white-faced cappuchins.

Howler monkeys.

Sloths.

Iguanas.

Deer.

And this green snake, as well as a few other things.

The beaches were all very picturesque.

And there were also some nice sights to be seen along the walkways through the jungle.

A nice little addition to the day was that – after exploring the park – we got back into the car, and Juan drove to a secret beach nearby. I was not too far away but almost empty, and it being a bit off the beaten track meant that he could drive onto the beach and park up by the edge of the trees. We got a pair of camping chairs out, had a swim, and drank a few beers while enjoying the view.

It turned out that this place was also quite good for wildlife too. Not only did we see another sloth, but one of the locals alerted us to another creature lurking not too far away. I am not quite sure what it is, but happy for people to tell me if they do.

 

Venado Island

This was something that Juan organised. I had mentioned to him that I was interested in going to the Nicoya peninsular, and he remembered that a friend had recently recommended a place to stay on one of the more remote islands in this area: Cabinas La Loma on Venado Island.

So, Juan drove to Puntarenas, from which we took a ferry, and then it was just a short drive to a little dock where our host – Esteban – picked us up.

Esteban was a great host. Happy to tell us all about the area and its attractions. He also stopped off by some of the mangrove forests on the way to look at the birds resting in the trees.

Among them were frigates: a species I have not seen since I visited the Galapagos five years ago.

When we reached the shore of his village, it was a short walk up a little hill to reach his hostel. We had our own little cabin with a view of the coast, and the communal area featured an outdoor dining table, hammocks, and a pool.

It is a family-run business so it was his wife who cooked us our meals – all of which were local seafood and delicious – and after eating lunch we went for a walk around the island.

It took us a couple of hours, in all, and we passed by little villages lined with fishing boats, mangrove forests, and beaches. By the time we got back, we were happy to just relax by the pool and enjoy the sunset.

The following morning Esteban took us on a little tour on his boat. The first hour or so was exploring some of the mangrove forests to see what birds we could find, which included pelicans, cormorants and roseate spoonbills.

And then afterwards we went to another remote island called Caballo, where we had a little swim at the shore and a walk around its village.

After that, we went back to the cabin, packed up our things and made our way back to the mainland. I had just two more nights more nights left in Costa Rica and I was happy to spend them at Juan’s house and enjoy the view of the mountains of Puriscal. I mentioned in my last blog that my time in Costa Rica has felt more like a holiday than backpacking, but it has been a welcome respite to prepare me for the next stage of my journey. I will look back on my time here fondly, and I am also grateful to Juan for his hospitality.

My next destination is Mexico; the final country on this trip. I have two months to explore it, and I will be back to staying in hostels and living like a thrifty traveller.

 

Click on these hyperlinks to see more photos from Irazú, Manuel Antonio Park, and Venado Island.

 

Travelblog LA#28: Puriscal – Costa Rica

28th August – 2nd September, 2023

 

After my couple of days in San José, I moved on to the Puriscal, a region within the mountains to the south of the capital.

This will be where I will base myself for the rest of my time in this country. I am very lucky to have a friend from here – Juan, who I met during my time in Colombia – and his offer to host me was one of the reasons that I decided to add both Costa Rica and Nicaragua to my itinerary. Costa Rica is the most expensive country in Central America and would usually be way beyond my budget, but having somewhere to stay made it much more affordable.

The Puriscal region isn’t spoken of much in the travel guides. Many gringos pass through here on their way to Turtle Island or Manual Antonio National Park, but there aren’t many hotels or other such tourist trappings. It is campesino territory; a place where generations of rural families have dwelled for generations, and life moves slowly. The climate is temperate, with warm days and cool nights, and the frequent rains mean that the mountains are covered in lush vegetation.

These next two weeks will feel more like a holiday than backpacking, and to be honest, it is a welcome respite after being on the road for several months. This is not to mean that I have been doing nothing. I spent my first few days exploring around the hills close to Juan’s home – as there are plenty of rewarding trails in his village. Most of the trails are dirt track roads that snake between the farms, lined with fruit trees and coffee plantations.

And I also soon realised that this area is a haven for birdlife. Not only can plenty be spotted whilst out on walks but also from simply watching from Juan’s balcony.

On my fourth day, the two of us went on a road trip to the Pacific coast. There are lots of little seafood restaurants at the little coves here, and we stopped at one of them for a couple of beers before having a walk along a quiet beach dotted with fishing boats and pelicans perched on the rocks.

We also passed by some of the beaches in the area around Jaco, which is a famous resort town. With it being low-season, it was somewhat quieter than usual.

And just outside of town we also stopped at a little mirador close to some trees where we saw yet more birds, including a group of scarlet macaws.

And then, at the end of the day, a place called Peñón de Guacalillo, where one can watch the waves crashing against the cliffs. Videos of this can be seen by looking at my Google album. It was the perfect end to the day.

Another day trip we made was to the area around a village called Mastatal, where there are several attractions. We started by going for a walk around La Cangreja National Park which has a trail that follows the Rio Negro through lush rainforest.

There are lots of little waterfalls there, and we also saw plenty of birds, frogs and snakes.

In the afternoon we went to Las Gemelas, which are a pair of large waterfalls within a valley.

This is also technically within the La Cangreja National Park (around twenty-five percent of Costa Rica is protected land), but access to this part of it is controlled by a campesino family. As many of you know, I am not a big fan of natural features being privatised, but in this case, it has been done benevolently. The family who own it have looked after their land well and have a respect for nature and conservation. They have turned it into an enjoyable place for visitors by making a series of trails and extra features, such as miradors overlooking the valley.

And they also offer discounted access if you pay for both entry and have lunch there, which was a nice way to finish off the afternoon. This is the view that we enjoyed from their restaurant area.

Besides these two-day trips and some local hiking, the rest of my first week in this area has been spent relaxing and enjoying the scenery. It is the rainy season, so come in the late afternoons and evenings. Watching them play out from Juan’s balcony has often been a magical experience, especially when the mist comes and clouds up everything.

As well as some sublime sunsets.

I have another week to go here and during it, we are planning to make some trips that go a bit further afield. These I will cover in my next blog.

 

For more photos from my time in the Puriscal region, click here.

 

Travelblog LA#27: San José – Costa Rica

25th – 27th August, 2023

 

Costa Rica, another country that was not in my original itinerary but I squeezed in at the last minute.

With that in mind, my first stop in its capital was at the national museum, situated within the walls of an old fortress. It has many different exhibitions which together make a very comprehensive catalogue of Costa Rica’s history. From pre-colonial times to its struggles for independence (not just from Spain, but also Mexico, the US, and the shortly-lived Federal Republic of Central America), to the twentieth-century civil war, all the way up to the present day. Which was great for me as I had some catching up to do.

I was also quite pleased to see that the indigenous population were also given some focus here, with details concerning their cultures, origins and history with the colonisers. Like all new world countries, the story concerning Costa Rica’s relationship with the original inhabitants is fraught with human rights violations, and this museum doesn’t shy away from that. Costa Rica does still have some native groups living in some of its regions but most of the population would now describe themselves as ‘mestizo’, and this fusion of cultures is also reflected in many of the nation’s festivals and traditions.

Out of all of the Latin American countries, Costa Rica is one of the most prosperous, and as to how they achieved that, I don’t think there is one definitive answer. I don’t believe any population is innately superior so luck plays a huge part in these things. Their ancestors certainly proved in the past that they were willing to take up arms when their liberty was under threat, but their more recent history has been more harmonious. For most Latin American countries, the root of many of their problems stems from neo-colonist exploitation and meddling from the US, but Costa Rica has faired much better than others, and it seems to me that it is largely because they have – for better or worse – played good diplomatic game of making enough concessions to keep the US happy whilst also putting the interests of their citizens first. Their army was disbanded in 1948, meaning the government had more money to spend on welfare, and it vastly improved the quality of life here. Since then, Costa Rica has remained peaceful by adopting a practice of political neutrality.

Those of you who follow me regularly will not be surprised when I tell you that my favourite part of this museum was its pre-Colombian exhibition. The civilisations that dwelt here are not talked about much because not as much is known about them. They didn’t leave behind any cities quite as majestic as the Inca or Maya did, so any golden age they may have achieved is either the kind that did not leave behind as many traces or remains buried and still to be discovered.

But something that they did leave behind plenty of was stone sculptures, and I was surprised by how intriguing they were.

Many of them feature the usual anthropomorphic features that appear to be common in pre-Colombian civilisations in all of Latin America, but – as usual – the styles of each region are quite variable, and they certainly have their own flair here.

Also popular are statues of warriors, many depicted holding weapons and trophy heads of those they defeated; hinting that this was a war-like society.

And they also seemed to have been fond of geometric patterns.

But perhaps most intriguing of all is their culture of ‘metates’; stone and oval ritual platforms. Their purpose was almost certainly ceremonial as many of them feature shamans and gods in anthropomorphic forms.

Another museum that also made a big impression on me was the Museo del Jade.

I was not previously aware of this, but the artisans of Costa Rica’s pre-Colombian civilisations were rivals to both the Olmec and Maya when it came to the production of this precious stone.

Such objects were not only treasured but also believed to play a prominent role in day-to-day life and were indicators of status and power.

They were also used in ceremonies. It is thought that each person was assigned a protective spirit at birth in the form of an animal, and given an object in its shape as a talisman.

This museum is very expansive, spread across four entire floors. One is called ‘Splendour of the Night’, which has dimmed light and eerie birdsong. The displays are focused on depictions of nocturnal animals such as owls and jaguars. It was very atmospheric.

And not all of its displays are exclusively jade. There is also a lot of pottery: much of which is of local style.

As well as pottery that appears to have come from other pre-Colombian civilisations, including Mexico: indicating that these people were well connected.

But one of the things that I found the most interesting was its collection of depictions of female shamans. Most civilisations from this part of the world only have evidence of men being shamans, but it seems there were more opportunities for women here.

Apart from visiting museums, I spent most of my time in San José wandering around its streets, parks, and churches, and I overall found it to be a pleasant city. The cathedral is – yet another – post-earthquake reconstruction, so it is modern, colourful, but pleasant.

And there are lots of scenic plazas with nice architecture to be found. I particularly liked the National Theatre.

Once again, I am in a country during the low season, yet the weather has mostly been fine. The hostel I was staying in was almost empty, and the few other people I met during my time there were on holiday and just passing through before heading to Costa Rican’s islands, national parks, and beaches. I know that when people have just a short amount of time they need to prioritise, but I think they were missing out on not exploring Costa Rica’s capital.

I also want to shout out to the hostel too: NATIVUS. A lovely little place with great facilities, amazing artwork on its walls, and kind people. Recommended.

 

For more photos from my time in San José, click here.