- Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica
I have gone away on the eve of my 40th Birthday for some adventure and energy gathering. Arrived in Costa Rica on the 20th and have been pretty much non stop since then.
The first day we hiked in the Arenal National Park to see the volcano and the Arenal lake. About a two mile journey to the top to get a view of the most active volcano in the country. It was a truly awesome sight to see the smoke rising from the peak and to watch hot boulders hurtle down the hill. There is something magic about a semi hollow mountain that houses a sleeping dragon.
That same afternoon I did the sky tram and zip lines. A gondola takes you about 2000 ft off the ground above much of the rain forest canopy. I can not really adequately describe the feeling of being amidst so much lush greenery. I had never done a zip line before and was very excited. The first long run takes you out over a huge ravine and you go about 80 miles/hr. I felt like I was flying between the mountains the wind rushing past my ears. I could look down into the valley below and at other times out over the lake. There were about 8 zip lines in all that helped you traverse down the mountain. I highly recommend this.
Today was the rain forest trek on the hanging bridges. This hike takes you on the forest floor and then eventually up the mountain and across several suspension bridges that allow you to walk among the tree tops. Our guide pointed out some very cool birds, poisonous frogs, plants, insects and yes…I did see MONKEYS! Mantled Howler Monkeys to be more precise…noisy black and gold monkeys that make the jungle sound like the jungle. Then the rain started. I donned my camouflage rain poncho and kept trekking through the downpour as the monkeys howled louder and louder. It was surreal…wild and fantastic.
(This last installment does not bring me to the end of the day…there will be more but I needed to do this quick travelogue.)
