Costa Rica Trip Report June 26 to July 6 - Part Two

Santa Elena is an interesting town. It has definitely discovered that eco-tourism, as everyone likes to call it, is very profitable. Despite the very bad roads surrounding the town, it is abuzz with tourists and rumbling with four wheel drive vehicles. There is a ‘tour’outfit on every corner and a ‘canopy zip line’ around every corner. It is possible, however, to get away from all this and venture into the quiet of the cloud forest – IF you know where to go and when.

The Hotel Belmar is clean and comfortable but also noisy with paper thin walls. We got settled into a third floor room with a very solid looking fire escape out the window of this all wood structure. Because we arrived late in the afternoon we decided to take the short on site walk into the forest behind the hotel. (It seems everywhere we stayed had one of these 20 minute walks). I got into a nest of ants that were very aggressive and since I was wearing Teva’s they managed to bite me several times on the feet and between my toes. Don’t know exactly what kind of ants they were but we crossed the path of their type several times and learned to avoid them or suffer with a few bites. In the end they turned out to be the worst menace we faced. We opted out of the hotel restaurant and gave in to temptation after several days of casados and went to Johnny’s Pizza for dinner. Then we turned in for the night serenaded by a group in the room next door singing Broadway tunes in several languages.

The Monteverde Reserve was our first choice for the next day and we decided after much discussion to get a guide with two other people we had met at the hotel. They picked us up promptly at 7:15 am and we bounced down the road to the reserve. The Monteverde Reserve is apparently the Mecca for all ecotourists in Costa Rica and I’m sure with just cause. (How do they get those big busses up there?) The place was crawling with adventurers all wearing khaki zip off pants – myself included – it was the uniform of the day in the mountains. We set off with the guide and I prepared myself to get into a good hiking stride but within a 100 meters we stopped to glimpse a howler monkey high in a tree – us and about 40 other people. After fifteen minutes or so we moved on, only to stop again several times for our guide to point out some feature of the forest. We soon learned the purpose of these stops was to space out the groups with guides so that we all wouldn’t arrive at the Quetzal nest at the same time 50 meters up the path. I will readily admit that we probably never would have seen the Quetzal without our guide, who was very nice, and he had carried a really nice spotting scope so we got a really good view of the bird, but I was beginning to realize that we weren’t getting very far into the forest. As it turned out, in the three hours we spent there, we were probably never more than 500 meters from the parking lot, taking a pre-planned tour on a very nicely paved path. The Quetzal was a first rate prize but the rest of the ‘hike’ was a disappointment.

They dropped us off at the hotel and we jumped into the 4 Runner and bumped off to Stella’s Bakery for a nice lunch. We had promised the girls a canopy tour and we opted for the Sky Walk and Sky Trek combination. This got us out of Santa Elena and I have to admit we had a great time. It all seemed very safe and we certainly were above the trees. The skywalk gave us time to see things, the zip lines did not. The girls preferred the zip lines.

A quick note about the Toyota 4 Runner. It was my first experience with one but I have driven four wheel drive most of my life and own a venerable Suburban that has carted us over a good piece of the USA. I have to say that the 4 Runner with the turbo diesel it was equipped with is a very comfortable way to travel. It handled everything we threw at it and then some – it basically spent the entire trip covered in mud. On the paved roads it was like riding in a sedan. I gave it five stars for comfort and utility for four people and our luggage.

We bumped back into Santa Elena for some shopping and dinner. It is a busy, vibrant town crawling with khaki clad ecologists and hazy with diesel fumes. We seem to be viewed with good natured humor by the Ticos, and I don’t blame them. There was khaki and backpacks everywhere and we fit right in. We had a twenty minute wait for dinner at Morpho’s so we went across the street and poked around the department store and found several bargains there. Settled into Morpho’s for an excellent meal and pleasant conversation with the guy I took to be the owner although I’m not sure. He and I spent some time talking about rum and he let me try several very good ones before I settled on a nice 12 year old Ron Centenario. The place was packed but the service was very good and our food arrived promptly. Actually, prompt service was the standard throughout our stay in CR.

The next morning dawned clear and warm again and it was my birthday. I was still feeling let down by our ‘hike’ into the cloud forest so as a present we packed up the car but postponed our departure and headed off to the Santa Elena Reserve for another try – this time without a guide. Upon arriving we were the only car in the lot and I was feeling better already. The man at the ticket counter made sure we parked close to the entrance so he could watch the car (the only time anyone mentioned the possibility of a problem with theft) and we set off to get into the cloudforest. We picked out a 3.5 hour loop which was very enjoyable. The biggest thing we saw was a guan which is sort of like a small black turkey but more importantly we didn’t see any people until we were almost back at the entrance. This was more like it. Not really knowing what we were hearing, we once thought we heard the cough of a big cat, and later found out that a Jaguar had been spotted several times recently in the area we walked. No sighting, but I’ll go to my grave believing I heard the call of this beautiful animal.

Feeling far more like we had actually experienced the deep quiet that the cloud forest offers, we set off in the 4 Runner just as the sky opened up. My wife drove us down out of the mountains in pouring rain keeping the car in 4 wheel drive the whole way. There were several recent mudslides onto the road, and in places chunks of the roadway itself had slid off into the abyss. These were politely marked by sticks with bits of cloth tied to them. But by now we were feeling every bit the Indiana (or in our case Connecticut) Joneses of Costa Rica, so no bother. The GPS led us off the mountain directly to the Interamerica Route 1. We switched drivers and I took over the driving duties on this truck infested road. Fortunately we quickly came to the turnoff to La Amistad Bridge and Nicoya and headed off to the Pacific coast.

The road to the bridge is obviously new and we made excellent time across the gulf and on to the road to Nicoya. This is where the GPS and I made the fateful decision, as I am apt to do, of trying a shortcut. Spotting what looked like a route cutting the corner, as it were, we headed off to Mansion and on to Hojancha. My daughter suggested a right turn so naturally I went left. So far so good, tight, but well paved roads, led us down to Hojancha which appears to be a fairly sizable agricultural community. Unfortunately it is also where the road ends. With several options available, and few signs, we decided to look for help and as luck would have it came upon a police officer. Now, I should explain without bragging that I pick up languages fairly easily and with my daughters help I was doing pretty good. The problem is my pronunciation is good, but my vocabulary is limited. So as we pulled up to the officer I asked in my best Spanish what was the best route to Samara. He, obviously impressed by my apparent understanding of Spanish, and after sizing up the rugged 4 Runner, proceeded to give me several lefts and rights and many, many ‘directivos’ in Spanish, which of course I could not follow one wit. My three year honors Spanish student daughter, who of course had told me to go right when I went left, was in the back seat laughing so hard at my attempts to ‘mas dispacio’ the conversation that she was no help.

It was bad enough that I had stopped for directions, but I wasn’t going to ask him to repeat them. We did get enough out of the conversation to at least get the right road out of town and headed out. The roads we took, led by my friend the GPS, did lead us in the right direction but got progressively worse. The 4 wheel drive was engaged and we continued on. Rounding a corner we came upon a dozen vultures in the road. My wife was convinced they were waiting for us, but we soon saw they were picking apart the carcass of some unfortunate animal. We scattered them and forged ahead. The road started to descend steeply down into the valley and deteriorated into no more than a cow path. Deep ruts and mud slides narrowed the already paltry roadway and at times I felt we had half a tire on the outside edge holding us on. Of course my crew had abandoned me and was ridiculing my ‘short cut’, which reminded them of a similar excursion in Wyoming a few years back, but that is a different story. My only retribution was our eventual arrival at a town with a SIGN to Samara and we were once again back on our way.

With the hills of Hojancha behind us we set off at a good pace down the hills towards the Pacific arriving at Samara with no reservations. No problem I told the family - for the forum had repeatedly said that this was ‘off season’ and rooms would be easily had. The first place we stopped at was full, so was the second. An uneasy feeling started to spread among us. At the third stop, Hotel Villas Playa Samara, we learned that this was the start of a two week Costa Rican school vacation and we could have a room for two days only, not the four we were seeking. We took it and unloaded the car. We had arrived at our final major destination – the Pacific Shore.

End of part two – part three to follow.

hakmat, I am loving your trip report so far. You write with great clarity and grace! My fiance and I are headed to Poas, Arenal, Monteverde, and Samara next week, so your trip report comes at a perfect time. I especially appreciated the heads-up about how crowded the Monteverde Reserve is. Would you suggest that we forego the Monteverde Reserve altogether and replace it with the Santa Elena Reserve? Or should we just try and tackle the Monteverde Reserve on our own without a guide?

Also, after your experience with the "shortcut," do you have any advice on a more straightforward route between Santa Elena and Playa Samara?

Don't know if you will be back to Monteverde again but there are a few hikes that are not usually so crowded. Monteverde itself has an outer loop with very few people on it and finca ecologica, having a fairly steep decent to a waterfall, is a great place to see wildlife.

I am loving your trip reports as well as your sense of humor. thank you for the gps site also. My husband just received his in the mail a few days ago. His came preloaded with some maps but I haven't had time to really look at it.

To Lil1210 - thanks for the kind words. Re: Monteverde Reserve - I wouldn't say to skip it, because it is obviously far larger than we saw. You might consider a guide early in the AM - they seem to start at 7:30, then continue on your own after that - the entry pass is good all day.
I'll send you the directions to Samara by private message.

Ooops - guess you can't email messages on this forum, sorry.

To get to Samara from Santa Elena - you head back toward Tilaran then take the road west thru Tres Hermanos (check your map and follow signs to villages). Take the Route 1 north a short way then follow signs to La Amistad Bridge (BIG SIGNS). About 30 minutes or so after the bridge turn R toward Nicoya (BIG SIGNS). Now the REAL shortcut is thru Mansion (you will see a sign for a left turn) go straight thru Mansion until you come to the left turn to Samara NOT Hojancha. This will avoid having to go thru Nicoya - a real maze.
I haven't gotten to part three yet but I will tell you that Playa Carrillo, about 10 minutes south of Samara, is a much nicer beach. We stayed at the Guanamar Hotel there and it was great. Or with a car your could stay in Samara and drive down to Carrillo there is lots of parking right at the beach. Just watch out because a small stretch of the road is part of the Carrillo Airport runway.
Yours aye

Hi!
Anxious to hear about Guanamar hotel and the surrounding area. We are leaving on Monday for CR. Have not booked the middle of our trip yet. We are 1st going to Arenal, and last going to Vista Del Valle. The mid section of our trip is possibly MV. After talking to lodges in MV, we decided not to risk booking and paying in advance due to road and weather unpredictability. We might just head to Carillo, w/o reservations. It sounds like it turned out ok for you. Would you recommend no reservations, now that you have experienced?

Anita, Our timing was the issue - Costa Rica has a two week school vacation in July, which will end this week. Apparently Samara and Carrillo are very popular with families in San Jose so they filled up many of the hotels while we were there.

The Hotel Guanamar was very nice. It sits on a hill overlooking Playa Carrillo. Our room ($85.00 for 4 pers) had spectacular views. The food was good for breakfast and lunch - we ate dinners out. With a car you can get to Samara in 10 minutes with many choices for restaurants. There are also more accomodation choices in Samara. The actual beach/swimming at Playa Carrillo was, in our opinion, much nicer than Playa Samara.

I think you'll be OK without reservations.
Yours aye,

Immediately after posting my last reply here, I phoned Hotel Guanamar, (actually a booking agent, since I couldn't find a direct connection to the hotel). Was quoted much higher than that. Also after that first post here, I checked AM Costa Rica, (the on-line newspaper), because I've been concerned w/ dengue fever in CR, and more specifically in the northern beach areas. I have posted a msg entitled "More on dengue fever". What did you think of the mosquito situation at the beach as compared to Arenal and MV? We are concerned about this because one of us has to be more careful than most. Thank you for your help!

Anita - maybe they gave us a better rate because we walked up and they had rooms available - that has happened to us before. We were in a block of rooms numbered approx 224 to 230 overlooking the bay.

We got vaccines for typhoid, malaria, Hepatitis and updated our tetanus. We weren't really bothered much by mosquitos anywhere - but we did use a 35% deet repellant every time we went out which seemed to work fine. We became friends with a MD from San Jose who mentioned the dengue problem and his family used repellant as well. I got bit more by ants than anything - so I stopped wearing my sandals as much. I think we have more risk here of Lyme disease than any risk we had in CR.