(click on an image to see the photos for that day.)
Guides: Juliet, Craig, Doug, Joe and Linc from ERA; Miguel and Fabian (our drivers extradionaire!)
Guests: Chuck & Nancy Brabec, Vann & Laura Evans, Matt Moore, Linda Sanders, Nancy Gilbert, Nancy Orr, Carl Wilke, Tom Connelly, Bridget Tincher, Amy Germuth, Richard Judy and Sandi Metz
November 29:
We drove to Charlotte yesterday and stayed at the Microtel near the airport. For $10 more, they allow us to leave our car there and provide a shuttle to the airport. Several of us were on the same flight from Charlotte, NC that flies directly to San Jose, Costa Rica.
We arrived safely in San Jose, Costa Rica and checked in at the Hotel Torrelimos. The rest of the group arrived safely and we went to a local restaurant for dinner and to discuss the plan for the week. There has been a lot of rain here. We are going to Jaco Beach o the west coast tomorrow.
November 30:
After breakfast at the hotel, we loaded up Miguel and Fabian's vans and went to Miguel's house to pick up and outfit our boats.
Then we headed to Jaco Beach, checked in at Villas Estrellamar and headed to the beach for some time paddling in the surf. It has been raining all day and everything is high.
December 1:
We paddled the Rio Savegre today. It resembled the New River. We returned to Villas Estrellamar in Jaco Beach for the night and went to the same restaurant as last night. We enjoyed red snapper stuffed with shrimp and covered in a cream sauce.
December 2:
It looked like there was little rain in the area around the Rio San Carlos so we headed there after breakfast. We ran into a downpour on the drive and all the rivers were raging. We did see some neat topiary on the drive and stopped to see the iguanas. We kept driving to El Toucano Resort and ended up sharing a bottle of Jose Cuervo while relaxing in the hot tub (in the rain).
December 3:
It rained most of last night and is still pouring this morning. We drove to the Rio Sarapiqui and, not surprising, it was way too high! We opted to visit the Serpentarium and do some sightseeing.
December 4:
We decided to split the group - some went paddling on the Rio San Carlos while the rest of us went for a hike at Arenal Volcano. Those of us who went to Arenal got to hike over the lava bed that was formed in 1992. Chuck and I were there when the lava was flowing.
December 5:
The Rio Sarapiqui was almsot back to normal, so we paddled the lower section of it before returning to San Jose.
December 6:
We walked after breakfast and did some shopping, including food for lunch and on the plane. We stayed at the Microtel near the Charlotte overnight before driving home the next morning.