Monteverde

After La Fortuna, I continued on to Monteverde, more specifically to Santa Elena, which is the largest town in the region. To get there, I booked a so-called "Jeep-Boat-Jeep" transfer. As the name suggests, you first travel by car, then by boat, and again by car. The boat ride is across Lake Arenal, which was definitely a journey with beautiful views - even though the weather was really bad.

Upon arriving in Monteverde, I first explored the town, walking through many places on foot. The town is located in a really hilly area, at a higher altitude, so it gets a bit cooler in the evenings and at night. The place is known for its "Cloud Forests." It rains a lot, and you often find yourself right in the clouds, which looks really amazing in many situations, especially in nature.

So the next day, I went to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, which is the most famous park here. I hiked a total of 20 km and nearly 400 meters in elevation that day. In this park, you especially have one of the best chances to see the famous Quetzal bird, as it often occurs in higher altitudes. Unfortunately, I only heard it several times but did not see it. Despite its long tail feathers and beautiful colors, it's really hard to spot.

But that was not so bad, because the place itself was simply incredible.

The vegetation and nature look completely different from what I have seen before. Many huge ancient trees, countless vines, and everything is somehow covered with a layer of moss and other crazy plants that thrive especially due to the high humidity. The maintenance of the park was also really great and definitely the best in that regard so far. Everything was well-kept, there were many information signs, various trails, and all paths were always well marked. I went early in the morning to avoid many people, and it clearly paid off. Whenever I stopped walking for a moment, I could only smile, because the forest gives an incredible feeling of security, comfort, safety, and stress relief. The signs could not be clearer that we humans actually belong there – in nature – and not in our artificially built world...

On the second day, I explored another place where the El Tigre Waterfalls are located. A site with several scattered waterfalls and a river, right in a valley surrounded by tropical vegetation. It was truly something special. I was on the move a lot again, 17 km and this time even 700 meters in elevation, which I definitely felt in my legs by the end! There were countless cool hanging bridges, hardly any other people around, and I could even swim in the crystal-clear river to cool off. And I did it all alone, with not a soul in sight. Throughout the entire time, I only saw one couple and no one else.

This was basically my last real day where I did something substantial. The following day, I traveled to San José, where I will spend two nights and a full day, but I won’t really do much more there. I already spent more time in San José than I wished for when I first arrived. There is really nothing that attracts me to this place.