BLOG 17: Poás Volcano & Hacienda Doka

In the morning, the rain drums on the roof of our 'Field House' in the lodge, and the fog is thick as it was in the evening, and it's quite cold as well.

We seriously consider canceling the visit to the crater of Poás Volcano because we assume that the view at over 2500 m altitude won't be any better and access will also have a rather early slot. However, during breakfast, it seems to clear up a little, and the receptionist mentions that around here, they don't take the slot time too strictly – Pura Vida!

So we set off, only to soon be stopped by construction on the road. Initially, we go downwards and come out of the fog; as we approach the visitor center, we do soon find ourselves in a line of cars, but visibility remains good and the sky is blue. The booking check at the entrance goes off without any issues; the ranger – reminds me a bit of Sam Hawkins from Karl May – is very friendly, and our half-hour delay for the slot appointment is not worth mentioning – yes – “Pura Vida”!

We set off hopefully from the parking lot; there’s quite a bit happening, and it seems that several buses full of tourists have also been dropped off. Then we stand at the rim of the crater and see – NOTHING! Wrong – we see the thick fog hanging over and in the crater. Bad luck! Also, our waiting in hopes of a clearing proves fruitless, and it's very cold and windy – we are indeed over 2500 m high – so we make our way back. I observe the webcam at the crater the next day – only after a week does the camera show a clear view inside; one must have luck!

On the return drive to the valley, there is already another roadblock, this time a living one, consisting of a long line of cows leisurely crossing the road.

Our destination is the Doka Hacienda, which offers tours on coffee cultivation. The entire setup is very professional and touristy but certainly interesting to visit. Our guide explains the planting and care of coffee bushes and the essential maintenance – namely pruning. A coffee bush can bear fruit for 25 to 35 years but is heavily pruned every 7 years, partly to facilitate harvesting (height) and partly to obtain strong shoots with more yield.

The coffee harvest has already been completed for several weeks, so our guide gives us a theoretical demonstration with the picking basket. The harvest workers are paid per filled basket using a 'Doka coin,' which they can exchange for 'real' money at the end. It’s piecework with delayed payment, ensuring that the workers stay until the end.

Between the coffee bushes stands a large sculpture of a 'Cabanis Ground Sparrow,' a bird that is endemic to Costa Rica and exclusively inhabits the coffee plantations of the Central Valley and Monteverde at altitudes between 600 and 1600 meters. The bird is about 15 cm tall, and the sculpture symbolizes the connection between nature, art, and the coffee culture of Costa Rica here at Doka Hacienda.

To conclude, we also see the bushes of the various Arabica varieties grown here, which determine the flavor of the respective coffee blends – alongside the roasting. We have already seen and described the further processing of coffee in Monteverde during the Trapiche tour. Here, Gerhard, as a mechanical engineer, particularly likes the “sloppy” transmission belts, with which the individual machines were once powered by water.