13.+14. Stage: a long march to Naranjillo and even more coffee

Today we start our longest hike of 33 km with some altitude meters (900 m up, 1800 m down) which we were a bit nervous about in advance. We have such a long distance today because we had to combine stage 13 and 14, on the one hand because there was no suitable accommodation in this rural area and on the other hand because we have to make up for a day due to lack of time. To make it easier, we have arranged luggage transport through a contact from Urritrek, so today we only have to walk with a light backpack. We start early at 6:30 with beautiful sunshine and a view of the mountains. I remember an old folk song that I find very fitting and hum it all morning: In the morning dew to the mountains we go, the forests and heights are green, we hike without worries, singing in the morning, even before the roosters crow in the valley). In good spirits, we quickly master the first major ascent to the village of San Gabriel. Children make noise from a small school, chickens are offered for sale at a house with a sign, and the roadside smells of guava. Everything seems to be in order here. After a little walk, we quickly realize that coffee is everything here. Countless coffee plants grow on the hills around us, which illuminate us from afar with red or yellow fruits. The coffee harvest is already in full swing and we see many people, some with their whole families, collecting the coffee in baskets tied to their stomachs. Bags with the word 'Café' written on them are everywhere, just to dispel any doubt about what is being harvested here. We pass several wooden houses with attached ramps to load the coffee beans directly, as well as sheets on which coffee is laid out to dry. Here and there you can read signs of coffee brands such as 'La Cumbre' and 'Nestle'. We have already completed the 13th stage. In order to get a proper lunch on the long tour today, we have to take an additional detour to Finca los Lirios, where a family cooks for us in large quantities from fresh, specially grown ingredients with prior notice. Back on the main road, fog slowly rises again, enveloping us and the mountains in a mystical ambiance. At some point, the fog becomes so dense that Chris is almost entirely swallowed up in front of me and we consider taking out our headlamps. Suddenly, it starts to rain, so we have to put on our rain jackets. On the 14th stage, we should actually see the Pacific Ocean and our destination Quepos for the first time, but when we arrive at the viewpoint marked on the map, we can hardly see our hands in front of our faces. It starts raining even harder and we regret that the rain pants are in the main luggage, which we usually carry every day. There are still about 6 km to the campsite, which we cover in pouring rain in a half-sprint of an hour with a steep descent. Everything is wet except for our underwear and even our Goretex hiking shoes have given up being waterproof from halfway onwards, so you could take a bath in our shoes. Completely soaked, we reach our destination. We stay overnight at a makeshift campsite in the small town of Naranjillo, where we are given a tent and meet our group from the beginning of the trek again. So there is a big hello and we tell each other what we have experienced in the last few days. After a delicious meal cooked over an open fire, we crawl tired but satisfied with the challenge we have mastered into our sleeping bags.