Hiking around Arenal (02/02/2022)

After a relaxing day of arrival with the super Relax-Day yesterday, today was all about movement and exploring the surroundings. The area around Arenal offers a lot of entertainment options like ATV riding, canopy tours, rafting, or rolling down a hill in a giant ball. We decide to spend the day hiking in the national park after a good night's sleep (until 07:30 AM) and a hearty breakfast (without beans today). Motivated by the view of Arenal, both from the bed and during breakfast, we jump into our friend Kim Lee and start the 25-minute drive to Arenal National Park.

During the drive to the park, which, like the previous drives, is very curvy and diverse, we encountered a small traffic jam caused by a gang, to be exact a gang of coatis (specifically, White-nosed Coati), locally also known as Pizote. We have already encountered these cute animals in the past days, and they are surprisingly relaxed towards humans and cars.

Once we arrive at the national park and are 30 euros lighter (the price goes towards conservation and state-coordinated social projects), we start a circular tour that is partly through bush, partly with views of Arenal Volcano and is quite entertaining. Highlights of the tour include views of the lava flow from 1992, including rocks of all sizes, and a 400-year-old tree. Unfortunately, besides a few small birds, we can hardly spot any other animals, probably also because it's quite hot around noon with temperatures close to 30 degrees Celsius.

Because it was so beautiful, we decide to also drive towards Arenal Lake to do a second smaller hike, which was included in the entrance fee. Once again, our car Kim Lee had the chance to prove that we can rely on it, as the access road was very rocky and full of potholes (a small deja vu from Monday). After about half an hour of hiking, we were rewarded with a dream panorama. Arenal Lake is the largest lake in the country, with an area of around 80 square kilometers, and at the same time, it is one of the country's largest sources of electricity with the hydropower plant and surrounding wind turbines. On the way, we also encounter a few coatis again and fortunately no crocodiles (yes, they are said to be present in the lake).

On the way back to the hotel, we make a short detour to La Fortuna to exchange money, which turned out to be more complicated than expected. It took over 25 minutes until Kathi successfully exchanged euros, as no one here really wants the euros, everyone only wants dollars. To end the day, we visit a local restaurant just outside La Fortuna called Tiquicia. It is top-rated and lives up to its reputation with a cozy atmosphere, oversized cocktails, attentive service, and authentic cuisine at reasonable prices. The espresso (the first one for me in 3 days since the hotels only serve filtered coffee) and the coconut ice cream complete a perfect day.

The daily two:

Insight: The serenity of the coatis is inspiring. With full focus, they search for food on and off the roads and hiking trails without really being disturbed. Usually traveling in groups, I read that they are omnivores and have a strong preference for bananas (we will test this). The funny sounds they make and their bushy appearance make (women's) hearts beat faster.

Moment of happiness: The morning view from the bed of the beautifully presented Arenal Volcano, which showed itself from its most beautiful (cloudless) side today, which is probably not a given.