Río San Juan

San Carlos

Our last destination in Nicaragua was the area around Río San Juan, which connects Lake Nicaragua with the Caribbean Sea. The starting point for destinations on Río San Juan is the small town of San Carlos, where all boats depart from. San Carlos itself doesn't have much to offer. A small promenade with a few restaurants and the remains of a small Spanish fortress. After one day there, we went deep into the jungle to Los Guatuzos.

Los Guatuzos

Los Guatuzos is a small nature reserve located on the border with Costa Rica. There is only a small village, 2 accommodations, and 3 restaurants, no internet and no cellphone network. We stayed at the ecological center. The employees there collect weather data from the region, among other things.

Several tours are offered through the jungle there. First, we did the night tour. We went on a boat ride in the dark on Río Papatturo and our guide showed us a lot of animals. We saw many birds, as well as some caimans, iguanas, basilisks, a raccoon, and a snake. This tour was quite good for a start.

The next morning, we went back into the jungle. First, we went to see the caimans kept at the ecological center. They are kept there for research purposes and for tourists. Then we went to see the turtles. They are kept there to prevent overpopulation. The eggs are collected, and the turtles hatch in the greenhouse and stay there until they are one year old. But we also don't really know if we understood all of it correctly. During the tour, we also saw 2 sloths with a baby. We encountered two capuchin monkeys along the way and we observed two guatuzas feeding. They are also the namesake of the area. They are called Agouti in German. Furthermore, you can see many different birds. The tour was very beautiful. We were only three people, so in some places, we could just stand quietly for a few minutes to observe the animals in peace.

Later, we took a short walk to the border of Costa Rica, where we saw a group of howler monkeys.

The trip to Los Guatuzos was truly an amazing experience. You are right in the jungle, and it is incredibly quiet, so you only hear the sounds of the animals. Even in our accommodation, animals would pass by from time to time. For example, once we had a monkey on the roof of our room.

El Castillo

From Los Guatuzos, we continued down Río San Juan to El Castillo via San Carlos.

This place is mainly known for the Spanish fortress that rises above it. We visited the fortress and the accompanying museum on the first day. The fortress and museum are really interesting, especially to learn about the history of Nicaragua and the planned canal through Nicaragua at that time. Additionally, you have a great view over Río San Juan.

On the second day, we went on another jungle excursion. First, we took a boat ride, where we saw many monkeys, iguanas, toucans, and even an alligator. Then, we went on a hike through the jungle, where we saw the green and red poison dart frogs. On the way back by boat, we stopped at a swimming spot. On the way there, we saw monkeys again and two sloths.

If you are in Nicaragua and interested in animals, you should definitely visit Río San Juan. It's definitely worth it. In addition, El Castillo itself is very beautiful as it stretches along the river.

From El Castillo, we crossed the border to Costa Rica and then traveled to La Fortuna.