Highlands of Costa Rica

Our next destination after Ometepe was Monteverde across the border in Costa Rica. We naturally had to take the ferry back across the lake and then made the short drive to the border. Despite only spending four days in Nicaragua, I don't think that I had any preconceived notions and it left an unlikely impression as one of my favourite countries. Why exactly is hard to explain but I really hope I return so that I can further explore this intriguing land of volcanoes.

Concepcion Volcano, my favourite of Nicaragua

While getting through the Nicaraguan side of the border was fairly straightforward, our group experienced a few hiccups when entering Costa Rica. Here are some important things to keep in mind if you choose to visit via land. Firstly, it is possible that they will seek proof that you have organised your exit from the country and if you do not have anything arranged, deny entry. There is a simple solution to this, which is to buy a bus fare back to Nicaragua for cheap just outside the Costa Rican immigration building. Secondly, know how long you intend to be in the country and add a few. One of our group gave a wrong number, below the number of days they needed and later had to waste time in San Jose resolving it. Strangely, the number they write in your passport can be widely different. I asked for 12 days and had 30 written in my passport, while others had 24 or 20 days.

Once in Costa Rica, we made our way up into the highlands, winding ever higher. The views from the minibus were spectacular and whenever we were pointing in the right direction, could see the Colorado Gulf which enters the Pacific ocean. Our accommodation in Monteverde, was actually a little walk out of town up a gigantic hill slope that alternately felt a breeze or never-ending. We stayed at Historias Lodge, a great wooden building with a real mountain lodge look. Really comfy beds, although one night when the winds picked up it felt like the roof was going to be ripped off.

The country side as we ventured into the highlands

Monteverde town is not very big, a few hilly streets lined with hostels, hotels, bars, restaurants and tour agencies, but the town itself is not why you come to this part of the country. No, one of Monteverde's main draws is the multiple zip lining and bungee-jumping companies in the vicinity of town. The course we went to included about 14 zip lines, with two tandem, an abseil, a heart-stopping tarzan swing and the kilometre long Superman line at the end. Severely fun and should get the old adrenaline pumping at least once!

Another favoured activity of Monteverde is the night time nature walks, where you head into the jungle torch in hand and see what wildlife you can find. In the space of a few hours we saw a swathe of animals, insects and arachnids including but not limited to: sloths, armadillos, tarantulas, scorpions and snakes. We almost went without seeing a sloth, but just near the end our guide heard over the walkie-talkie that one had been spotted and we wound up a matter of metres away from a mass of lethargy. As the first sloth we had seen on the trip, it was a big moment.