Costa Rica - Day 4

I had to wake up early so I didn't do anything the night before. I woke up in time for breakfast as I was being picked up by the tour group at 9am.

Things to take Zip-Lining

- small backpack

- water, you can never have enough of this on hand

- sun screen

- bug spray

Things they will provide

- harness

- helmet

- gloves

They say that it is mandatory to wear closed-toes shoes and you definitely should. But also wear something with decent traction and easy to clean because you will be hiking up the side of a mountain between some of the lines and it can be a little muddy if it was just after a rain storm.

The ride itself was about an hour. I fell asleep on most of the ride but if you decide to take a nap, buckle yourself in tightly as the roads are bumpy and you will get thrown around like a whale taking down a seal.

The Park

The park itself is up in the hills. It is private property and had all the trams and zip-lines put in over the last 20 years.

You will initially pass over a small river but if it is covered by rain water, then you will have to take a hanging bridge (see image) across the river to another bus waiting for you to take you from there to their main building.

From here I was loaded up with all my gear, signed a waver and then piled into the bus to take us to the beginning of the zip-lines.

You will get a bit of information about the park and the local fauna from your guides. But I don't suggest talking too much because you are going to be climbing some rather steep hillsides to get to a few of the lines on the course.

I had two instructors named Marvin and they were both excellent. I was told that each of them had to attend a year of schooling in which they learned about the area they worked and English. This way if you want you can have a conversation in English. I tried to use more of my Spanish here, but it was nice to not have to flip through a dictionary to have a conversation.

The lines get progressively more challenging and vary with more speed or more distance. As a teaser I will include a short clip from one of the zip-lines. I won't upload the longest or the best because they are things you should experience first hand!

After you are done the entire course you will be taken back to the main building and let loose at the buffet to have some lunch. I suggest the palm heart - the ones they server are specifically grown for consumption as you kill the plant when you take out the heart (which is the fruit).

Also if you haven't had a chance to indulge in a lot of veggies, this is a good place to stock up. They also have a lot of great fruit as pretty much it is in season all year long.

The gift shop is something I would pass on. Everything here is generic and you can get the things they sell for cheaper in the city.

Once all the groups are back together you will be shuttled back to the city and dropped off at your respective hotel.

Dinner

I was too tired to adventure for food so I just walked across the street and had a sandwich and an empanadas.