Rincon de la Vieja Volcano, Costa Rica
This morning we swapped our faithful ship, the Sea Voyager, for motor coaches and headed towards an active volcano. Yes, we did exactly the opposite of what most people would do! Rincon de la Vieja, at 1916 meters above sea level, is a strato-volcano covering 400 square kilometers and one of Costa Rica’s richest and most varied parks. Its flanks are pocked by mud pots and fumaroles, which help the volcano vent its heat. At the foot of the volcano on the southern side is the area called Las Pailas – or the Mud Pots – where the mud is constantly bubbling due to the escaping steam and sulphurous gases. Face masks made from this smooth glop are supposed to have rejuvenating and refreshing powers, but the Park Service no longer allows beauty seekers to reach in and pull mud because too many of them have been scalded.
After a ride through the Panamerican highway and a gravel road, we arrived to the Guachipelin Hacienda. This ranch is very near to the volcano and we had two options for reaching the entrance to the park: horseback riding or riding our bus. Those of us who decided to ride a horse traversed pasture land and some small sections of forest. Afterwards, our guests took a short or long walk towards the Las Pailas section. Some of us decided horses were not our thing so we took the coach and walked calmly towards the mud pots. Once outside the trail, we went back to the Hacienda for a fantastic and very much desired lunch; later we partook in perhaps a quick dip in the pool or just taking a respite on a comfortable lounge chair.
Back on board our vessel, our Captain gave us the thumbs up for a dip from the fan tail of the ship to cool off in the soothing bay waters. As the sun set we had cocktails and ceviche on the sundeck. We waved our day goodbye hardly being able to imagine what tomorrow had in store for us.
This morning we swapped our faithful ship, the Sea Voyager, for motor coaches and headed towards an active volcano. Yes, we did exactly the opposite of what most people would do! Rincon de la Vieja, at 1916 meters above sea level, is a strato-volcano covering 400 square kilometers and one of Costa Rica’s richest and most varied parks. Its flanks are pocked by mud pots and fumaroles, which help the volcano vent its heat. At the foot of the volcano on the southern side is the area called Las Pailas – or the Mud Pots – where the mud is constantly bubbling due to the escaping steam and sulphurous gases. Face masks made from this smooth glop are supposed to have rejuvenating and refreshing powers, but the Park Service no longer allows beauty seekers to reach in and pull mud because too many of them have been scalded.
After a ride through the Panamerican highway and a gravel road, we arrived to the Guachipelin Hacienda. This ranch is very near to the volcano and we had two options for reaching the entrance to the park: horseback riding or riding our bus. Those of us who decided to ride a horse traversed pasture land and some small sections of forest. Afterwards, our guests took a short or long walk towards the Las Pailas section. Some of us decided horses were not our thing so we took the coach and walked calmly towards the mud pots. Once outside the trail, we went back to the Hacienda for a fantastic and very much desired lunch; later we partook in perhaps a quick dip in the pool or just taking a respite on a comfortable lounge chair.
Back on board our vessel, our Captain gave us the thumbs up for a dip from the fan tail of the ship to cool off in the soothing bay waters. As the sun set we had cocktails and ceviche on the sundeck. We waved our day goodbye hardly being able to imagine what tomorrow had in store for us.
