The fun didn't stop at Selvatura Adventure Park. We returned to Belmar for lunch and a nap (ahh vacations) before trying our hands at a Vinyasa flow yoga class in the Chalet's downstairs studio. Despite the instructor's zen vibe, Vinyasa flow was anything but zen for this inexperienced yogi. You would think I would get along well with the downward dog given its name, but it was all quite painful. Anyway, from there, we set off on our guided night hike at a neighboring preserve.
Christian was the perfect guide, regaling us with tales of growing up in Costa Rica and details about the plants and animals of the cloud forest. We started at dusk but he handed out flashlights to help us spot critters in the pitch black night. The forest came alive - crickets chirping, fireflies all about, lots of bugs crawling. We learned about the fascinating "strangler fig" tree (pictured at the end of my previous post), which starts as a seed, likely dispersed by a bird onto the top of an existing tree. They then grow their roots downward (while also reaching up to the sun above the canopy) and envelop the host tree in its roots, effectively strangling it. We saw these trees all over Costa Rica and even went inside an enormous one on the hike. Other highlights included a sizeable tarantula that Christian coaxed out of her hole with a stick (eee!), leaf bug, stick bug, black salamander, armadillo, scorpions spotted in Christian's ultraviolet light, bats, and about a zillion insects. It was really cool.
The following day we tried our hand at the other hike on the hotel's property. Here's some advice. When you ask the hotel staff about the hike and they say "it's steep," read between the lines and realize what they are trying to tell you is, "IT'S THE STEEPEST THING YOU WILL EVER CLIMB AND YOU WILL DIE GOING UP OR TRYING TO COME DOWN."
We weren't savvy enough to realize we were setting ourselves up for untimely deaths so merrily set off on the dirt path. It was ridiculous. I know I'm old and creaky and out of shape but it was insanely steep with incline after incline seemingly straight up. Besides, the point was at the top you were supposed to enjoy brilliant views all the way to Arenal, the volcano, but as we slowly grunted our way along the torture road, we realized we were climbing into the thick mist of the cloud forest. Nothing to see here! We would make it to the top of a mini-mountain, enjoy three feet of flat trail, think "whew, that must be the last steep climb," then round a bend to a wall of path in front of us. Needless to say, I was not a pleasant hiking partner and despite my pledge to challenge myself, we gave up when we encountered rain and an energetic tribe of wasps. There were some pretty views but the view of a chair and my banana yogurt shake from the chalet's deck was the best.
Following that drama, we set off into town to grab lunch at Taco Taco (holy yum), experience Costa Rican coffee at the tiny espresso shop, Beso (Spanish for kiss, awwww), then drive over to a studio/gallery recommended by the hotel. The GPS led us down another tiny dirt road and we emerged in front of a round structure. A dude came out of nowhere and introduced himself as Roberto, the artist. He showed us into the gallery (which doubles as a studio in the off season), the entrance of which was an amazing orchid greenhouse featuring hundreds of plants, including the smallest one in the world - just 1.8 mm flower with petals ONE CELL thick. Insane. His art was an interesting mix of literal animals and landscapes (early) and more abstract paintings (current). We spent an hour exploring his paintings and chatting before finally leaving with a piece that we really love. Not sure where it will live, but we're excited for the permanent reminder of our trip.
Roberto had also mentioned a waterfall view just down the road, so we waved goodbye and set off in pursuit, stopping to take a look at the vistas and the (tiny) waterfall from a distance. Ahh, Monteverde, we love you.
