Jimmy Buffet tour to the volcano!

I don’t know where I’m a gonna go when the volcano blows!

Well, yes we do know where we’re gonna go, to the Volcano! Arenal volcano, one of about 10 active volcanoes in Costa Rica, is a very popular tourist attraction that can also kill you. Not that crocodile tours and zip-lines won’t kill you, but an active volcano that gets pissed off, definitely give you a run for the money. Arenal is a stratovolcano characterized by the steep profile of layered, hardened lava, ash, tephra and pumice.  It hasn’t had an explosion since December 2010 so we felt sort of safe but who knows when these things are ready to go? If only Jennifer Lennon was with us, she’d know!

 

 

So, quick relative history. Mt. Saint Helens (also a stratovolcano!) erupted on 18 May 1980 in Washington State. The eruption was proceeded by a magnitude 5.1 earthquake that sent the north side of the volcano sliding down the hill between 110-155mph. Now the best part, once the land had slid away, the pyroclastic flow (partially molten rock, high pressure steam, other good things) moved down the hill around 220mph but gained speeds up to 670mph in a few seconds. Oh, and the flow was 23 miles across and 19 miles long!

Couldn’t possibly happen while we’re there. We’re here in the land of Pura Vida so being the thrill seekers that we are, we want to see the volcano.

The drive is fairly straight forward, take the ferry to Puntarenas, hit highways (yes, paved road!) 17, 23, 1, 141, 142 and just inside La Fortuna, turn left. Simple.

 

It really was an easy drive with my co-pilot Collette and Carmen the Garmin who provided accurate and timely notice when I needed to turn around. Collette did a little research before the trip and mapped out a few sites to see along the way. First stop was just outside the small town of San Ramon. It was a traffic stop by the local policia who wanted to see my license and asked why my license plate was displayed in the windshield instead of bolted to the front of the car. Well, with my un poquito Espana and his un poquito Inglese we smiled a lot, talked about being a tourist and the rental car, and not sure if it was my sad gringo look or Collette’s blouse being open but we were allowed to continue on our way without a ticket. We did agree to get tie-wraps in San Ramon and put the plate back on the front of the car. Nice guy. So much for the unplanned stops. Now on to La Fortuna.

Our first scheduled stop is a small town, Zacero, mostly known for its manicured garden in front of the “Church Blue Skies” located in the center of town. The shrubs and bushes have all been trimmed into various shapes including animals, birds, faces and even a dinosaur! Really the only thing to see here but if you’re on your way to La Fortuna, stop for a few minutes. The contractors store in town also has tie-wraps! Caution! It can get a little foggy crossing the mountain range. Also discovered a neat way to dry clothes!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Moving right along, our next stop is the town of La Fortuna (shown as only “Fortuna” on the map). Right away you know you’re in a tourist town. Souvenir shops, hotels, restaurants and a thousand canopy tour companies line the main drag. Businesses with names like “Gringo Pete’s”, “The Lava Rocks Café”, or “The Lava Lounge”, which by the way serves decent drinks with alcohol in them, also lets you know you’re in tourist-ville. No matter, we’re here to check out the volcano and a little R&R from our R&R.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our hotel for this stay is “Lomas Del Volcan”, something to do with Star Trek but it had nice rooms on Trip Advisor. We selected a “private” cabana with outside Jacuzzi tub for a little relaxation after a day of touring.  The room was fully air conditioned, had a king size bed and a nice selection of channels on the TV, some even in English. The downside was walking the hill either to our room or to the car, pretty steep, more so than the volcano trail! This hotel is rated 4.5 stars and has absolutely one of the most well-manicured grounds I’ve ever seen. Lots of colorful plants and birds that make the garden a big hit with guests. We saw our first toucan while enjoying a glass of wine on our veranda the first night. Neat birds.