Hike From Hell

This morning, three of us (me, Claire, and Eva) decided to go on a hike at Volcan Barva since we did't have class today. Little did we know it would be the hardest hike of our lives!

We rose at the wee hour of 5:00 in order to catch the 6:25 bus to the hiking spot. However, where we got off is about 6 kilometers (not sure how long that is in miles, but it's more than 6!!) from where we wanted to hike to, which we soon found out from a local. We naively thought it wouldn't be too bad and set off for our hike that was 100% UPHILL. This was definitely one of many what were we thinking?? moments that we've had so far. Don't get me wrong, the hike was fun for quite a while and we did enjoy some breathtaking views of Heredia/San Jose, but by the 4th kilometer, when the road turned to gravel/large rock and civilization was scarce, we started doubting our decision. Still, we powered through and after what seemed like an eternity, we made it to the national park where we believed the volcano to be. We soon learned that the volcano was not accessible by the path we were on, but that we could still go see the lagoon if we paid the fee of $8 to enter the park. That was a surprise, but we had already come so far so we refused to turn around without seeing anything. Oh, I should add that we also needed to be back to the bus stop by 1:00 to catch the bus because otherwise the next one didn't come until 5:00, so we were on a tight schedule.

We set off for the lagoon and soon our nice little path took a turn into a legit jungle hike, complete with giant, fallen trees on the path and mud absolutely everywhere. That was definitely the most submerged I have been in the jungle since I've been here. After what seemed like an eternity, we finally reached the lagoon. Much to our demise, it was actually pretty lame and definitely not worth the effort and blisters. Basically, it was a foggy lake up in the mountain. By then we were running really low on time, with exactly 3 hours left to make it back to the bus stop. That may sound like a lot of time, but in this case it was just enough. Claire and I started back, but Eva said she would catch up to us. We definitely committed the ultimate sin of hiking: leaving one person alone. I don't know what we were thinking, but after a few minutes we realized that that was probably a terrible idea. In true panicky, American fashion, we instantly started panicking about her whereabouts. What if she trips and rolls her ankle? Or a wild animal finds her? Or some creepy person in the forest? The list went on and on. Still, she said she would catch up, so we decided to keep going at a slow pace in hope that we would find her. We even left a pathetic little carving in the dirt with her name and an arrow pointing in the direction we were going. Needless to say, she didn't see our pitiful excuse for a sign! Luckily, she remembered the way we came.

As the hike back got longer, our blisters, appetites, and worry for Eva grew. About an hour in, tragedy struck: I slipped on the gravel and fell, but that wasn't the problem. Worse than falling was watching the sandwich I was eating fly out of my hand and into the mud. Claire tried convincing me to apply the "2 Second Rule," but I couldn't bring myself to do it and eventually fed it to some dogs later on. Finally, after what seemed like years, we got to a place where both Eva and I had reception, and I was able to call her and confirm that she was still alive--she was! Actually, she wasn't too far behind us, and got to the bus stop only a few minutes after that. Like typical Americans, we worried for nothing! I'm sure that if a Tico had been with us, he/she would have been saying Tranquila, Tranquila! We seem to hear that a lot here...

This hike, as painful, tiring, and insane as it was while we were doing it, is one of those memories that I can look back on and laugh about. I'm still glad we did it -- it was still better than sitting at my Tico house doing nothing. Definitely an experience to remember! Plus, we got to enjoy some beautiful views and, oh yeah, make friends with a bunch of dogs! I don't know what it is, but the dogs love us here. Everywhere we go, we make friends to them: here, Puerto Viejo, and now the random road that led up to the lagoon. They were cute though and served as good company for us.

I'm writing this blog from my bed, where I've spent the entire day since I came home. I'm completely wiped out form this adventure, and my feet ache from all the walking. Oh well! Just thought you all would like to hear about our crazy hike. That's all! Hasta Luego.