It turned out that we arrived in La Fortuna at a perfect time to sign up for an Arenal trip. The trip involved (1) hiking through the park (not near the volcano), (2) volcano siting (from a safe 6 miles away), and (3) hot springs.This is the group accompanying us. Bottom left is Tim and Nici from Munich. We followed them for several days thereafter. The guys in gray were our guides.

Elizabeth and I visited Costa Rica for two weeks. This is the third day of that trip. We took a bus from San José to La Fortuna, where we stayed in a hostel called Gringo Pete's. Not long after arriving, we caught a trip to Arenal to hike through a park, see a volcano (sadly, not shown due to rain), and relax in some hot springs.

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Sean Leather > We left Kelly's on the morning of day 3 and took the bus to La Fortuna. This is the usual place to stay near Volcán Arenal (Arenal Volcano). When we arrived, we checked into Gringo Pete's, a hostel popular with backpackers.

Sean Leather > One reason Gringo Pete's is popular is because one night in a bunkbed like this is $3.

Sean Leather > We were supposed to mark each bed with something of ours, so that it wouldn't be taken by somebody else. Elizabeth felt the need to be explicit in her message.

Sean Leather > We relaxed for a while at Gringo Pete's, and Elizabeth shot some photos of birds in the backyard.

Sean Leather > Elizabeth captured this hummingbird in flight at the feeder.

Sean Leather > The Gringo Pete's wall of stuff to do. We had plenty of options.

Sean Leather > This is the view of the park from the top of the trail we're about to take. Along the side of the trail is a fence made of sticks, trees, and barbed wire. We found out that it is very common in Costa Rica to build a fence with live trees. Pleasant results include less trees killed and the fence doesn't rot.

Sean Leather > Elizabeth was fascinated with this plant called mimosa due to how it folds its leaves when touched. You can see it in action here.

It turned out that we arrived in La Fortuna at a perfect time to sign up for an Arenal trip. The trip involved (1) hiking through the park (not near the volcano), (2) volcano siting (from a safe 6 miles away), and (3) hot springs.

This is the group accompanying us. Bottom left is Tim and Nici from Munich. We followed them for several days thereafter. The guys in gray were our guides.