After 4 terrific nights at Fiesta del Rio, it's time to leave Ojochal and continue to move north back towards the airport near San Jose.  Our next stop was San Gerardo de Dota, just off the road along Cerra de la Muerte - the Hill of Death.  At close to 11,000 feet above sea level, it is the highest point on the Pan American Highway in Costa Rica.  And a very definite change in climate from our beach time on the Pacific Coast.

It would yet again of course present some very twisty mountain roads with the potential for some terrific views, but on this day what we saw were mostly clouds down below.

But first we had to say good bye to the ocean waves of Costa Rica...

So the drive was twisty and slow at times but uneventful, though we did find a make-shift viewing platform by the side of the road...

overlooking a lush valley...





We continued along Cerra de la Muerte until we arrived at the turn-off for San Gerardo de Dota, where we stopped at a soda for lunch.

Casados for mum & dad, burger for Cory...

Casados always include rice and beans - but they are not always mixed together.  When they are mixed together, the rice looks spotted, which gives it it's Spanish name of Gallo Pinto - spotted rooster.

This soda had an interesting American Old West Saloon look to it....

From the soda, it was back onto a narrow, twisty mountain road down into the small town of San Gerardo de Dota.

Rockslide to the right, steep drop to the left...better stay in the middle...

until we arrive at Savegre Lodge...

which turned out to be one of our few disappointments in Costa Rica.  We had picked this location since continuing on past San Gerardo would have meant a very long day of driving.  Plus, San Gerardo is located just outside Los Quetzales National Park...and we'd hoped to perhaps see a quetzal.  Plus it does have a reputation among bird watchers as a very good location to see a large variety of birds.

After checking in, we went for a walk, which was very nice but we saw no wildlife except for a couple of woodpeckers.

Perhaps because we had seen so much wildlife so easily in the Osa and in Ojochal, we were somewhat disappointed not to see more.  Also, there were 2 busloads of tourists at the lodge...not particularly friendly ones.  It reminded us that Ticos are so friendly since we had gotten used to making eye contact and smiling with strangers everywhere, but these tourists wouldn't even make eye contact.  The buffet dinner was expensive and not particularly remarkable.

The rooms were rather spartan, and everything looked dated and worn.

So except for the drive into San Gerardo, and this drive back from the trail where we did our walk...





it was a rather uneventful day in Costa Rica...we didn't get to see a quetzal (not that we really expected to see one...internet photo)

but we did expect to see a lot more birds than we did see in San Gerardo.  The next day however, would bring more adventure....driving to Volcan Irazu.

It's 5am at Fiesta del Rio in Ojochal, Costa Rica.  Only a few days left now before we return home.  Once again, we are awakened by our natural alarm clocks...




And it's another nice sunny day so we are off to another beach, Playa Ventanas (Window Beach)...though it could easily be called Palm Beach....

A wide shallow beach...

But Cory prefers the waves out there of course...

And the pipas frias!

Playa Ventanas has a unique feature...a couple of caves where the water flows through but they are pretty much empty at low tide...tide is still a bit too high to enter when we get there...guess that's why they call it Windows Beach...

So we'll just enjoy our time on the beach for now...

Later after the tide recedes....we venture into the caves...

and it's noisy in there...




it certainly isn't very wide either...

Time to head back to Fiesta del Rio, with yet another river crossing...





for more pool time....

Suddenly, and quite nonchalantly, Cory says "Dad, a toucan"...."where?", "right there up in that tree right above me"....

"yes, I see it!".....

do you?  it's there....

it moved....but still there....can you spot it?

and then it flew away....and since my zoom lens camera was broken, that's the best I could do photo-wise...

but then it came right back, to almost the same spot...

Can you see it yet?

There it is...it's a big bird, with a really big bill!

and seemed to pose for us for a little while...

And then flies away again...so time to enjoy a different Costa Rican beer, a Bohemia this time...

and more of the Fiesta del Rio garden....

Another end of day tropical rainstorm....




and a night-time swim for our last night at Fiesta del Rio...

The next day, we leave the coast and head inland - and up! - for some adventurous driving along Cerro de la Muerte (Hill of the Dead).

It's a beautiful morning at Fiesta del Rio, bright blue sky with just a few clouds....

a good day for Costa Rican insects too, from the giant grasshopper- Tropidacris Dux - which can get as much as 5 inches long...this one was "only" about 4 inches long...

to a tiny lady bug-looking little thing....

and then there is that amazing amphibian....Coryiscus Caffeineitus...

so a good day for some surfing....we head to a small beach town called Dominical...where we had been in touch with Debbie who runs the Dominical Surfing School and arranged for a private lesson for Cory....it turned out to be a perfect match since Debbie had worked with athletes with disabilities for 3 years in New York before moving to Costa Rica.

Dominical Surf School office, where Cory waits patiently...

another Trip Advisor favourite...

And on this day, the waves are big,

really big!

now that's a wave!

But Dominical is a great beginner surfer beach because even though those waves are huge, after they break they become a series of much smaller waves as can be see here...

And even those smaller waves are probably the biggest that Cory's ever surfed...with lots of encouragement from Debbie.....





Check out that wave crashing behind Cory at 25 seconds....and with me focusing on Cory I don't notice how much water is rushing towards me...




And a few minutes later, my zoom lens camera is no longer working....you think I would know that maybe water and digital cameras don't mix too well....good thing I brought a second camera, and that one's waterproof!

So I didn't miss getting this great shot of Cory riding those waves!

And making sure he doesn't get any water on his face!

With the tide coming in, the waves are breaking later and it's time for the last run of the day...

hold it now....are those storm clouds back there??  It's the end of the dry season in this part of Costa Rica (Dec-Apr), we haven't had much rain since we arrived...

By the time we get away from Dominical and back to Ojochal, we stop at La Mona Grita for lunch, it definitely looks like it might rain a little.

La Mona Grita is Spanish for "The Monkey Screams", and yep it sure does at 5am, every morning.

We walk in, and there's a hockey game on TV!  Costa Rica is all about soccer, but it turns out Ojochal has a lot of French Canadian residents so it's Hockey Night in Costa Rica....

and then it starts to rain, a typical tropical torrent of a rain storm...



So we settle in for some drinks, and consult that crystal ball...it tells us that tomorrow will be back to sunshine and that there is some spelunking in our future!

If you've read this, please leave us a comment, we'd love to know you were here.  Next time we'll send you a postcard!