Our tale resumes at Arenal Observatory Lodge. The surrounding property has a mix of virgin rainforest, regenerating rainforest, and farmland, with lots of trails.

A few minutes from our room, down the hill, is a “frog pond”. We headed there after dinner, in the rain, to see if any frogs were visible. There were lots of red-eyed tree frogs, and a few other species, and I found a couple of Northern cat-eyed snakes. Around the other tracks we found woodpeckers with a nest-hole, lots of oropendulas, a profusion of humming birds of various species (very difficult to photograph – they hardly ever seem to stop moving).

From Volcan Arenal we headed North West along wiggly roads on the edge of Lake Arenal, to a nice eco-lodge on Volcan Tenorio.

We arrived in torrential rain. The common area, as is common in Costa Rica, was an open space with a corrugated iron roof (Walls are less of a necessity when the temperature is so warm and the humidity so high).The rain was thundering on the roof so hard at times that we could not hold conversation. It turned out that our host, Pip Kelly was an Australian, who had married a Costa Rican and settled here to run the accommodation. The lodge we had was very nice, designed by an architect friend, with a lovely semicircular shower with full height window onto the rainforest. Certainly the best shower with a view on our trip.

Off the side of the balcony they had feeders where they placed bananas to attract birds. As a result we had excellent chances to see a lot of different species. There was also a sloth nearby. These look just like a dark patch in the foliage. Even when the location was pointed out we all had difficulty seeing the sloth. I guess the locals have many years experience and have got their eye in.  We’ve taken guided walks in several places and each time the guides have proved excellent at seeing things we would have walked past un-knowing.

We explored a walk in Volcan Tenorio National Park, which took us through some nice rainforest, past a waterfall to the confluence of two streams where the water turned blue due to some unusual chemistry. Aluminosilicates in one stream are precipitated by the acidity in the other stream as particles of a size that diffract the blue light.

Blue colour due to mixing of waters at the confluence

Bidding farewell to Tenoriro we headed on to Monte Verde. This is a vast area with huge tracts of virgin forest mixed with areas of forest regerenerating after farming decades ago.  It is famed for the cloud forest areas, high altitude (cool) forests that get most of their moisture from the clouds blowing over. This region straddles the continental divide so cool moist  pacific air masses blow up into the moist warm air from the Caribbean side – instant cloud. It is meant to be relatively cloudy/rainy, especially at this time of year. Instead, mostly it was dry.

View from our accommodation at Monte Verde

We took a walk in the Monte Verde reserve. Being on the slopes of the continental divide, the track had considerable ups and downs. One of the things they do really well in Costa Rica is STEEP. If you face one way from the track, you see the crowns of trees whose roots are tens of metres below. If you about face you typically face a wall of green where the track has been cut into the steep slope. Rivers cut through the substrate like hot knives through butter, so they tend to form ravines with precipitous sides. Some of the forest trees are huge – 50 metres tall, with trunks 3 metres of more in diameter, and a veritable forest of epiphytes growing all over the trunk and branches.

By early afternoon we were wondering where the rain was – this was rainforest, after all. Then, at a lookout on the continental divide, we enjoyed the spectacle of clouds forming and dissipating as the airmasses swept up the slopes on both sides.

Eating lunch in the shelter at Monte Verde, Jill looked up and found a snake coiled up in the rafters. It was a smallish, non-venomous, blond headed snake. We shared the discovery with a couple of nature walk groups who were hanging around, to mixed delight and anxiety.

Kinkaju

Side Stripe Pit Viper

That night we hired a guide for a private wildlife tour. He drove us to local private reserve of about 100 Ha (1 sq km) which was criss-crossed by walking tracks. There were several other wildlife tours there, and the guides were in communication by radio, sharing sightings. Our guide was excellent and we managed to see quite a lot, including a kinkaju.

Kinkajus (also known as honey bears) are carnivores distantly related to racoons and coatis, but spend their lives high in the canopy, eating mainly fruit. The one we saw was almost invisible high in the tree. Our guide knew there were kinkajus in the reserve and made calls mimicking that of kinkajus. He only located the one we saw when his call elicited movement of the animal above.

We saw a heap of other wildlife – owls, bats, insects, frogs, snakes … the guide gave us almost 3 h (we were the last group to leave the reserve) – not bad for US$100 split between the 4 of us.

Arenal from Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve

Next day we visited the Santa Elena cloudforest reserve, a gorgeous area that spans the divide. We headed first to a track that climbed up to the continental divide and then tracked along it. The top of the divide here is about 4 metres wide, and the ground drops off almost cliff like on both sides. Half way along the track on the top there is an observation tower that afforded us a fine view of Volcan Arenal. Amazing views considering this is cloud forest. Even the locals commented that the weather was unusually fine.

Cloud forest in the clouds

We were wondering if we would ever see cloud forest in the cloud, but then, in early afternoon the cloud rolled in. Nice cooling effect. However the pea-soup effect was not so desirable as we negotiated the rather rough, narrow and twisty road back to town.

We had tried to book last night’s guide for another night, but he had another booking. As it turned out this was for the good. Seven spent the evening sorting out his travel plans – given that his flights on Friday took him via Miami, and the airport was closed for the hurricane, he had to find alternative routes to his destination. And it rained. No, it POURED. we would have got drenched.

Next day we packed and headed off. Steven and Judy to San Jose for their onward flights. Jill and I headed north to the Hobbit House, but that is the next installment.

For a gallery of photos, go to https://photos.app.goo.gl/flAMHmllQrPv8cnq2