Costa Rica Coast to Coast Ride

Those on the group flight land into San Jose and will be transferred to our

start hotel in La Garita de Alajuela, around 15 minutes away. Those on land

only arrangements should make their own way to the start hotel this evening.

We have a briefing this morning and spend some time adjusting our bikes

before riding out through small rural communities followed by dry, tropical

forest with very little traffic on the paved roads. This initial stage

concludes outside Atenas, then we have a 20 minute transfer to a scenic lunch

stop. In the afternoon we'll have a second cycling stage, passing mango

orchards and cattle ranches. Following another short half hour transfer we

arrive at our lodge for the night.

Following an early breakfast, we transfer 20 minutes to Rio Tarcoles for a

private guided boat tour of the estuary. We hope to see crocodiles, water

birds, shorebirds and Scarlet macaws. A 30 minute transfer brings us to a

quiet backroad heading to Guacallillo where we return to our bikes and cycle

to Cascajal. From here we will have a short transfer to our lunch stop. After

lunch depending on the tide, we will get back on the bikes for a short ride

on the beach to Playa Bejuco, our destination for tonight. 

We start the morning with a 2 hour guided hike in Manuel Antonio National

Park, an outstanding region for wildlife. The forest here meets the sea and

iguanas and White-faced Capuchin monkeys can often be seen on the beach. A 20

minute transfer takes us to the coastal road outside Quepos where we begin to

cycle south to Playa Dominicalito, where we will have a lunch at a scenic

restaurant. This is a spectacular stretch of road, with dense forest and

steep hills on the left and fantastic Pacific views on the right. 

Our ride today takes us from Ciudad Cortes on to Palmar Norte, where we cross

the Rio Terraba, Costa Rica's longest river, then to Palmar Sur, where we

will stop at the central park for a look at some of the famous spherical

rocks, made by a little-known ancient indigenous culture. Afterwards we will

board the coach for a transfer (approx 1.5 hours) to La Palma, stopping for

lunch on route. We will resume our cycling, passing through Puerto Jimenez en

route to our beach hotel, set on the beautiful Playa Platanares.

We board a ferry this morning for a 30 minute journey across the Golfo Dulce

to Golfito. Here, sometimes dolphins can be seen frolicking in the

surrounding waters. Our cycle route heads to Rio Claro using a short but

hilly biking stage. Following a 1 hour bus transfer across the steep

mountains surrounding San Vito, we arrive at Las Cruces Biological Station.

Las Cruces Biological Station is surrounded by the famous Wilson Botanical

Gardens where we will enjoy a guided hike in the afternoon. 

Back on the saddle we enjoy a fantastic ride from the hilly region near San

Vito downhill to Paso Real, far below at the Rio Terraba. En route we pass

through an indigenous area where villagers can sometimes be seen in

traditional dress. We will stop in Buenos Aires to have lunch before boarding

the bus for our transfer (approx. 2-3 hours) to San Gerardo de Rivas. We

will pass the first of many pineapple plantations, which has now become Costa

Rica's most exported crop. As our hotel tonight is located in the mountains

it may be chillier than you expect. 

This morning we start with a short downhill stage before jumping on the bus

for a transfer that will take us over the infamous Cerro de La Muerte. At

3,541 metres above sea level, this is the highest point of the PanAm Highway

in all of Central America. On this stretch we will drive through rainforest,

up into the cloud forest before we start our descent back down towards the

Central Valley. From here we will get back on our bikes for another downhill

stage into the Orosi Valley. 

After breakfast we start cycling from the hotel for perhaps one of the most

beautiful cycling stages riding past numerous coffee plantations. With any

luck, we will see some farmers using their colourful traditional oxcarts to

haul the coffee to nearby processing facilities. Along the way we will stop

to look at coffee trees and the tour leader will give an explanation on

coffee and its part of the history of Costa Rica. As we continue our ride

through the valley, we will ride around a hydroelectric dam before starting

a section that involves some climbs. We will arrive at the little town of

Tucurrique where will stop off for lunch. Afterwards we will cycle through

lush scenery sugar cane plantations before a short transfer to our hotel for

the night. Our mountain lodge this evening has excellent views of the

surrounding region, including the coffee growing Orosi Valley and both the

Irazu and Turrialba volcanoes.

After breakfast we will start cycling a hilly section with incredible views,

followed by a fast downhill to the town of Siquierres from where we will

board the coach and take a transfer to the Caribbean coast, stopping for

lunch on route. On arrival near the coast we will start a second biking stage

through an isolated backroad and as we arrive at the Rio Banano Junction,

the traffic can get really heavy so we will board the coach again for a

short transfer (approx. 15 minutes) to our hotel in Puerto Viejo,  a

typical Caribbean town with lively reggae music/culture and spicy cuisine. 

This morning we will start by riding to Cahuita National Park for a guided

hike. During this hike you can expect to see lots of wildlife including two

and three-toed Sloths, Capuchin monkeys and also Iguanas. At the end of the

hike we will transfer to Guapiles where we will stop for a quick lunch before

getting on the bikes for today's cycling stage. Concluding our biking, we

transfer out to tiny La Pavona, where we board a boat which will take us out

to Tortuguero along the wildlife rich rivers and canals used for transit in

this densely forested area. 

An early morning boat trip enables us to discover the extraordinary flora and

fauna of Tortuguero, passing serenely along the waterways. At this time of

day wildlife is usually at its most active and with the help of our expert

guide we are likely to encounter monkeys, caiman, iguanas, butterflies and

many of the 300+ bird species recorded here. We retrace our route by boat to

the dock at Pavon where we will start cycling through banana plantations,

stopping for a brief explanation about the importance of these plantations to

Costa Rica. Afterwards we have a transfer to just outside Guapiles for an

early lunch provided by our Tortuguero lodge. After lunch we head towards La

Fortuna and the imposing Arenal volcano. Following a massive explosion in

1968, Arenal was Costa Rica's most active volcano until recently when it

entered a resting phase. En route we will take a break to observe the

thriving pineapple operations in Costa Rica before continuing on to our

hotel, set in the centre of town. This evening there is an included excursion

to Eco-Termales hot springs, by far the best in the area. 

Following a short transfer, our final cycling stage starts with a ride

through the dense rain forest surrounding beautiful Lake Arenal, with several

spots to observe the volcano as we continue back toward La Fortuna. Departing

Fortuna, we bike through tropical farmlands dedicated to exotic fruits and

vegetables, then do a bit of climbing through forested hills up to the

conclusion at Bajo Rodriguez. The last leg of our journey is completed by bus

as we transfer back to La Garita de Alajuela, travelling for around two hours

with tropical views on the way. 

Our trip ends in San Jose (La Garita) after breakfast this morning and those

on group flights will be transferred to the international airport for the

return journey.

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