Page 40: - No Return Ticket - Just a Ride Report /w Pics - From the beginning
Back On The Road:
All packed and on the road early. Samara was great but after 5 weeks we are both excited to hit the road. Our ‘night before’ talks include how our mind set and attitudes have noticeably changed. That anxious feeling preparing to get back on the road is gone. We are not really sure what it is, but the feeling we both have inside is undeniable. We want to get back on the road and get going.
After about two hours we get off the main highways and start heading up into the mountains. The road is paved for the first 20 miles but then turns to dirt and stones. This is the normal route to Monteverde. We hope the road won’t get too bad.
Wrong. When the road is level it’s bad but doable. We just keep it slow and dodge the big ruts, rocks and holes. Riding into a small village about 8 miles before Monteverde it was time for a pop and a rest. A guy stops in a truck to talk with us, asking where we’re from and where we are going. He mentions to us that the road gets much worse closer to Monteverde. We didn’t want to hear that.
The views are beautiful but the road sucks. A light dirt bike would have no problem on this road but our fully loaded Sportster is a different story.
We hill climb up some super steep and rutted sections of road. The bike and Heidi are taking a beating. I knew the bike can make it but I was concerned that one of the 20 titanium screws holding Heidi’s neck together might pop loose. At the base of the next steep rocky rutted hill I stop the bike. We both want to make it to Monteverde so bad but we had to agree, it just isn’t going to happen today. We turn around and go back to spend the night at the little farming village, Tilaran.
Tilaran is just a few short miles from Lake Arenal, a beautiful and big lake formed in a crater of an ancient volcano. The wind is howling. Lake Arenal is famous for serious windsurfers. We did have plans to spend a month or more here to do some windsurfing but our research didn’t show any affordable places to stay, so we opted for Samara instead. (Not a bad thing)
The ride around the lake is awesome, thick lush tropical jungle. We stopped for breakfast at a nice spot right across from the lake.
I can’t help but to explore interesting looking side roads. Heidi thinks I’m nuts but goes along with it. This is some of the best scenery we have seen on this trip so far.
We ride to the town La Fortuna which is right at the base of volcano Arenal. This is adventure central Costa Rica. There’s jungle tours, volcano tours, rafting tours and tons more. We debated staying here for a few days but decide to move on. All the tours are expensive and touristy, not exactly my style. We spend one night just outside of town hoping to see some spewing lava that night.
We didn’t see any glowing lava at volcano Arenal. We sat in front of our room until late, playing cards watching and hoping. At this altitude the clouds cover the top of the volcano more nights then not. At least we tried.
Hotel Durado Suenos is recommend. It has good bike security, a great view of the volcano, close to town and all the activities associated with the Lake Arenal area but most notably the hospitality. You can get help with any activity in the area or just information. They also serve a full included breakfast in the morning with some of the ‘best coffee in the world’
We hope you are enjoying the ride………………
=================================================================
Continued: -> Page 41 <- ->