While the rest of Costa Rica parties the night away, restless travelers head north from Liberia to seek seclusion and peace in a park full of waterfalls, turbulent rivers, and thick forests. The colorful blooms and drifting sulfur vapors make it an enthralling experience in (and for) every sense. Though its gigantic active volcano is the park’s highlight, few make the grueling, 4hr. climb to the crater. Most hikers seek out the sulfuric lagoons, boiling mud pits, abundant wildlife (300 species of birds!), and thermal waters that dot its slopes.
The park has two entrances, Las Pailas and Santa María, each with a ranger station. Las Pailas, with trails leading past waterfalls and up the volcano, is visited more frequently, as there are many more trails here. The nearby river is perfect for swimming. The park is open M-Tu and Su 7am-3pm. Entry costs US$10. Camping at the Santa María ranger station is available for US$2 per person. The park is only 25km northeast of Liberia, but public transportation covers only 15km of this distance. A dirt road that is accessible to cars leads from Liberia’s Barrio La Victoria to the Santa María entrance. Another dirt road starts 5km north of Liberia on the Interamericana Hwy. and heads 10km east to the town of Curabanda; from there it is another difficult 10km east to the Las Pailas entrance (¢700 per person to drive on the private road). Public buses go only as far as Curabanda. From there, some catch a ride with occasional traffic. Let’s Go does not recommend hitchhiking. More reliable tourist shuttles are offered by various hotels in Liberia, including Hotel Liberia, La Posada del Tope, Hotel Guanacaste, and La Casona. (Departs 7am, returns by 5pm. US$20.) Call any of the hotels at least a day ahead. It’s possible to hire a 4WD taxi in Liberia (at least ¢10,000 each way). To reach the ranger stations, call ☎2200 0399.
Only the Santa María ranger station has a campground with showers and pit toilets (US$2 per person). Near Las Pailas, there are a number of lodges that offer meals and activities for those seeking refuge from Liberia’s urban congestion. Rincón de la Vieja Lodge is 2.5km before the Las Pailas entrance and offers quiet, woodsy cabins, some with bunk beds, and hammocks on the porches. Private baths, hot water, scientific library, and small pool are available. The property is a 400-hectare working finca with horses and a canopy tour. The restaurant serves a buffet, and the bar occasionally has live music. (}/fax 2661 8198; info@rincondelavieja.com. Canopy tour US$60. 3hr. horseback tour to hot springs US$35. Breakfast 6-7:30am, included; lunch 12:30-1:30pm, US$10; dinner 6:30-7:30pm, US$10. Doubles US$69; triples US$90. Bungalow doubles US$80; triples US$105. MC/V.) The Hacienda Lodge Guachipelín , 5km before the park entrance, is a 19th-century cattle-ranch-turned-hotel. Activities (at a significant extra cost) include a seven-platform canopy tour and horseback tours (US$50, students US$40, children US$30). Walking tours in the park are about US$35. For a hefty price, the hotel offers several “adventure tours,” which can include hiking to the crater, horseback riding to waterfalls and hot springs, tubing on Río Negro, rappelling, and canopy tours. (☎2442 2818 or 2666 8075; www.guachipelin.com. Tours US$80, students US$75, children US$70; lunch included. Breakfast included with room price, 7-9am. Singles US$50-66; doubles US$73-83; triples US$93-107; quads US$107.)
The eastern trail beginning at Las Pailas ranger station is the 3km loop Sendero Las Pailas, which passes turnoffs to a sulfuric lagoon, a volcancito, boiling mud pits, fumaroles, and a picturesque waterfall that flows during the rainy season. At the halfway point, a well-marked branch leads another 6km east to the Santa María station. A trail west of the Las Pailas leads to the park’s biggest waterfalls: Cataratas Escondidas (5km) is a difficult, more exciting hike with steep inclines. Most choose to hike the challenging-but-doable trail to the breathtaking Catarata La Cangreja (5km). If you only have time for one hike, visit Catarata La Cangreja and the beautiful, turquoise swimming hole underneath it. For a swim without the 2hr. hike, there’s a crystal-clear swimming hole just 600m down the trail toward the waterfalls. It’s a difficult 8km to the crater of Rincón de la Vieja; even the fittest should allow a day for the round-trip journey (about 7-8hr.) and must register at the park office in order to get a guide (US$30 per person). It is strongly recommended that solo hikers be accompanied by a guide. The crater trail can close due to poor weather conditions. (Check with rangers or lodge employees.) Most hike to a waterfall in the morning (about 4hr.), as the area is prone to floods that come with afternoon rain, and fill their afternoons with a hike along Sendero Las Pailas (about 2hr.). From the Santa María station, a 3km trail leads west through thick forests full of monkeys to the aguas termales (hot springs), which can get crowded during high season. Trails are subject to closing due to excessive rain (usually Sept.-Nov.).
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