09/22 Had it not been for the constant near-death experiences (traffic) riding today was pretty nice. The last time I even saw the Caribbean Sea was all the way back up in Mexico near Tulum. I rode along beside it for many miles passing a couple quiet little villages but mostly it was just long stretches of undeveloped land. In Costa Rica I don’t think they let you buy property within 50 meters of the high tide mark which is nice because it leaves the beach area in a natural state. After the coastal riding the road turned west and I was in banana plantation country.

My plans to stop early and camp at Parque Nacional Cahuita were foiled. I was so looking forward to a nice swim too. According to the ranger they closed up the camping areas a couple years ago. Getting in still cost $10. Locals pay $2. Yet another rip-off. She said I could enter the park back up the highway at the town of Cahuita for a “donation”. Well let me tell you about donations in Central America. When they ask for one it’s not an optional thing. There’s a set fee and you either pay it or you don’t get in.

After riding a bit more I saw a sloth sanctuary that looked pretty cool so I rode inside the gate and then promptly turned around and kept riding. They wanted $25 to get in. Freaking zoos are cheaper than that.

Tomorrow Panama and boy am I glad.

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09/20 Survived another day on the Costa Rican death roads. Riding has just been miserable and the homicidal drivers don’t help. There was rarely a shoulder to ride on so 95% of the time I’m stuck in the lane with a million 18 wheelers. A couple people didn’t bother to move over even though the other lane was clear which didn’t surprise me given how unfriendly people seem to be.

When a pedestrian gets killed they paint a heart with a halo over it onto the road. Saw quite a few today. As you can see from the picture of the family walking down the road its not surprising that people get run over a lot. It’s either walk on the road or walk in the tall grass with the poisonous snakes. I also saw a lot of ambulances on the road today too. It’s probably easier for them to just drive around knowing an accident is bound to happen sooner or later. Or the same one just followed me all day figuring I’m a sure thing.

Met a couple touring riders from the Netherlands this morning. That was a bit of a surprise. They are just riding around Costa Rica (for some crazy reason). The first thing they said was how bad the roads were.

I did meet one of the 8 nice people in the country today He runs a fruit stand in town. I loaded up on some delicious tangerine fruit juice and he gave me about a dozen bananas to take along. I’m glad I found the place because I needed something to even out all the rtards I encountered today.

It was very hot again today but I beat the rain by an hour. I can’t seem to drink enough fluid though and I’m downing a lot. Didn’t go to the bathroom all day which is pretty bad.

I posted the fact that I’m here illegally (no entry stamp) on the Thorn Tree forum to see how bad it’s going to be when I try to leave. It sounds like just playing the no habla Spanish card might work. We’ll see.

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09/18 After being in this country for almost a week I can safely say this place has issues. Some people have ripped Costa Rica kind of hard but when comparing it to other Central American nations there are certainly some valid critiques. My main ones are roads, the prices and the general demeanor of the people I’ve encountered. The roads basically just suck. Potholes and no shoulders I can deal with but with the amount of traffic on the roads they really need to invest in some improvements here. They could certainly pay for some of it with the taxes being collected on the already over-priced food/motels/everything else. Most of the food I’ve been buying, which is the same stuff I’ve been buying in the other countries, costs more than it does in the States. Even the small, Mom & Pop places are way more than what the same food would cost in other LA countries. And honestly, nothing has even tasted that great so far.

The people thing bugs me the most. People here are either really uptight or they just don’t like acknowledging strangers. Sure people in the touristy areas are nice enough–they are paid to be and certainly not everyone comes across as rude but when I look back at every country I’ve been in the only other place even comparable was the States. This country is basically like a mini-USA now anyway so maybe that’s why people are this way.

I’m pretty happy I didn’t get run over today but I think I might be a bit of a crackhead for riding this way. My route today could have stayed a lot flatter but instead I ended up climbing right back up into the mountains.

Found a perfect motel for $20. Think I might stay here and chill tomorrow. It’s the Cabinas Francis across from the cemetary. It’s one of the cleanest rooms I’ve been in.

Drinking and driving is legal here I found out. You just can’t be intoxicated and drive. That’s awesome and explains a lot.

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04/06 Lost 10 more pounds today. That was just in sweat. The heat was bad but holy cow was it ever humid. For the first time maybe on this entire trip I had to stop and take a break just to avoid getting heat stroke. The climbs didn’t help either but talk about some amazing scenery along the top of the hills. Of course I ended up getting a flat tire which was made much worse by the lack of shade nearby.

Had some interesting people encounters today. While stopped just past a store to take a picture of a valley about half a dozen little kids came running over to ask for money. Once I said no most of them just stood there watching me while a couple of the alpha kids played with the things strapped to the rear bike bags. I packed my camera back up and started to ride away. I turned to wave and saw one of the boys looking like he was going to throw something at me. Sure enough the little brat threw a small rock and hit me in the back. It’s not like I could go back and beat his little ass so I just yelled “Hey!” and made like I was going to turn around. They just stood there like Children of the Corn so I left. I’m not entirely convinced that he wasn’t just playing but it’s hard to say.

Next up was an 8 year old highway robber. At one of the rare flat spots I saw a girl standing beside the road holding the end of a vine that stretched across the highway. As I got closer she pulled the vine so it was 3 feet off the road. I could have barreled right through I suppose but I had no idea who was sitting in the trees watching. I didn’t understand anything she said except 5 pesos so I gave it to her. She lowered the vine and off I went.

One encounter I didn’t have was along the access road to the cascades. The 2 mile road is a bit notorious for robberies and several bicyclists I know advoided coming down here because of it. I kept an eye out but it’s downhill the entire way and there was no way I was stopping for anyone. Made it here without seeing a single person and boy was it worth it.

The series of waterfalls and pools that make up the Cascades del la Agua Azul are beautiful. The first thing I did when I got here, after posing for some pictures, was get a cabana, change into my swimming shorts and jump in. The water was perfect and a lot colder than I thought it would be. I wish they had a set of waterfalls every 20 miles along the road.

This place is packed with Mexican families camping and enjoying the park. Lots of tents and people BBQ’ing. There might have been a couple hippies camping but I avoid them. I would have liked to have camped but I’m by myself and there are too many people around to leave my stuff unattended. Had a great dinner at one of the many restraunts before taking a nice walk up along the river.

Still a little sick. This cough won’t go away and I still have the sniffles. Maybe in the next town I’ll grab some medicine.

GPX Track

Merry Christmas to all my family and friends! This was my first Christmas on the road and it wasn’t too bad. Got a few calls into my family so it was almost like I was there (albeit via Skype).

The 24th or “Holy Night” is the end of a nine day celebration of the Nativity so it was a little louder around here than it normally is. Fireworks were going off (nothing extravagant) and toward the end of the night the kids staying here were outside beating a Piñata with a stick. It was actually pretty fun to listen to the kids yelling and the adults singing. Here’s a good site that describes how the holiday is celebrated in Mexico. A lot of places are closed but not everything and thankfully not the restaurants. PB&J on Christmas would be bad.

I noticed something on the trip map that I posted yesterday that kind of has me intrigued a little. OK, more than a little. Cuba is very close. I did a little checking and there are daily flights from Cancun to Havana. There are some considerations to making a trip like this; especially to a country that is considered an “enemy” of the United States. Legally I can fly there but I can’t spend any money. My status as a dual citizen (Canada/United States) doesn’t help me out here either. Could I get away with not breaking this law by bringing my own food and camping? For the sake of this publicly posted web site… you bet!

Lot’s more research is needed before I pull the trigger on this one. For one thing I’d need to figure out how to pack my bike/gear up for the plane ride over. I’ve read nothing but good things from the other touring riders that have been over there. Columbus even described Cuba as, “the most beautiful land human eyes have ever seen.” How could I not go there?