Wind and Rain in the Santa Elena Cloud Forest
Monteverde is the Costa Rica of travel brochures and its very name conjures images of cloud-shrouded forests, swinging skybridges and elusive quetzals. It is the Costa Rica that has drawn millions of tourists to its rainforest canopies for wildlife viewing and zip-lining.
I’d heard nothing but rave reviews about zip-lining above the canopies of the Santa Elena Cloud Forest and I, too, was hoping to partake in one of Costa Rica’s most sought-after activities. I couldn’t wait to observe life high above the treetops.
But, as much as we can plan every meticulous detail and attempt to take control of our surroundings while traveling, there are always forces out of our control. In Monteverde, it was the unexpected inclement weather that nearly blew me off the mountaintop and chased me down the mountain and across the border into Nicaragua.
It did not always appear that we would lose the battle with adverse weather.
The long ride from the Osa Peninsula to Monteverde was pleasant and scenic–giving no indication of the fierce winds and rains we were to meet at the top of the mountain. We stopped at numerous spots to take in the views of the rolling green mountains and pulled over to watch the sun set over the Bay of Nicoya. We thought nothing of the light mountain breeze the rest of the way to our hostel and I was beginning to have the sensation that I would love the little town of Santa Elena that sat along a gravel road, among the remote and tropical green hills of Costa Rica’s North.
But when we reached the town and stepped out of the car, we were greeted by a fierce wind that nearly knocked us to the ground.
And through the night and all the next day, the relentless wind did not give up.
It turns out that we visited the Monteverde right as a hurricane-like storm began brewing over the Atlantic and the winds carried the inclement weather right to the ridge of the Costa Rican mountains.
Despite the weather, we were optimistic and ambitious the evening we arrived, so we decided to spend the next day hiking among the dense greenery of the Santa Elena Cloud Forest.
We tried to make the best of the weather and bundled up in rain gear to hike the muddy paths of the Santa Elena Cloud Forest. We bought ponchos, rented rain boots and trudged through the mud.
As I walked among the green vines dripping with water and admired the colorful flowers that contrasted with the varying shades of green around me, I felt as though I had stepped into a fairy tale. The dense forest was spectacular, but enjoying our surroundings became more tedious as the cold water seeped through the holes in our boots and soaked our socks. The trees in the cloud forest shielded us somewhat from the strong winds, though the rain still found ways of creeping through our layers of rain gear.
After a few hours of hiking along the paths of the reserve, we returned to the hostel and reevaluated our plans.
We could have waited for the hurricane-like conditions to let up so that we could partake in the activities that drew us to Monteverde in the first place, but there was no knowing how long it would be.
In the end, I reluctantly agreed to leave Monteverde prematurely in search of sunnier skies.
It was not easy for me to leave Monteverde without exploring all the things to do there. And if I’d had more time in Monteverde, I probably would have waited stubbornly for the storm to subside. After all, as an Oregonian, I have no issue putting up with a little rain.
But what we experienced in Monteverde was more than just “a little rain” and so, given the adverse conditions we encountered, we let the relentless winds defeat us–sending us running down the mountain and to warm beaches of Nicaragua’s San Juan del Sur instead.
I wish I could say that I experienced the Costa Rica of travel brochures while walking along the sky bridges of the Santa Elena Cloud Forest. I wish I could have zipped through the canopy at 70 miles an hour and experienced the thrill of flying above the treetops.
Things may have not gone according to plan, but at least I now have a reason to return to Monteverde in the future.
