Costa Rica (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Matthew Firestone [190]
There are at least 30 rental-car agencies in Liberia (none of which have desks at the airport), all charging about the same rates. Most can arrange pickup in Liberia and drop-off in San José, though they’ll try to charge you extra. Rental agencies are on Hwy 21 between Liberia and the airport, but should be able to drop off your car in town. Some recommended car-rental agencies:
Adobe (2667-0608; www.adobecar.com)
Avis (2668-1196; www.avis.co.cr)
Budget (2668-1024; www.budget.com)
Europcar (2668-1023; www.europcar.co.cr)
Hola (2667-4040; www.hola.net)
Mapache (2665-4444; www.mapache.com)
Toyota Rent a Car (2666-8190; www.carrental-toyota-costarica.com)
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PARQUE NACIONAL RINCÓN DE LA VIEJA
Given its proximity to Liberia – really just a hop, skip and a few bumps away – this 141-sq-km national park feels refreshingly uncrowded and remote. Named after the active Volcán Rincón de la Vieja (1895m), the steamy main attraction, the park also covers several other peaks in the same volcanic range, including the highest, Volcán Santa María (1916m). The park breathes geothermal energy, which you can see for yourself in its multihued fumaroles, hot springs, lively pailas (mud pots) bubbling and blooping clumps of ashy gray mud, and a young and feisty volcancito (small volcano). All these can be visited on foot and horseback on well-maintained but sometimes steep trails.
The park was created in 1973 to protect the 32 rivers and streams that have their sources within the park, an important watershed. Its relatively remote location means that wildlife, rare elsewhere, is out in force here, with the major volcanic crater a rather dramatic backdrop to the scene. Volcanic activity has occurred many times since the late 1960s, with the most recent eruption of steam and ash in 1997. At the moment, however, the volcano is gently active and does not present any danger – ask locally for the latest, as it’s in their nature for volcanoes to act up.
Elevations in the park range from less than 600m to 1916m, so visitors pass through a variety of different habitats as they ascend the volcanoes, though the majority of the trees in the park are typical of those found in dry tropical forests throughout Guanacaste. One interesting tree to look out for is the strangler fig, a parasitic tree that covers the host tree with its own trunk and proceeds to strangle it by competing for water, light and nutrients. The host tree eventually dies and rots away, while the strangler fig survives as a hollow, tubular lattice. The park is also home to the country’s highest density of Costa Rica’s national flower, the increasingly rare purple orchid (Cattleya skinneri), locally known as guaria morada.
Most visitors to the park are here for the hot springs, where you can soak to the sound of howler monkeys overhead. Many of the springs are reported to have therapeutic properties, which is always a good thing if you’ve been hitting the Guaro Cacique a little too hard. Several lodges just outside the park provide access and arrange tours. You can also book transportation and tours directly from Liberia.
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Orientation & Information
Each of the two main entrances to the park has its own ranger station, where you sign in and get free maps. Most visitors enter through Las Pailas ranger station (2661-8139; www.acguanacaste.ac.cr; admission US$10; 7am-5pm, no entry after 3pm, closed Mon) on the western flank. Trails to the summit and the most interesting volcanic features begin here. Note that on the way to Las Pailas, you must pay a fee of US$1.50 for the privilege of passing through the private property of Hacienda Guachipelín. The fee is ostensibly for road maintenance but is fairly ludicrous considering its hotel rates.
The Santa María ranger station