Whatuuuuup!? I'm sitting here at one of my favorite places in the whole world, Casa Zen in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica after spending the last few days in Montezuma, a tiny little town in the southern part of the Nicoya Peninsula. Its so comfortable here - vast stretches of couches, mountains of pillows, and hammocks slung up everywhere. If you're ever able to check this place out, I would highly recommend it. Anyway, I've got a backlog of other posts that I need to get out spanning all the way back to my time in Guatemala, but I was so inspired by my trip to Montezuma Falls that I just had to get this out. Hope you enjoy!
My friend Kerri and I, who I met back in Nicaragua and who I've been traveling with for a few weeks, arrived in Montezuma last Monday. We checked into a sweet little hostel called "El Capitan" which had a small but very spirited staff. We all clicked immediately, and I knew this would be a cool place to post up for a few days and explore. Theres lots to see and do in Montezuma, but the main attraction are the waterfalls. So on a nice sunny morning, we were on our way.
The trailhead to the falls was only about a half mile from town but once there, it was quite a little trek through the jungle to get to the actual falls. There were two routes, a dirt path through the jungle, or wade your way upstream - we did a little of both. One thing that I absolutely love about the rivers and streams in Costa Rica is the water temperature. I've traipsed through my share of rivers and streams in the US but it seems like the water is always freeeeeeezing and kind of puts a damper on things, especially considering I CANNOT STAND cold water. Just getting in is a mission in itself. Not the case here :)
So we hiked our way through the jungle for a bit until we reached the base of the first waterfall. Wow...massive. It is a series of three falls, the first being about 80 feet, the second 50 feet, and the third about 10 feet. Each are cool in their own way. The first fall is probably the most spectacular and has the biggest and nicest pool to swim in below. Theres a couple cool little jumps off to the side, but you can't really jump from the top - way too treacherous. But rumor has it, you can swim up and behind the waterfall...ya thats def happening. So we jumped into the pool below and immediately felt the power of the current. An 80 foot gushing waterfall churns things up pretty good especially the closer you get to it. The two of us are strong swimmers and we were literally in a FULL ON freestyle stroke, muscling our way toward the ominous curtain of water. It was no joke, and I honestly don't think I could have made it before I had built up my confidence in the water through surfing. Theres a 50/50 chance I would have panicked, seriously. We inched closer and closer until the wall of water which sounded like a freight train was a few meters away. At that point it looked impossible to swim through it on the surface - so I relaxed for a few seconds, treading water while catching my breath the best I could, took a deep breath and plunged below. Everything went silent, a brief moment of serenity. Eyes closed, with my left arm extended straight out, right arm paddling, I felt myself moving forward undeneath the water until my fingertips touched the rocks. I exploded up taking a deep breath as the roar of the falls and massive spray of water snapped me back to reality. Violently. I was far from home free, in no-mans-land treading a rumbling mess of whitewater between a punishing wall of water, and a slick unforgiving wall of rocks. I needed to find a hold, and quickly. So I scaled sideways across the rock face until I found a crease in the rocks that I could grip and hoisted myself out, just as Kerri popped up from below. Too loud for communication, all I could do was point to the holds I had used. She pulled her way out and for a moment we stood in awe with our backs pressed against the rocks. In that moment, finally able to relax for a second, the excitement came flooding in.
WOW.
We stood there laughing for a few minutes soaking it all in. As I looked to the side, I noticed that the force of the water crashing below was creating an updraft of wind and beads of water were shooting upwards off of the rocks, rather than dripping down. It was really really incredible. Surreal. After a few minutes it was time to move on and what better way to make an exit than supermanning through to the other side. I wish I could say I exploded through in slow motion, fully horizontal, arms outstretched like the man of steel but in actuality as soon as I hit the cascade of water it plunged me straight down. Disoriented I popped up to the surface and lazily let the current push me straight across the pool to where we entered. Wow, and that was only the beginning!
It was time to make our ascent to the second waterfall, the 50-footer. The jump. The main reason I was there. And theres really no easy way to get there. You basically scale your way up a cliffside using roots and some random ropes to negotiate your way up.
Finally the trail spits you out at the top of the second fall. There it was. The moment of truth was nearing.
I tried not to waste too much time psyching myself out, staring out over the ledge, and got right to business. I carefully tiptoed out to the jump platform and got into position. The scariest part is when you're standing there looking out over the edge and you come to the realization that this is actually going to happen...momentarily. Roll Footage!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzwNp3x1Y4s
What I remember most about the experience was the surge of adrenaline in the moments before I jumped. It was a calm focused surge, like I had been charged with electricity and it was radiating through my whole body. It was pretty nuts actually. I can't even remember the last time I've felt that sensation, and been so fully present to it. Definitely one of the highlight moments of my trip. As far as the fall and landing, no recollection. All I remember is being in a zen-like state for the rest of the day haha.
Pura Vida!
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