Ziplining in Monteverde

The next day in Monteverde was the day to which most people in the group were looking forward.  It was ziplining day in the Cloud Forest.  At least, I think it was the Cloud Forest.  We were told it was the Cloud Forest but I didn’t see many clouds.

As I stated in my prior post, I had to get up early and get ready for the adventure.  It took a 45-minute van ride to get to the area in which we were going to do the ziplining.  After getting our tickets, we got harnessed up and then went out to where the fun was to begin, where we received instructions on how not to die or lose any fingers.  Always good advice.

The ziplining consisted of thirteen platforms connected with steel cables at various heights and angles.  We were harnessed to the cables and just rode along at various speeds, depending on the angle of the lines, from platform to platform.  It was far from a high-impact workout, but some of the zips over the rainforest were pretty fun, especially the longer, faster trips.  I don’t have a particular fear of heights, though I do have a healthy respect for gravity.  The whole trip, however, was pretty fun and there was no real sense of danger at any point along the way.  (I wish I had photos to share but I was afraid to bring my camera and dropping it in the rainforest.)

At the very end of the ziplining, we had a Tarzan Swing.  Basically, this was getting harnessed onto a rope and holding on while jumping from a platform about 40-feet off the ground and then swinging until people at the bottom were able to stop you.  Generally, your body tells you that jumping from this height is a bad idea but once you’ve seen a few people do it, it’s difficult to be but so frightened.  As I swung across the forest and returned near the platform, all I could do is look at the person next in line and say, “Awesome.”

After the ziplining, a group of us did a walking tour of the park and the hanging bridges.  This was a little disappointing since there were very few photo opportunities.  There were a thousand shades of green in the rainforest but very little of any interest on the trek.  The hanging bridges were interesting, I suppose, but not particularly comfortable for me.

After the trek, we went out to a pizza place for lunch that had surprisingly good pizza and pasta (I had Pasta Mexicano) and then I returned to the hotel for a little nap.  That evening, a handful of us went for a night tour of the rainforest that was pretty fun.  The highlights for me had to be the armadillo and sloth that we were able to see during the walk, as well as a handful of tarantulas, though rather small tarantulas.  Unfortunately, again, there are no photos since my iPhone doesn’t really perform well at night.

After the walk, a few of us had dinner at a sushi restaurant and then went out for a few drinks.  Upon my return, I had another run-in with my English roommate (It’s always the fucking Englishmen!) and I went to the girls’ room with the “bad kids” for a few drinks, though not nearly as many as the night before.  I ended up crashing there again on the spare bed and getting up early again for our next trip, this time to La Fortuna.  I’ll pick it up there in the next entry.