Description
If you could do only one ATV tour in Costa Rica, this one would be a top contender. The La Paz route leaves from the mountains that cradle Jaco and climbs, bend after bend, along dirt trails that plunge into primary rainforest, where light filters through in shades of green and cicadas compete with the hum of your engine.
Halfway to the summit comes the first reward: Zorro Waterfall, a roughly 35-foot cascade tumbling into a cool, clear pool. There is time to swim, let the falling water massage your shoulders and snap photos against the white curtain of spray. Then the trail keeps climbing, now above the canopy, until you reach the very top of the range.
The view from the summit lookout is nothing short of epic: to the south, the coastline stretching toward Manuel Antonio; to the west, the Nicoya Peninsula; to the north, the distant shimmer of Puntarenas. It is one of those places where the group falls quiet for a few seconds before the phones come out.
The ride back has its own magic. We stop at Pura Vida Waterfall, about 15 feet high and perfect for anyone who wants to jump straight into the pool, and then trace the boundary of Carara National Park, famous for its scarlet macaws, before winding back down toward the Pacific. Three hours of mud, adrenaline, fresh water and views that stay with you long after the dust has settled, with a bilingual guide leading the way.
