An adventures tour that’s kind to your body, your budget and your busy Schedule.
An adventure is anything new that offers a challenge or that test us. It need not be risky, or so far away that the trip is lost in travel time. Nor so expensive that it becomes exclusive. A one-day trip to Valle de los Quetzales in Bajo la Paz, only eight miles northwest of San Ramon is easy to reach by car or bus, yet takes the traveler into another world where the natural beauty of the land, culture and people remain unspoiled.
The challenge lies in doing it on your own, getting by on your Spanish, and traveling beyond the well-trodden roads of more usual tourist attractions.
Valle los Quetzales
Bajo La Paz is in the mountains and valleys of Costa Rica’s western range, where sugar cane is a major product. Small calderas and trapiches are scattered around the valley, and farmers use the traditional carts and matching pairs of oxen to haul their harvest to the mills. For the people of Bajo La Paz, there is a sense of pride in going back to traditions while embracing new environmental concepts. Oxen are much more practical for mountainside farming, but the mills no longer burn tires to boil up the sugar cane.
In April, Bajo La Paz celebrates its annual community festival with oxcart parades, traditional games and food, and Costa Rica’s one and only Bota Cross, a 1.25 mile overland race by people wearing boots. Although only about a dozen people whole community comes out to cheer them on.
Bajo la Paz is also a place where people like the Arias family keep their woods intact to preserve the water, the air, and the plants and animals that depend on the land. You can experience it with a hike through a primary forest that rises into the clouds, a tour on horses around the heights and valleys surrounding the town, or something a little more strenuous – like a four-hour ride through the woods to the waterfalls.
Ever wonder which animals are lurking in the woods at night? Try a night hike. What time you want to go and how long you want to stay are up to you. Visits are arranged with a phone call to one of the Arias siblings.
This area is unexplored by most tourists. This true get-away-from-it all trip: no neon signs or blaring music, no hucksters and no cell phones to sully the surroundings. The hills around Bajo La Paz, which takes its name from the Rio Paz, are pretty much the way they always were, according to Walter and Roman Arias, whose father bought the land untouched some 60 years ago. At one time it was used for hunting. Peccaries, raccoon, deer and wild pigs still inhabit area, although the presence of big cats is evidenced by what they leave behind.
Quetzal Bird
Now, with a new consciousness about the environment and water conservation, the forests have taken on a new importance. Stretching all the way to Monteverde, they provide a safe corridor for birds and wildlife, according to Ignacio Arias, who organizers and leads the horseback tours.
A gentle walk through a cloud forest follows trails that run unobtrusively into the woods and up into the clouds, where birds, butterflies and beetles live undisturbed and trees grow to great lengths and widths.
Entering the forest is like sneaking into a secret world.
The surrounding cloud forest is cool and misty, reducing us to whispers as Roman Arias points out butterfly eggs on the creature’s favorite plant. Further ahead, he explains why the giant trees have “wings” or side branches that bend back to the ground – they are nature’s way of sustaining the trees during high winds that blow at an altitude of 2520 feet. During December and January.
Although it is not raining, giant fern leaves drip water gathered from the moist air that filters through the ground to the water table. A bit farther up the trail, we scoop hands into one of the streams that pour from between rocks and sip pure, cold water. Nothing from a faucet or a bottle can compare.
Nesting time is March and June, and birds appear in abundance. These include quetzals, the jewel-like green and red birds with long tails plumes – a birdwatcher’s prize. At least two pairs have nests in the forest and return each year. Roman and his brother Walter set up bamboo poles with holes near the tops to attract more quetzals, perhaps the offspring of their regular visitors.
Hummingbirds, vireos and other birds are seen all year. At times along the trail Roman whistles to attract the birds, which can be hard to see in the dim treetops far overhead. Far easier is concentrating on the plants, vines, frogs and colonies of insects closer to the ground, or the orchids and bromelias that hang on the trees. Roman and Walter know these woods from childhood, and can point out medicinal plants as well as those that feed birds and butterflies.
The trails are soft and safe walking, made with sand stones from the river that runs parallel to the trail and constructed by the Arias brothers to be part of the forest floor. The grade up is not strenuous; this is a tour for all ages. The trail extends about a mile and passes through a meadow, taking about two hours depending on how long you tarry. And tarry you will, for these is much to see, hear and feel.
Sugar Cane
Horse tours around the area are another option for any age group as the horses are gentle and the trails vary. Even visitors not accustomed to riding can enjoy these jaunts. Guests can choose a short, easier ride that winds up toward the mountains for a view of the whole Central Valley, or longer rides through the trees on trails to natural waterfalls deep in the woods. A milder ride is offered for those unsure of their equine ability or for children. For horseback tours, “Nacho” Arias can arrange for groups from two to 20.
The ride along farm roads up into sugar cane fields and pastures was easy enough for a couple of 60 years old who haven’t ridden in awhile and who found the trip delightful. By the time we all mounted up, we were on easy terms with Nacho and the horses. There were stops along the way for Nacho to explain different trees and plants, or to point out something we might have missed – a brick chimney where a trapiche once stood; a girl in school uniform riding her horse to school or to pick guayabas off the trees and eat they while in the saddle.
There were other stops to dismount to look at the view and take pictures of an old mill waterwheel, and a pause to point out raccoon tracks in the mud and evidence that coyotes had passed along this trail. There were pauses, too, for Nacho to greet neighbors and introduce us. Tours to Valle de los Quetzales are informal and friendly.
A pleasant option along the way is a stop at the Truchero Carrucha tavern-restaurant and trout farm. Walk around the well tended ground to see trout tanks and the lagoon; have a cold beer and boca of corn on the cob chunks at the typical restaurant with cable spool tables and open air dining. Full dinners of trout and traditional Tica food are also available. This trip, with all stops, took about three hours.
Hummingbird in Valle Los Quetzales
Buses for San Ramon leave San Jose every half-hour for a smooth 70-minute trip. The 8 am bus arrive9:20, allowing enough time for a walk around the nearby central park, the church, the old municipal building and museum, or the Jose Figueres Cultural Center across from the church, or to stock up on snacks before catching the 10:00 bus of Bajo La Paz, arriving at the end of the line about 10:30. Buses run every 40 minutes from in front of the Maryisabel store at the western end of the bus depot.
By car, follow the route to Piedades Norte pasta the hospital and turn right at the end of the street, then left at the fork just out of town. You may have to ask for Bajo La Paz along the way, as the road branches without signs. This road takes you along a ridge rounding valleys with small villages; a very scenic ride.
Recommendations: Bring snack foods and beverages. Flory’s Cafeteria is a comfortable, small restaurant that serves traditional food. It is night at the bus stop and makes a good place to snack or have a beverage while waiting for the bus stop and makes a good place to snack or have a beverage while waiting for the bus but is not always open and selection is limited. An old-style trapiche for milling sugar cane into the brown tapa de dulce sugar cakes is behind the restaurant and operates on Thursdays. For all tours, wear shoes that endure walking on damp, sometimes soggy ground. A hat, cap and shawl of jacket for the cool, misty areas are advised. For horseback rides, a shoulder bag or tie-on pack for cameras and valuables. Be flexible. Delays happen. For camping or overnight stays, cabins are available for $10 a person per night.
Geographical Division 
