WHAT: Hiking the trails of Wildlife Refuge La Marta, along rivers, lookouts, hanging bridges, waterfalls and millenary mineral formations. WHERE: The village of Pejibaye, some two hours from San José (without traffic - 75 km away) - or 45 minutes to Turrialba (26 km), Costa Rica. HOW LONG: That would depend on your hiking skills. It took us (average level hikers) somewhat 3 hours in total. However if you want to reach the end of the park, count in at least some 4/5 hours. HOW MUCH: $10,- for tourists, $4,- for locals, open from 8 AM – 5 PM daily
Though La Marta was the first private wildlife refuge in the country, this is one of those parks of Costa Rica that’s totally under the radar. This tropical rain forest is part of the La Amistad-Talamanca Biosphere Reserve, considered a ‘Natural Heritage of Humanity’ by the United Nations. A fancy label and perhaps it sounds like it would also attract a lot of people, but nothing of that at all. While walking around on a Saturday afternoon, we only spotted three persons in the entrance of the park. The rest of the walk – through endless greeneries – was all for ourselves. Personally I always love those undiscovered gems!
Unfortunately it turned we weren’t accompanied by any wildlife either for the rest of the day. Though the hottest hours of the day usually aren’t the best to moments to spot birds or mammals, seeing nothing – not even a lizard- was almost concerning. I just guess the animals have enough place in this huge reserve to hide themselves, which is a plus for them. Apart from a lot of birds and butterflies, the park allows an abundance of marten, jaguars, tapirs and anteaters. So yes, perhaps it’s also for the best we didn’t encounter any of those.
Albeit the lack of wildlife, I’d absolutely recommend a walk in this area if you’re up for some less traveled, adventurous and sometimes pretty challenging roads. The parks features many trails – 14 km in total-, so you can easily compose your own preferred route along rivers, lookouts, hanging bridges, waterfalls and millenary mineral formations.
At the entrance of the park, the forest ranger shows you a map and gives you some tips of what route might be suitable for you (considering level and time). Don’t forget to photograph this map (!!), in detail, since there are none available for visitors. There’s a risk you’d get lost without any instruction or guidance.
We hiked for some 3 hours, but lacked the time to reach the outermost part of the area, the viewpoint of the waterfalls. Therefore I would recommend to go for at least 4 hours and perhaps a bit more if you want to take it easy. We had to run in the end to the exit before nightfall, though we did so as well because we were chased by some biting insects (take repellent and avoid being a fugitive!).
La Marta Refuge also offers a camping area near its natural pools, in case you want to prolong the real adventure. If you’re looking for a fancier place to stay, go to the nearby Casa Turire. This old building is almost un-Costa Rican like, with a colonial outlook. It’s also a lovely place to visit if you just want to eat something. Whether you go for lunch or dinner (or breakfast), don’t forget to order the sugarcane ice cream, it’s seriously one of the better scoops you’ll get in the entire county!
Here’s where to find Casa Turire and those divine ice creams 🙂 ↓
