Finding Freedom...World Wide Ride

... is the worst. At least with a consistent wind you can just lean into it. But with the side winds you have to constantly be "on it" as your bike is pushed around. At least when you're fully loaded up (as you obviously are) you have a lot of inertia working for you. Though all that tall gear behind you also acts like a bit sail wanting to get blown over.

Step 2 is to enter Costa Rica. Drive to the fumigation station where they ask to see you passport. We did not have to have fumigation done. Luckily there are no “helpers” here.




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Drive to the gate where they ask for your passport and direct you to the white migration building ahead.




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We had the bad luck to arrive at 845 am along with 4 full buses that unloaded just in front of us. The line was glacial and took 2 hours.




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Make sure you fill out a second CA tourist paper for here (the police there have them). No one ever looked at our luggage, despite the bus passengers having to put theirs thru an x-ray scanner.


Next walk or drive 300 m down to the Aduana (not across the street to the yellow building marked Aduana, that comes later).




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At Aduana number 1 you pay 30$ for 3 months of CR insurance and then get copies of the insurance paper, passport photo page, immigration stamp page, Drivers License, and vehicle title across the street.


Then proceed back to the small yellow Aduada number 2, where they will check all your papers, then your VIN, and send you back to Aduana number 1 with your stapled stack of papers.




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Back here at Aduana number1 they then enter your data into the computer and give you your Costa Rican import permit. Check the VIN, Plate numbers, and dates carefully.




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There was an elderly French man here who was livid as his paper had incorrect dates and implied he had over staid his visa. This of course could not be corrected on a Sunday. This photo was taken just after he backed into the parked semi truck, but luckily no harm was done.



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Finally made it!!!




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Hola Sara y Daniel, three hours and forty minutes !! dammmm that is why Im going north !! great attitude, felicidades !!

We will be home for a few months this summer (to earn some money). Actually i'll be working in Whitehorse for the last 2 weeks of August. So we will be ready to host you after June 1 on your way to and /or from Alaska and the Yukon. I will have the Stolichnaya chilled and ready.

Miss you all


Sara

Look forward to it. Might buy myself another bike and head up north to see you pulling in the mushroom season along the way!

See you then or in July when we head to Hood Canal for a conference. We need to get Marcin, Arek, and Iwona for a Ballard margarita night for sure!! Hug your parents for us.

Sara

Heading South from the Costa Rican Border it is just abou 35 km to Playa Copal.



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The road to the beach is paved to La Cruz and then a good gravel road to the beach. There is always wind here due to the proximity to the Massive Lake Nicaragua. Two of the days we were there the wind gusts to 54 prevented even the experts from kiting.




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The view from our room overlooking the bay at Playa Copal Kite House.




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Learning to kite surf Step 1- Kite control




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Step 2 get in the water and also control the kite.



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Step 3 add a surf board and ride.



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Step 4 get launched at least once.




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Step 5 ride up wind so you can stop doing the walk of shame back up the beach following your kite catcher.




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Now that Dan is as Joe says a kite surfer dude he has decided to come back here again for a few days to have some fun next week. In the mean time we are going to meet his sister and her family in Nosara.

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The drive south was initially on the gravel road back to la Cruz and then for a few hours on the pavement.



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After leaving La Cruz there are several Policia stops about 5 km apart, where they record your passport number. It was uber hot at 37.5 degrees and kind of like riding your bike inside a sauna.



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We stopped for lunch and a cold drink in Liberia and ran into Blake from Ottawa whom we had met on the street in Antigua at the beginning of January. Small world!



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This kid was so excited he was waving his thumbs up at us.



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At Santa Cruz you leave the pavement and drive the 68 km of dirt to Nosara on the pacific Coast.



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The dirt was a bit deep in spots.



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Nearer to town where there is more traffic there was some minor Ripio and some areas in the villages had a skim of cement on the dirt.



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We stayed in the place Daniel's sister rented which was a nice enough place in Nosara, but this is not a town we would recommend at all. It is a dustbowl. Luckily we had a pool t beat the 40-degree heat. Dan is cowering in the shade watching the mermaid/men swim.





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This place has another down fall it is in the middle of nowhere, but does have a tuk tuk to drive the 15 min to the nearest beach or 30 min to a surf beach.





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Shopping with my niece Kiara at the fruit market.



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Fun in the pool




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We managed to get out to the nearest Beach Playa Pelada for some exploration of the tide pools.



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We also got in some fun in the waves.



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Oooh, just caught up with this tidbit. Definitely need to get this on the calendar. Got dates for the conference yet?

Small world indeed (I met him as well here in Guate) , and like I always say : It gets much smaller once you are out there riding it !!

Huzar & Hewby

July 28-31. So Mexican night in Ballard July 26?? Round up the gang.


GR

Small world for sure we have run into Juaquim and Trevor also in the last 2 days. Must be because we are hanging about working on our tans.


Sara

Great ride report...we were just in Samara just over a week ago...loved it

Still in CR??


Sara

Leaving the dust and heat of Nosara we retreated to the beach at Samara. This was a 28 km ride down a VERY dusty dirt road.



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On the up hill and looking back down hill. I’m trying to stay back out of Dan’s dust cloud.



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Not too bad yet as there is no traffic.



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Here comes the dust.



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This road was nasty also because it was so bumpy. Both of us had numb hands from the road and the ripio.



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There is a short cut off the gravel on a dirt bit of road.



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Then you hit the pavement of Samara a few km from town.





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This is a nice little beach town.



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Hey you two,

Sent you a PM. I see you made it to Samara...lovely beach town with beautiful beaches and awesome people. If still there, head over to La Vela Latina Beach Bar...on Monday nights, its 2 for 1 Sushi (delicious).

natraps

Thanks for the tip!

Sara

You are very welcome...continue to enjoy CR

Samara looks awesome. (Keep those pics coming! And if you ever get the time to write more about your experiences ... that's be great too. But it's amazing how many pics you consistently post.)

~Doug

Doug

I will try. I spend a lot of time on the posts, but you are right I need to add more to the photos. It's just so hard to describe I guess


Sara