Costa Rica Days 13–15: Lake Arenal in the Rain and a Shift to Guanacaste

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Day 13

The pace slowed with a calm kayak outing on Lake Arenal, trading jungle trails for open water and wide-angle views. We paddled across the lake with long, uninterrupted sightlines to Arenal Volcano, which was quietly active, releasing a thin ribbon of smoke from the summit.

The experience was less about wildlife and more about atmosphere — steady paddling, changing light, and the contrast between the stillness of the lake and the scale of the volcano dominating the horizon. It was one of those understated Costa Rica moments that doesn’t shout for attention but stays with you long after.

Day 14

Fishing on Lake Arenal was never part of the original plan. It was added on once we realized the opportunity was there, and given the conditions, it turned into one of the tougher days of the trip.

We were up at 6 a.m. to heavy rain. The transport that arrived was a small, very tired Toyota — windows that wouldn’t close, worn shocks, noisy wheel bearings, and a driver, Luis, who didn’t speak any English. Still, at $100 for a two-hour drive compared with the $250 quoted by tour companies, it got us where we needed to go.

The facilities at the launch ramp were grim — easily among the worst I’ve encountered anywhere — and by 7 a.m. we were climbing aboard a Ranger bass boat in pouring rain. There was no sense the weather was going to improve.

Our guide, Tyler, knew the lake well and was happy to share his knowledge. We targeted machaca, the same hard-mouthed, fruit-eating fish I’d already encountered earlier in the trip, so this wasn’t new territory. The tactics were familiar: working overhanging trees, submerged logs, and grass lines, presenting the lure like falling fruit. Tilapia were sitting on their beds and hit aggressively. I fished hard for five solid hours and landed three machaca and two tilapia, all on a green bomber square-lipped lure, striking firmly to drive the hooks home.

Colleen and Tyler spent most of the session sheltering under umbrellas while I fished through the rain. Despite the conditions, wildlife still made an appearance. We saw a group of four toucans and a blue heron, and earlier in the day we’d had a close roadside encounter with a small group of White-nosed coati, calmly foraging right beside the road — a reminder of how closely wildlife and daily life overlap in Costa Rica. An unusually rare sight later in the day was a sloth moving along the ground, which brought traffic to a standstill as passing cars pulled over to look.

By the end of the session, we were soaked, but thankfully not cold. That alone made a difference. The evening visit to Pura Vida Hot Springs felt perfectly timed. After a day of fishing in relentless rain, the warm pools were exactly what was needed.

Pura Vida Hot Springs isn’t as luxurious as Paradise Hot Springs, which we’d visited earlier in the week, but it was still very pleasant. The cocktails were excellent, the rain never felt uncomfortable, and soaking there rounded out a hard day in the best possible way. Dinner afterward was unremarkable, but the hot springs did their job.

Day 15

Day 15 was a travel day and a clear turning point in the trip. We left the Arenal region and headed northwest into Guanacaste, arriving at Hacienda Guachipelín, set on the slopes of Rincón de la Vieja Volcano.

The change in landscape was immediate. The lush rainforest gave way to open, drier terrain with far fewer birds and a very different feel. Rincón de la Vieja is one of Costa Rica’s most geologically active areas, shaped by volcanic heat, steam vents, and dry tropical forest rather than constant rain.

Hacienda Guachipelín felt completely different from anywhere we’d stayed so far. It’s a working ranch as much as it is a lodge, and that authenticity is part of its appeal. Open spaces, horses and cattle, and an atmosphere that feels more cowboy outpost than jungle lodge. Even early on, it felt like the strongest accommodation of the trip, though it was still too soon to make a final judgement.

We shared a generous mixed meat platter for lunch — tenderloin, chicken, pork rib, and chorizo with salad — along with a hibiscus-infused gin and tonic and an Imperial beer. At around $70, it felt like excellent value. Later, we settled in for happy hour cocktails at the bar, looking out over the ranch and talking through the activities ahead.

After days dominated by rainforest, rivers, and humidity, Guachipelín marked the beginning of a new phase of the journey — drier, hotter, and shaped as much by fire and geology as by water.

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