Horseback to Nauyaca Waterfalls

It's an area of the world still intact to its origins; where zones of jungle and lush greenery exceed the resorts and clubs; where horns and the fervent chatter of countless conversations subside to a steady Baru River wind. In Costa Rica, popular fare of its tourism does not revolve around Spring Break or the number of bold-name celebrities the country draws in; its tourists are ecologically-conscious and visit to embrace the natural attractions.

One such vestige of our devolving planet is hidden an hour, by horseback, into Costa Rican jungle—Nauyaca Falls. Hidden in the hills between San Isidro el General and Dominical, it is the highest and most expansive of the country, with furious channels of water careening over the top lip, crashing over three levels of rock, and into a number of different pools at the base. Engulfing Nauyaca are towering walls of trees and vine and bushes and the sounds of animals native to the area.

Getting to the Falls was not as much of a commitment as I had assumed. The commute to San Jose from my room at the Paradisus Playa Conchal was an hour's bus ride and from there, another 30 to the Nauyaca Office. It was there that I was introduced to Don Lulo, the tour's guide, well-versed in both English and Spanish, the horses, and Costa Rica's jungle. Lulo and his family have been guiding ecotourists like me to the Falls for over fifteen years.

The tour shared breakfast with Lulo's family before saddling up to follow a trail that would quickly disappear into a small parting in the trees. As we ventured further, the path would dip into waist-high mud, only to mount back up to rocky hill, and I couldn't help but appreciate the confident footing of my horse. I could tell that it knew the land as well as Don Lulo. Even when it was up to its knees in the thick mud, it would choose every step, exactly—certain.

When we arrived, we tied up our horses and surveyed the scene, the building sound of rushing water as we approached the falls was finally revealed as the thick channels of water exploding on the surface of a pool at the base of Nauyaca. When our guide, without hesitation, dived in, we all followed suit, eventually climping a rope up the falls to a ledge where the bravest of us, me included, leapt into the serene, tepid jungle air.

Somewhere between noon and one, a consensus vote sent us heading back to the tour office. It wasn't that we had tired of the place, but all of that swimming and diving can incite the most unruly of hunger pangs. Following lunch, I thanked Don Lulo and his family for the experience and vivid memories that would follow. The falls, I had decided, would be something of tradition, and an apex of future Costa Rican vacations.