Arenal Hot Springs

The Arenal volcano is the most active volcano in the Western Hemisphere but we didn't get to see it as it rained or was cloudy while we were there. Fortunately, we were at a very nice spa with pools, nestled in the rain forest, descending down the hillside going from hottest to cooler. It was lovely sitting in the pleasantly warm (above 100F) mineral water, sipping a drink with friends while a cooling tropical rain came down - one of my favorite memories.
The bar pool was pretty neat too.

Tourist Tree

The Rainbow Eucapyptus that we were enchanted by in Hawaii has been imported to Costa Rica also. Madri, our guide calls it the tourist tree. The multicolor bark that peels off to reveal each color got this nickname because it turns red and peels like tourists. Cute! Eucalyptus being an introduced species has become a pest tree along with many other plants.

Turrialba Cost Rica

My favorite place in the small town of Turrialba was along the river that comes down from the volcano. There were many birds in the tall trees with orange blooms

San Jose Costa Rica

Had a great trip to Costa Rica. The first day in San Jose by myself. Took a taxi to the central market. Lots of people shopping, cruising on a Friday evening. With no Walmart and other American style shopping the central market was bustling. San Jose had a European feel with a tropical Latin influence. I loved it and felt very energized.
The market had stalls with fresh fruit and vegetables, meat, housewares and just about anything else one might need or want. The herbal medicine booth smelled wonderful.

Virgin Falls Backpacking Trip

In November the Backpacking Meetup had a trip to Virgin Falls on the Cumberland Plateau near Sparta. This was my first backpacking trip and the prediction was for freezing temperatures and precipitation. I wasn't sure about it but went anyway. Thanks to good equipment, experienced leadership and a relaxed plan it turned out to be a great weekend. We camped about halfway in. That was good, didn't have to carry gear so far. A big pack on your back throws your center of gravity off, hiking poles help. Once we set up camp and put the packs in our tents, we were able to hike more quickly to the Falls. There was a crowd of Scouts and Vandy students camping at Virgin Falls. There was very little room to pitch tents and all the downed wood had been taken so that was another reason to camp where we did even though we did share the area with another Scout group.
When we returned to camp we made a small fire and cooked our food, nothing memorable. During the night several showers passed through but I stayed cozy all night. When I stuck my head out in the morning the rain had turned to flurries. As we left camp and came out of the gorge back up to the plateau level there was snow, not much but it was pretty.

Ice on Pond

We had 9 degree temperatures January 16 and the pond froze over, quite pretty. The robins would drink water from the fountain. A small pile of seed collected where they passed through their system while they sipped water. A dove got its water from "skating" on the ice to the edge of the hole.

TEN MINUTE SNOW

We finally got some snow this morning - ten minutes worth. I rushed out and took pictures. It was a good thing because it was gone in a few minutes.
Ruby didn't want to go out in the snow. You can see her under the middle window.
We had a 60 degree day a while back after below freezing (dry) temperatures for a week. Took advantage of it and did some weeding. The ground was frozen about 1 1/2 inches down. By scraping the weeding went fast.