2004 Costa Rica - Cerro Chirripo

Cerro Chirripo is the highest peak in Costa Rica, at roughly 12500 feet. It's one of the few places where, if weather permits, you can see both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

It isn't trivial to reach (you need to climb around 6000 feet the first day), but the trail is well-designed and in excellent condition, and there's a substantial lodge at roughly 11000 feet where you can overnight.

We decided to take the decadent approach, and hired a guide and packer from Selva Mar. The packer carried food and overnight gear up to the lodge by horse, so we carried only our daypacks, lunch, and camera gear. Including stops for lunch, birdwatching, and photography, the hike up to the lodge took us 8.5 hours. We did the next day's hike to the top in a leisurely 2.5 hours. Younger folks were moving faster, some making it all the way to the top in one day.

Our guide, Julian, was an excellent birder. The community of San Gerardo de Rivas has sponsored many efforts to make the park more accessible, and it turned out that Julian constructed many of the signs along the trail.

The lodge is a beautiful building, but cold. (Shower carefully; the water is snowmelt temperature.) Julian did the cooking for us, but there's an open kitchen area where you can cook for yourself using either your portable stove or built-in equipment.

We reached the summit on Michelle's birthday, and the weather cooperated beautifully, allowing us to see both coastlines.


Tico house where we enjoyed breakfast before hiking the Chirripo trail. San Gerardo de Rivas	The Thermometer. Does it take your measure, or is it just really hot? (Julian, our guide, on the left.) On the trail to Cerro Chirripo	Farms below us. Cerro Chirripo trail


Bromeliad in bloom. On the trail to Cerro Chirripo	Old Man's Beard. On the trail to Cerro Chirripo	Probably a black-billed nightingale thrush. On the trail to Cerro Chirripo


Flowers forming berries. On the trail to Cerro Chirripo	Afternoon clouds moving in. Cerro Chirripo trail	The lodge (Albergue Chirripo). On the trail to Cerro Chirripo


Windows of the guest rooms at the lodge. Albergue Chirripo	Our room. Albergue Chirripo	Los Crestones. Albergue Chirripo


Green lizards, common along the trail. On the trail to Cerro Chirripo	...and they're startlingly blue underneath! On the trail to Cerro Chirripo	Baru Volcano in Panama, visible at the right. On the trail to Cerro Chirripo


Michelle and Julian. On the trail to Cerro Chirripo	Chirripo Lake. On the trail to Cerro Chirripo	The final stretch to the top of Cerro Chirripo. On the trail to Cerro Chirripo


The last pitch leading to the top of Cerro Chirripo. Cerro Chirripo	The Caribbean coast, barely visible. Cerro Chirripo	Michelle and Julian at the top! Cerro Chirripo


The trail back to the lodge. Pacific coast in the distance. Cerro Chirripo	Looking towards Uran. Cerro Chirripo	Looking towards the Poas and Irazu volcanoes. Cerro Chirripo


Michelle and Julian enjoying Michelle's birthday lunch. Cerro Chirripo	Clouds moving into Moraine Lakes valley. Cerro Chirripo	Bunchgrass and Los Crestones. Near the Chirripo lodge


Ice from water-supply pressure-relief valves. Chirripo lodge	San Gerardo de Rivas. From the Cerro Chirripo trail	Celebrating Michelle's birthday! San Gerardo de Rivas