Whitewater Rafting on the Pacuare

Costa Rica is known for its whitewater and in my opinion the Pacuare should be included on every itinerary that visits the country. It was SO. MUCH. FUN! I grew up on the river since my dad has guided in Washington state since before I was born. I was ready for the whitewater, but I've never been a boat that my dad wasn't in charge of so I was a little nervous. My nerves were instantly soothed when I met our guides and saw what a tight ship - no pun intended - the folks at Rios Tropicales run. There were maybe 30 of us headed out on to the river that day and we were broken up into groups of about 4-6 based on language we spoke and who was traveling with who. On the ride to the river we received a safety briefing, all the stuff I've heard a thousand times growing up, but of vital importance.

Mom and I got paired up with three young Costa Rica men all who spoke varying amounts of English. I think I was most impressed with our guide, Carlos' ability to switch seemlessly from taking to Mom and I in English to Spanish and making everyone feel like they were included and taken care of. Before each rapid Carlos would give us a run down of what to expect, what paddle commands he might call and he would take us through it like a champ. Our safety briefing came in handy when one of the guys fell out towards the end of a rapid, but other than that things went off without a hitch.  

This is the single most fun excursion I did on my entire trip. HIGHLY recommended.