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| The Chirripó Crew! (L-R: Matt, Benji, Ana, Lina, Ellie, Dan) |
We have arrived at basecamp, eventhough we are cold, wet and
exhausted. The first day’s hike is just over 14km, with an altitude increase of
about 7,000 feet. Lets just say it was long and hard, but how could it not be
rewarding to climb the tallest peak in Costa Rica!
Awake by 4am and at the trailhead by 5, all 7 of us were
loaded with our backpacks full of mostly food and a change of warm clothes. The
first km was as rough as we expected, but the sun was rising and the views of
San Gerardo and the rolling pastures were worth it. The climb continued up
through the cloudforest, along the edge between pasture and forest. We entered
Chirripó National Park at the third km with high energy and excitement for the
rest of the trip!
By far my favorite part of that first hike was km 6 and 7,
where the trail followed along the top of a beautiful ridge that could have
came out of a movie like Lord of the Rings or some fairytale. We took a lunch
break half way, even though it was only about 8:30 in the morning. In classic
SFS style, we had done way too much before 9am! We were advised to not eat a
lot before we left because the altitude change could make you sick, so we
stopped at an emergency shelter for a lunch of PB+Js. We were happy either way:
we had made it half way!
Benji and I took the lead again after lunch and we pounded
out 4 more pretty steep and intense kms. The cloudforest broke after that and
we entered “Los Quemados” (the burns). A bunch of fires took place between 1991
and 2001, leaving a burnt desert in the place of the cathedral-like
cloudforests. After 11 years though, the groundcover was returning and plenty
of birds and flowers were now thriving.
Of course, at 10,000 feet, the clouds were always imminent,
and clouds also mean rain. The rain started, and hasn’t stopped, since the 11th
km. Only 3 more until base camp, so we powered through. The group decided to
split at that point, and Benji and I took off, giving ourselves 1.5 hours to
get there!
The rain didn’t stop and the wind picked up when the trail
sigh told us we only had 1.5 kms left! Our energy was decreasing and our pace
was slowing, but all we had was one final steep leg call “Repentance.” Adequately
named, we struggled up the last part (with many stops and few words of how much
it sucked and how it felt like our bodies were shutting down)! Finally, the
last hill and into a beautiful valley, we saw the camp at last!
Soaked, freezing, exhausted, yet ecstatic we made it, we tumbled
into the rangers office to get our beds and get out of our wet clothes and into
anything warm and dry we had left! The other 5 showed up not long after, and we settled in for
the afternoon. The rain is still going, but at least we have our sleeping bags
and hot food!
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