Drive to Quepos and Manuel Antonio

The drive to Quepos/Manuel Antonio was wonderful. We were able to see the Country. The civil engineer, Eric rode along with us, answering our questions about the country.

The roads are well paved but only 2 lanes. We were introduced to the Robert Anderson school of Puerto Rican driving – which made the ride a total adventure. The trip took about 2 hours or so. When leaving San Jose the road traverses a mountain offering views of the metropolitan area on one side, and the Pacific Ocean on the other. There were a few amazing homes with both views – a rarity found in only a few special places on the planet.

The small towns and roadside stands were very quaint. In many places along the road there were painted rocks, which were really well done. Most vistas were too expansive to photograph successfully, or we were driving through dense jungle lined roads.

Travel to Quepos only takes about 25 minutes by plane from San Jose for $50. Travel by car is more difficult but a new road and 2 new bridges will reduce the drive time from 2 hours to 45 minutes opening up easy access to this jewel of South American coastline. You can see the photos of the 2 bridges, which only accept 1 direction of traffic at a time. Wait times can be 5 minutes or 30 minutes.

Upon arrival we went directly to the Ranch, La Serena. The backhoe was working for a couple of days to improve the road to provide access for the soil surveys. The clay mud was super deep - made it through the first fence before burring the wheels.

First we called the horse, and then we called the Cat.

My first impression of La Serena was excellent. It is a sanctuary ranch positioned above the town of Quepos offering views of the Pacific Ocean along with hidden valleys of tropical jungle full of parrots and monkeys. Robert’s vision for the development is perfect. Connected to the town in the foothills will be a shopping and restaurant area. On the south side of town will be the condo/hotel. Discrete passages will allow access to the resort and development amenities with ponds, pools, golf, spa, yadda yadda. I look forward to riding through the property on horseback later in the week.

Today we are going surfing in Manuel Antonio and I look forward to my first lesson. It is hot and humid and the water is warm. Sunburn, here I come!

Photos