The Cucaracho River in Upala descends from the foothills of the Rincón de la Vieja Volcano. It's something pretty close to perfection, especially if we add the feeling of roller coaster ride that lasts 21 kilometers roundtrip... the result is an adrenaline rafting adventure with a view worthy of a National Geographic cover.

How to get there? Liberia 25 minutes to the north, turn towards Quebrada Grande, passing through the Orosi wind farm and continue towards Dos Ríos (Follow the signs of Blue River Hotel)

With Waze

Vehicle: Every vehicle arrives. But we recommend you use a high car. Dirt roads and it rains a lot. Parking: Yes Cost: ¢ 35000 per person (minimum 4 people) Info: Flow Trips Phone: 8380-1433 Rafting Time: 4 hours

What to bring?

Per day: 3 change of clothes (the area is quite wet), 2 towels, sandals preferable of those that are gladiator looking, 2 pairs of tennis shoes. Also snacks, beverages, sun blocker, repellent, camera, waterproof jacket, and a very good attitude.

Food? The rafting tour includes snacks halfway, also at the end of a sandwich and beverage.

It all started at dawn at 5:00 am, heading towards Liberia along the Northern Interamerican Route. We made a classic and obligatory stop at the giant bull of Tres Hermanas, in Limonal for breakfast delight. We passed through Liberia, and after 25 minutes there was an entrance on the right, towards Quebrada Grande where the road became more and more beautiful.

First we were surprised when in the middle of the ballast road we could appreciate the first giant propeller, then the others appeared as giants that adorned the meadows, in addition, we could appreciate the Rincon de la Vieja Volcano, then the street that was taking us between town lead us to the start of our rafting trip.

The Flow Trips team explained a bit of the technique, language and commands during rafting. The tour started relaxed enough to practice and then became more technical in some sections, but what was not lacking was excitement and adrenaline. The place where we were sailing was another 100 pesos, a forest with big trees protected us from the sun a lot of the time, while we were going through deep canyons between giant stones, some monkeys looked at us with curiosity.

What makes this river incredible is the purity and temperature of the water, the evergreen and imposing nature, the rowing and the isolation of the area that makes the adventure unique.

After arriving dead to the place where we stayed, we ate some killer homemade burgers, we had a much-needed power nap and went to parties on a farm called Rancho de Don Chu, there near Gavilán. Like any good town party, there were bullfights with legendary narrators included, dance music, foosball, strong drinking, and some absurdly good food. These parties are held every month to month and a half. I recommend asking the locals to see if there are activities because they really give a different view of the classic tradition with a few of ur ancestor roots.