Costa Rica has a lot of great rivers to raft, but we chose to do our white water rafting adventure on the Savegre River with Pro Rafting Tours.  The Savegre River allows tourists to feel at one with the rain-forest and is considered the most pristine river in Central America.

Felipe, Louis, and Diego picked us up at 0730.  We were educated on everything local in Costa Rica as we drove to our drop off point.  Costa Rica used to rely solely on Coffee export and then branched out to include bananas.  Then the government realized it needed to diversify more, so now they export coffee, African Palm oil, rice, orchids, strawberries, and much more.   Click here to read the history on African Palm Oil in Costa Rica.

Costa Rican Road to the Savegre River:

We stopped and smelled several plants including the licorice plant, the teak leaf or Jagua plant which is used for henna tattoos, and the cintinela berries (aka Monkey Balls of Costa Rica photo above).  We stopped in a small town called Silencio which has its own currency called “Utis” see above picture.

Really beautiful views of the 75,000 hectares of African Palm Trees (see photo above).  The oil collected from the nuts are used for make-up, lotions, hair products, chocolate, and more.  The trees are grown in a lush area called the nursery for 6 months then moved to their forever home where they will produce for 28-32 years.

About 90-minutes later, we arrived at our drop off location.  Diego and Felipe pumped air into the raft, gave us a safety drill, and took the last photos of us in dry clothing.

The boys, experienced rafters, took the bow as I was placed in the middle.  Matt and Wayne had spent 10 days rafting the very challenging Futaleufu river in Chile with Class IV and V rapids.  Whereas, I have never rafted before.  Well, we went tubing down the San Marcos river but I am not sure that counts.

Diego was in the kayak and his job was safety first and photography second.  He ensured we maintained a safe route and was there in case we had a yard sale (flipped the raft or fell out).  Luckily, the only thing he had to retrieve were the boys flip flops.

Rafting Adventure Begins

Felipe navigated the river and tried to up the anty by delving us straight into the rapids.  For the most part, it was relatively rafting experience with a good flowing river.  We all took it seriously, but from the photos it looks like I was giggling the entire time.  Probably because I busted out laughing every time we got soaked.

Snack Stop at a Waterfall

Half way down the river, we stopped to walk to a waterfall.  Diego and Felipe put out snacks including pineapple, cookies, chips, and tea.  It offered a very refreshing dip in the pool just under the falls.

Felipe seemed to like to hear me laugh as he buried the bow in the rapids frequently.  The boys blocked a lot of the water, but not enough to prevent me from getting soaked each time.

Super Soaker

It’s like the “Where’s Waldo” scene on water.  Diego did a great job of capturing the photos on the rapids.

These photos crack me up – I was having such a good time.  Boys look serious as they prepare to be drenched and I’m about to duck.

These are my favorite three photos.  Thank goodness for the bright blue helmets otherwise you’d think we fell out.  Check out the ass of the raft on the last picture.

It was a great day, even though the rapids were only Class II with an occasional Class III and we weren’t on the water as long as we anticipated.  With that in mind, Felipe and Diego did a really good job entertaining us and making the best out of what we had.  I would recommend rafting the full day (we did the 3/4 day) to get bigger rapids or perhaps rafting the Naranjo river during rainy season.  But this river, was beautiful, scenic, and great for family fun.

A perfect start for me and fun had by all.