Seen at right, is a view to what we woke up to every morning while staying at Tabacon Resort near the base
of Arenal Volcano (pronounced Ahh-ree-nul - don't forget to roll the 'r'). As the custom in Central America for newly married couples,
we decided to hike to the summit and throw sacraficial goat into the molten hot lava.
Buuuut, we couldn't find a goat, and Laurie didn't want to haul the thing all the way to the top, so we settled
for a hike around the base of the volcano.
Actually, they don't allow people to hike to the summit anymore because there are lava flows that constantly erupt
from the top. Our hike started along the lava flow fields of 1968 (I think), which were overgrown with small brush. We continued through to
a secondary forest, and emerged at the lava flow fields of 1992 (where I'm standing on the right, you can see the secondary forest behind
me).
Here, we stopped and had a breather, took some photos, and took in the scenery. Laurie is standing on a group of
boulders near our trail. Behind her is Lake Arenal - a beautiful high altitude lake that is popular for fishing and windsurfing.
We continued our hike through the lava fields of '92, then back down into some primary forest. Finally, we ended our
hike by crossing over a small stream where our transfer picked us up.
