Dominical Sunset

By time I got down from Chirripo to my base accommodation at Francisco’s I had descended 8,000 feet in one push. The next morning I was feeling it. My right knee was sore and my calves felt locked up tight. What to do but hike some more to work out the stiffness. I headed up to the Cloudbridge Nature Reserve for the afternoon and enjoyed some very nice peaceful trails amidst tropical forest along a river with idyllic waterfalls.

Aside of the stiffness and mild affects of feeling the altitude at the higher elevations I felt ok, however, I’m far from the hiker/climber, cross country skier, and mountain runner I once was while living in Colorado. My pace is a little slower and endurance a little lesser. Having based myself out of Houston since 2004 has reaffirmed by status as a flatlander. I do a good job at maintaining a decent level of fitness and am always in pretty good shape but as I enter into the backside of my 40’s I think it’s more important to maintain a consist training activity level of some sort. Older athletes always say, “Just keep doing it and you won’t lose it”. I find it nice that I no longer feel a competitive drive like I use to. I just like being fit and healthy. It’s a part of who I’ve always been.

Yesterday morning I awoke for no reason and a short while later there was an earthquake. Francisco’s wood framed corrugated roof structure took it well. What I felt was pretty mild but it got my attention. The epicenter was somewhere near San Jose and registered a 6.1 which is actually a fairly significant earthquake but there wasn’t much damage anywhere. No problema. Pura Vida.

Due to limited bus service it took me all day to travel approximately 50 miles from the Mt Chirripo area back to the edgy surf community of Dominical. While in the mountains I got in 4 days of hiking which really charged me up. Doing nothing by the beach has its place in my interest as I love the ocean but long walks in the wilderness or countryside do more good for my spirit than about anything.

Back in Dominical I went straight to the hotel I stayed at a week ago and checked into the same room. The owner was happy to see me again but a little angry due to a last minute cancellation by a friend who had booked the entire property. I dropped my pack and headed to the beach to join about a hundred or so free spirits, backpackers, and surfers for a nice sunset.