Some events really capture the feeling of a place. And I think one of the things that really captures the beach bum soul of Tarifa is sitting in a parking lot next to the beach and drinking gin and tonics after a session of kiting.
The day was great for kiting. The beach was a bit on the crowed side, because the wind had changed directions, meaning fewer of the launches worked well. But there was plenty of room once you were out in the water. The weather’s warming up here, but it’s still the Atlantic Ocean, so the water is nice and cold (wetsuits strongly recommended). The wind was good, and the waves were light, so it was a good day to head out and practice. Since she had finished work earlier than usual, Elani came along as well, not to kite but just to enjoy the sun and sand. We met up with a friend of ours who’s a consummate kiter and digital nomad from the UK.
After kiting, packing up our gear, and heading back to the cars, our bud offered to make up a round of gin and tonics (being British, of course she had the supplies on hand), and we sat around bullshitting and enjoying the last of the sun and the view of the evening light on the rocky hill just inland from the waves. Walking back to the beach, the crowds of kiters had gone and all there was left was the view of the sunset and the Rock of Gibraltar poking through the mists in the distance.
View of the sunset and the Rock of Gibraltar poking through the mists Taken by Elani
Do you dream of retiring and moving somewhere warm and tropical, where people live a slower, more deliberate life? Well, come to Nuevo Arenal, and you can see what that looks like every time you walk by a bar or café. Now, you’ll find expats littered all over Costa Rica, but what make them stand out in Arenal (I’m going to save myself the trouble of writing Nuevo every time and just call it Arenal – like everyone else in the area) is that there’s not much else there. So what you have is a town that, if left to its own devices, would be a place for local farmers to buy groceries and supplies and for travelers to get a tank of gas and a bite to eat. But the weather is pleasant and the views of the lake and volcano (both also named Arenal) are decent, but not good enough to attract significant tourism – so a bunch of old gringos moved in and brought with them enough restaurants and shops to keep them happy.
A view of the hills at sunset behind some typical houses in Arenal Taken by Elani
So, why did me and Elani end up there for 12 days? Because there’s kiteboarding in the area. Bet you didn’t see that coming. Also, it looked a like a nice place to chill and relax with enough restaurants and good enough Internet to keep us happy and Elani working. It was a good place to settle in for a few days and change gears from being in tourist mode in Monteverde to living at a more sustainable pace while traveling.
Getting there was pretty straight forward. We took a public bus to Tilaran (what, you’ve never heard of Tilaran?), the closest city to Arenal, and our AirBnB host offered to pick us up there, partly as an excuse to runs some errands. He was, as you probably could have guessed, a mostly retired ex-pat who owned an apartment building that was built by another old ex-pat, and rented mainly to other old ex-pats. It was a nice little apartment, nothing fancy, but with everything we needed to be comfortable for a couple of weeks.
The town itself was cute, with two main roads formed an “L” and had most of the shops bars and restaurants. At the end of one of the roads was a nice looking little church that overlooked the soccer fields – you know, exactly want you might expect from a pleasant Costa Rican town.
Arenal’s church and soccer fields. Taken by Elani
It was pretty common to see views of Arenal Volcano from spots in the town – it didn’t have the commanding presence that it did in our next stop, La Fortuna but it was quite picturesque.
Arenal Volcano seen over over Neuvo Arenal. Taken by Elani
In town, there honestly wasn’t a lot to do other then taking a walk, eating, and drinking. But those were pretty worthwhile activities, since the scenery was pleasant and sightings of keel billed toucans (for the uninitiated, those are the ones that look like Toucan Sam), vultures, and other birds were fairly common, and Arenal definitely punches above its weight with respect to the food scene. There were several good options for pizza (which is pretty much the second option you’ll find in Costa Rican after Costa Rican food), local, and American-ish. We had some admirable burgers and pasta at a place right next to the lake.
Lake view restaurant in Arenal Taken by Elani
But the real standout restaurant was the “Gingerbread.” The chief was an American-trained Israeli chief with a gregarious attitude and a rather foul mouth. We ordered a 5 course chief’s menu and were by no means disappointed or underfed. The first two courses were a roast duck quesadilla and a wild mushroom cream with fresh bread. They were followed by a Greek salad, fish, and fillet minion. Which were then followed by a multi element desert with ice cream, cake, passion fruit seeds, and some things I’m sure I’m forgetting. Everything was great, but I think the first two courses were the winners.
Roast duck quesadilla and creamed wild mushrooms at The Gingerbread restaurant Taken by Elani
I’m writing this a bit after the fact, so now that it’s been a couple months, I’d say the most memorable part was – not surprisingly – the kiting. On Lake Arenal, there’s really just the one launch. It’s run by a nice Brit who’s been running it for the last 19 years that it’s been a vacation spot of sailboarders and, more recently, kiters. It was probably still a bit more of a sailboarder spot then a kiter spot, but there wasn’t any of the silly rivalry that sometimes pops up between the two groups. Everyone was very friendly, so there was always someone to shoot the shit with on breaks between sessions or when waiting for the wind to pick up. Since I didn’t have a rental car, the trip out there was a bit of a slog on the public buses with all my gear. On top of that, there wasn’t really a stop where I needed to get off (which is fairly typical for Costa Rican buses) so on the return trip, I had to wait until the bus went by (which could vary quite a bit) and flag the driver down. Oh well – after a couple times, it was pretty much routine.
The conditions on Arenal aren’t perfect, and I can see why it hasn’t become one of the kiting meccas of the world. The launch was tricky, the wind is fairly gusty and variable, and the water is fairly choppy, but not choppy enough for wave riding. On the other hand, the wind was certainly a fair sight tamer than at Playa Copal (a welcome change, I must say) and there was pretty much always enough of it. Also, the temperatures were warm enough to never even consider a wetsuit, the scenery had excellent views of Mount Arenal in the background, and as I mentioned, there was a nice contingent of friendly sail- and kiteboarders around. One particularly friendly sailboarder – Ted – was taking pictures between outings and was nice enough to send some of me along and let me use them here. This one does a great job of making me look awesome and showing off the views of the mountain:
Kiting on Lake Arenal Taken by Ted the sailboarder
The reason I worked to keep the size and weight of my gear down to normal checked baggage requirements (as I mentioned in my previous post: Kiteboarding Pack List ) is that the airlines I’ve booked with so far (Delta and Avianca) have specific fees for kiteboarding equipment. For Delta, a standard checked bag costs $25 (for the first bag, $40 for the second), whereas kiteboarding equipment costs $150. For Avianca, one checked bag is complementary, but there is a $100 fee for a kiteboarding bag. That means that so far, I’ve saved $225 by being able to pack into a normal checked bag. There was only one way to accomplish this – buy a splitboard. The price tag was a hefty $1,000, so we’ll see if it pays off in the long run. Not all airlines are charging for kiting equipment yet, but it’s starting to get on their radar. That means that more and more probably will, and I’ll have to book several more flights before I’m heading home. As for the performance costs of a riding a splitboard, so far they seem very minor, but I’ll write a thorough review once I’ve spent more time on it.
Just in case any wayward kiteboarders happen upon this blog and are curious what kit I put together to travel with, here’s the list:
Kite – 2014 Blade Trigger – 9m
Kite – 2015 Blade Trigger – 12m
Bar – Blade Unibar 3rd gen – 50cm
Board – Nobile NHL futurism splitboard – 138cm
Harness – Dakine C-1
Leashes – 1 full length and 1 short, both Blade
Kite bag – 1 Blade kite bag (I used one for both kites)
Patch kit – I just brought what came with both kites.
Pump – 1 pump and hose
Wetsuit – HyperFlex Cyclone 2 – 4/3mm – full length
Luggage – Penguin 32in rolling duffle
My goal was to get a complete kit in a standard checked bag – to avoid the kiteboard specific sports equipment fees that many airlines are starting to charge. So far so good, all told the final weight was 48 lbs. That’s two whole pounds to spare! The Nobile splitboard fits nicely in the bottom of the rolling duffle with very little room to spare. Obviously, this kit isn’t perfect for all conditions, but I’m not entirely sure where all I’ll end up before heading home, so I’m trying to give myself the biggest range possible and stay within the checked luggage requirements of 50 lbs. and 62 linear inches, which is the standard at the time I’m writing this. I’ll write more updates about how it works out and any adjustments I have to or would like to make. Stay tuned.
