Bijagual Waterfall Hike Traditional Cache

Take a hike through the rainforest to the highest non free-falling waterfall in Costa Rica and find a geocache at the same time! Hikers should have a moderate to advanced fitness level and wear decent shoes/boots. Go early (opens at 7am) to avoid the rain, especially in the rainy season. Look for animals such as green poison dart frogs, snakes, birds, monkeys, and paca.

From Highway 34 take the turn off up the mountain towards the town of Bijagual (there is a large white and black sign for Hotel Villa Lapas at the turn off point). Follow the dirt road up the mountain about 5km, until you reach a small hut with signs for the waterfall on the right hand side with a viewpoint of the mountain valley and Pacific Ocean. There are spots to park in front of the hut and you can pay the entrance fee of $20 per foreigner and $10 per resident to the guard on duty who will watch your car while you are hiking. Hike the easy-to-follow trail through the jungle, over a couple small creeks and watch for signs to the small pools (piscinas) for bathing, or to the waterfall (catarata). Follow the sign to the waterfall, you will hear it before you see it. Enjoy your first view of the waterfall from up high, then hike down towards the base of the waterfall. After you climb up a small man-made ladder there is a small cave in the rocks and you are near the geocache. It's a small plastic container with no pen, only logbook, so BYOP. The entire hike including time for bathing can take between 2.5 - 4 hours depending on your speed! Happy geocaching!